Mercedes Benz

Preview May 2009

PREVIEW OF ANNIVERSARIES 2009

14–17 May 2009 – Mille Miglia Storica in Italy:
The Mille Miglia Storica takes participants and their classic cars on a 1,000-mile route, which even today is not without adventure.

20–30 May 1949 – 60 years ago:
The Mercedes-Benz 170 S and 170 D made their debut at the Hanover Technology Fair. These were the first Mercedes-Benz passenger cars to be developed after the Second World War. The L 3250 truck and the O 3250 bus were also exhibited, heralding a new era in commercial vehicle production at Daimler-Benz. The new OM 300 diesel engine model series for commercial vehicles made its debut in the L 3250 with the OM 312. Continuously developed and modified to meet latest demands, this model series is still produced today.


Other notable events:

1 May 1909 – 100 years ago: Paul Graetz became the first person to drive a car across Africa. German-born Graetz set out on his 9,500-kilometre journey on 10 August 1907, driving a special-purpose vehicle built by Süddeutsche Automobilfabrik Gaggenau GmbH, a predecessor of Benz-Werke Gaggenau.

1 May 1924 – 85 years ago: Benz & Cie. and Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft established a joint venture, which led to the merger between the two companies in 1926 to form Daimler-Benz AG.

7 May 1939 – 70 years ago: Hermann Lang and Rudolf Caracciola scored an impressive double victory at the Tripoli Grand Prix in the purpose-built Mercedes-Benz W 165 1.5-litre formula racing car.

13–15 May 1974 – 35 years ago: The New Generation heavy-duty trucks from Mercedes-Benz made their debut in Wörth. These included trucks with a gross vehicle weight of 16 to 26 tonnes.

5 May 1979 – 30 years ago: Development engineer Hans Liebold reached a top speed of 403.978 km/h on the circuit in Nardo, Italy, driving the record-breaking C 111-IV.

5 May 1994 – 15 years ago: The Mayor of Stuttgart, Manfred Rommel, and passenger car executive Jürgen Hubbert performed the official groundbreaking ceremony to launch construction of the new engine plant in Bad Cannstatt.

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