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Quality rankings

Since its inception, Mercedes-Benz had maintained a reputation for its quality and durability. Objective measures looking at passenger vehicles—such as J. D. Power surveys, demonstrated a downturn in reputation in this criteria in the late 1990s and early 2000s. By mid-2005, Mercedes temporarily returned to the industry average for initial quality, a measure of problems after the first 90 days of ownership, according to J.D. Power.[7] In J.D. Power's Initial Quality Study for the first quarter of 2007, Mercedes showed dramatic improvement by climbing from 25th to 5th place, surpassing quality leader Toyota, and earning several awards for its models.[8] For 2008, Mercedes-Benz's initial quality rating improved by yet another mark, now in fourth place.[9] On top of this accolade, it also received the Platinum Plant Quality Award for its Mercedes’ Sindelfingen, Germany assembly plant.[9] As of 2009, Consumer Reports of the United States has changed their reliability ratings for several Mercedes-Benz vehicles to "average", and are recommending the E-Class and the S-Class.[10]

Corporate average fuel economy

In the United States, Mercedes-Benz was assessed a record US$30.66 million for their decision to not meet the federal corporate average fuel economy standard in 2009.[11] Certain Mercedes-Benz cars including the S550, and all AMG models sold in the United States also face an additional gas guzzler tax.[12] However, newer AMG models fitted with the M157 engine will not be subject to the gas-guzzler tax due to improved fuel economy. [3]

In 2008, Mercedes had the worst CO2 average of all major European manufacturers, ranking 14th out of 14 manufacturers.[13] Mercedes was also the worst manufacturer in 2007 and 2006 in terms of average CO2 levels, with 181 g and 188 g of CO2 emitted per km, respectively.[14]

Current model range

Mercedes-Benz has a full range of passenger, light commercial and heavy commercial equipment. Production is on a global basis. The Smart marque of city cars has also been part of the Mercedes-Benz Group since 1994 and Mercedes-Benz re-launched the Maybach marque with the production 57 and 62 in 2002.

Passenger cars

See also: List of Mercedes-Benz cars

The following passenger vehicles were in production in 2011:

A-Class—Hatchback
B-Class—Multi Purpose
C-Class—Saloon, Estate & Coupé
CL-Class—Coupé
CLS-Class—4 door coupé
E-Class—Saloon, Estate, Coupé & Cabriolet
G-Class—cross-country vehicle
GL-Class—Off Roader
M-Class—Sports Utility Veihicle (SUV)
R-Class—Luxury Tourer Vehicle (LTV)
S-Class—Saloon
SL-Class—Roadster
SLK-Class—Roadster
SLS AMG—Coupé
Viano—Multi Porpose Vehicle (MPV)

Buses and vans

Main article: Mercedes-Benz buses

Mercedes-Benz VarioMercedes-Benz also produces buses, mainly for Europe and Asia. Mercedes-Benz produces a range of vans. The first factory to be built outside Germany after WWII was in Argentina. It originally built trucks, many of which were modified independently to buses, popularly named Colectivo. Today, it builds buses, trucks and the Sprinter van.

Mercedes-Benz McLaren

Main article: Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren

A silver SLR McLaren on display at the 2006 European Motor Show in BrusselsBetween 2003 and 2009 Mercedes-Benz produced a limited-production sports car with McLaren Cars, an extension of the collaboration by which Mercedes engines are used by the Team McLaren-Mercedes Formula One racing team, which is part owned by Mercedes.

The Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren has a carbon fibre body with a 5.4-litre V8 supercharged engine. This is the same cylinder block as featured in SL55 AMG and the CLS55 AMG, though modified to give 460 kW (625 PS; 617 bhp) and 780 N·m (575 ft·lbf) of torque. The SLR has a maximum speed of 337 km/h (209.4 mph) and costs approximately US$500,000.

Due to European pedestrian-protection regulation, McLaren decided to cease production of the SLR in 2009,[31] and went on to develop its own car, the McLaren MP4-12C, launched in 2011.

Car nomenclature

Until 1994, Mercedes-Benz used mainly an alphanumeric system for numbering their vehicles, consisting of a number approximately equal to the engine's displacement in liters multiplied by 100, followed by an arrangement of alphabetical suffixes indicating body style and engine type.

"C" indicates a coupe or cabriolet body style (except for the C107 SLC which was a lengthened, fixed-roof version of the SL).

"D" means the vehicle is equipped with a diesel engine.

"E" (for "Einspritzen") means the vehicle's engine is equipped with gasoline fuel injection. In most cases (the 600 limousine being the exception), if neither "E" or "D" is present, the vehicle has a gasoline engine with a carburetor.

"G" denotes the Gelandewagen off-road vehicle.

"K" was used in the 1930s, indicating a supercharger ("Kompressor") equipped engine. One exception is the SSK, where K indicates "Kurz" (short-wheelbase).

"L" means "Leicht" (lightweight) for sporting models, and "Lang" (long-wheelbase) for sedan models.

"R" stands for "Rennen" (racing), used for racing cars (for example, the 300SLR).

