Ronnie Jackson Mercedes, Down Town Houston
Independent Mercedes Benz Dealer
Mercedes Benz History & Classic mercedes Benz Photos
Gottlieb Daimler & Karl Benz


The invention in the 1880s of
the high-speed engine and the
automobile enabled Gottlieb
Daimler and Karl Benz –
independently of one another –
to lay the foundations for the
motorization of road transport.
With the help of financial
backers and partners, they
both invested their
development projects in their
own private businesses – in
Mannheim, Benz founded the
firm Benz & Cie. in October
1883, and Daimler-Motoren-
Gesellschaft (DMG) was
formed in November 1890.


In order to gain publicity and a
certain distinction for their
products, both companies
sought a suitable trademark.
To begin with, the inventors
used their own names –
“Benz” and “Daimler”, which
vouched for the origin and
quality of the engines and
vehicles. The trademark of
Benz & Cie. remained
unchanged, except that in
1909, the cog wheel symbol
which had been used since
1903 was replaced with a laurel
wreath surrounding the name
Benz. But the turn of the
century brought a completely
new trade name for products
from Daimler-Motoren-
Gesellschaft (DMG) in
Cannstatt: “Mercedes”.
The first vehicle to be fitted with the new engine, a 35 hp racing car, was delivered to Jellinek by DMG on
December 22, 1900. This first ‘Mercedes’, developed by Wilhelm Maybach, the chief engineer at DMG, caused
quite a stir in the first year of the new century. With its low center of gravity, pressed-steel frame, light, high-
performance engine and honeycomb radiator, it featured numerous innovations and is regarded today as the
first modern automobile.

The Nice week in March 1901, during which the Mercedes vehicles were found to be unbeatable in virtually every
discipline, attracted enormous publicity for Jellinek and the Mercedes. In March and August 1901, the 12/16 hp
and 8/11 hp sister models appeared. Jellinek’s orders soon stretched the Daimler plant in Cannstatt to full
production capacity.

‘Mercedes’ was lodged as a trade name on June 23, 1902 and legally registered on September 26. From June
1903, Emil Jellinek obtained permission to call himself Jellinek-Mercedes, commenting: “This is probably the first
time that a father has taken his
daughter’s name.”
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The Evolution Of The
Mercedes Benz Logo