A Little Mercedes-Benz History

Of course you know that Mercedes-Benz has been producing sophisticated and powerful vehicles like the many C-Class models you’ll find here at Gurley Leep Motor Werks. But how much do you really know about the German automaker?

For example, did you know that the Mercedes was the daughter of founder Emil Jellinek? It’s true! Jellinek was insistent that one of the first engines approved by his team be named after his daughter. The name would later follow through into the first automobile powered by the engine, the Mercedes 35hp model. When Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) merged with Benz & Cie in 1926, the company would hang on to the iconic name.

As one of the most widely-recognize automotive brands in the world, it’s easy to forget that there are 1,500 dedicated Mercedes-Benz employees in the U.S. alone. (That’s not counting the 356 dealerships with 21,500 employees.) On top of which, the company is headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany, with 93 research, development and corporate locations around the globe. 17 production facilities on five continents build models for luxury drivers around the world.

About those employees – Mercedes-Benz recruits some of the best minds in technology, business, and retail. Though we think recruiting is probably easy for the company, as it placed #12 on FORTUNE’s 100 Best Places to Work, and NJ BIZ Best Places to Work, too.

One last thing we’d like to add to this last of things you might not know about Mercedes-Benz: many of the safety technologies we take for granted today, like crumple zones and anti-lock braking systems made their industry debuts on new Mercedes-Benz models. Even airbags and belt-pretensioners weren’t the norm until 1980, when the automaker made them standard features. Today, you wouldn’t buy a car without airbags, would you? No. We didn’t think so.

You’ll find that the company’s history of innovation and pioneering design and safety permeate the lineup as well as all of the dealerships spread around the world. Gurley Leep Motor Werks is proud to represent the values that have made Mercedes-Benz one of the world’s foremost luxury automakers, and we invite you to stop by our showroom at 4004 N Grape Rd Mishawaka, IN 46545 to see them in action.

Contact us today to arrange a time to meet with us and take any of our new Mercedes-Benz models for a test drive.