"S" means "Sport" for high-performance models, or "Special" for flagship models.

"T" stands for "Touring" and indicates an estate (or station wagon) body style.

Some models in the 1950s also had lower-case letters (b, c, and d) to indicate specific trim levels.

For some models, the numeric part of the designation does not match the engine size. This was done to show the model's position in the model lineup independent of displacement. For these vehicles, the actual displacement in liters is suffixed to the model designation. For example, the 190-class all had "190" for the numeric designation, regardless of the engine size, to indicate their entry-level status. Also, some older models (such as the SS and SSK) did not have a number as part of the designation at all.

For the 1994 model year, Mercedes-Benz revised the naming system. Models were divided into "classes" denoted by an arrangement of up to three letters (see "Current model range" above), followed by a three-digit (or two-digit for AMG models, with the number approximately equal to the displacement in liters multiplied by 10) number related to the engine size, as before. Variants of the same model (such as an estate version, or a vehicle with a diesel engine) are no longer given a separate letter. In most cases, the class designation is arbitrary. The SLR and SLS supercars do not carry a numerical designation.

As before, some models' numerical designations do not match the engine's actual displacement; in these cases the number shows the model's relative performance within the class. For example, the E250 CGI has greater performance than the E200 CGI because of different engine tuning, even though both have 1.8 liter engines. Recent AMG models use the "63" designation (in honor of the 1960s 6.3 liter M100 engine) despite being equipped with either a 6.2 liter (M156) or 5.5 liter (M157) engine.

Some models carry further designations indicating special features:

"4Matic" means the vehicle is equipped with all-wheel-drive.

"Bluetec" indicates a diesel engine with selective catalytic reduction exhaust aftertreatment.

"BlueEfficiency" indicates special fuel-economy features (direct injection, start-stop system, aerodynamic modifications, etc.)

"CGI" (Charged Gasoline Injection) indicates direct gasoline injection.

"CDI" (Common-rail Direct Injection) indicates a common-rail diesel engine.

"Hybrid" indicates a gasoline- or diesel-electric hybrid.

"NGT" indicates a natural gas-fueled engine.

"Kompressor" indicates a supercharged engine.

"Turbo" indicates a turbocharged engine, only used on A-, B- and GLK-Class models.

All model designation badges can be deleted upon the customer's request.

Bicycles

Mercedes-Benz Accessories GmbH introduced 3 new bicycles in 2005, named Automatic Bike from upwards of USD$2699, Fitness Bike from upwards of USD$3999, Mountain Bike from upwards of USD$5399 (As were the Retail Prices recorded from immediate release date).[44] The bikes are sold in Australia,[45] Germany, and Russia.[46] List of bicycles:

Mercedes-Benz Automatic Bike

Mercedes-Benz Carbon Bike

Mercedes-Benz Fitness Bike

Mercedes-Benz Hybrid Bike

Mercedes-Benz Mountain Bike

Mercedes-Benz Street Bike

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Mercedes-Benz (German pronunciation: [m??'tse?d?s 'b?nts]) is a German manufacturer of automobiles, buses, coaches, and trucks. Mercedes-Benz is a division of its parent company, Daimler AG. Mercedes-Benz traces its origins to Karl Benz's creation of the first petrol-powered car, the Benz Patent Motorwagen, patented in January 1886[1] and Gottlieb Daimler and engineer Wilhelm Maybach's conversion of a stagecoach by the addition of a petrol engine later that year. The Mercedes automobile was first marketed in 1901 by Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft. The first Mercedes-Benz brand name vehicles were produced in 1926, following the merger of Karl Benz's and Gottlieb Daimler's companies into the Daimler-Benz company.[1] Mercedes-Benz has introduced many technological and safety innovations that later became common in other vehicles.[2] Mercedes-Benz is one of the most well-known and established automotive brands in the world, and is also the world's oldest automotive brand still in existence today.

Studebaker-Packard

In 1958 Mercedes-Benz entered into a distribution agreement with the Studebaker-Packard Corporation of South Bend, Indiana (USA), makers of Studebaker and Packard brand automobiles.[3] Under the deal, Studebaker would allow Mercedes-Benz access to its dealer network in the U.S., handle shipments of vehicles to the dealers, and in return, receive compensation for each car sold. Studebaker also was permitted to use the German automaker's name in its advertisements, which stressed Studebaker's quality over quantity.[citation needed]

When Studebaker entered into informal discussions with Franco-American automaker Facel Vega about offering Facel Vega Excellence model in the United States, Mercedes-Benz objected to the proposal. Studebaker, which needed Mercedes-Benz distribution payments to help stem heavy losses, dropped further action on the plan.[citation needed]

Mercedes-Benz maintained an office within the Studebaker works in South Bend from 1958 to 1963, when Studebaker's U.S. operations ceased. Many U.S Studebaker dealers converted to Mercedes-Benz dealerships at that time. When Studebaker closed its Canadian operation and left the automobile business in 1966, remaining Studebaker dealers had the option to convert their dealerships to Mercedes-Benz dealership agreements.[citation needed