The year 2026 will be a year full of not only historical milestones for Mercedes-Benz, but also achievements in motor sports. In order not to miss this important year and to remember the important events of the brand’s past, the anniversaries listed below are quite remarkable.
Important Anniversaries in 2026
January 23, 1951 (75 years ago):Patent application for safety body by Béla Barényi. The serial production premiere took place in 1959 on the “Heckflosse” W 111 sedans.
January 27, 1976 (50 years ago):Presentation of the Mercedes-Benz 123 Series. Shortly after, the portfolio was completed with the T-Model and Coupe.
January 29, 1886 (140 years ago):Carl Benz applied for a patent for his three-wheeled “gasoline engine-powered vehicle”. This date is considered the birth of the automobile.
February 3–8, 1986 (40 years ago):Mercedes-Benz introduced the ASR and ASD driving assistance systems and the automatically activated 4MATIC in Finland.
March 8, 1886 (140 years ago):Gottlieb Daimler ordered a horse carriage and transformed it into the first four-wheeled automobile with a fast-running internal combustion engine.
25–29 March 1901 (125 years ago):The star of the week in Nice was Mercedes 35 hp. The General Secretary of the French Automobile Club summarized the situation by saying, “We have entered the Mercedes era.”
19–29 April 1951 (75 years ago):For the first time at the IAA fair, the Mercedes-Benz 300 (W 186) executive car model and the Mercedes-Benz 220 (W 187) model, the pioneer of the S-Class, were premiered.
May 19, 2006 (20 years ago):The Mercedes-Benz Museum was opened near the Untertürkheim factory. Since then, it has become the brand’s center of great international interest.
April 25 – May 5, 1996 (30 years ago):Mercedes-Benz SLK (R 170) was introduced at the Turin Motor Show. It created a new market in the roadster segment with its Variodach roof made of steel.
12–15 June 1976 (50 years ago):The C 111-II D set three world records and 16 segment records at Nardò. Concept AMG GT XX also broke the world record on the same track in 2025.
28–29 June 1926 (100 years ago):Benz & Cie. and Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft merged to form Daimler-Benz AG. The Mercedes-Benz brand was born.
June 30, 1996 (30 years ago):The Mercedes-Benz C 36 AMG became the brand’s first official Safety Car in Formula 1 at Magny-Cours. He has continued this duty uninterruptedly since then.
July 31, 2001 (25 years ago):The Mercedes-Benz SL R 230 series made its world premiere at the Hamburg Deichtorhallen. Roadster is equipped with many innovations.
18 August 1896 (130 years ago):Gottlieb Daimler introduced the world’s first motor truck. The first vehicle was sold to the British Motor Syndicate in London.
August 24, 1986 (40 years ago):The Sauber-Mercedes C8 Group C racing car took its first victory at the Nürburgring. This success accelerated the brand’s return to motor sports.
September 12, 1926 (100 years ago):At Solitude Racing, race director Alfred Neubauer used the signal system to communicate with drivers for the first time.
October 14, 1951 (75 years ago):The sporty and luxurious 300 S (W 188) was introduced at the Paris Motor Show as the two-door version of the Type 300 (W 186) in Coupe, Cabriolet A and Roadster bodies. It was the fastest German mass production car of its time.
October 9, 1946 (80 years ago):The testing process of the Unimog prototype has begun. Former engineers from Daimler-Benz AG are developing the ‘Universal-Motorgerät’ (multi-purpose motor vehicle) for agriculture. The Unimog was produced at Boehringer from 1949, and at Mercedes-Benz’s Gaggenau factory from 1951.
October 15, 2006 (20 years ago):Bernd Schneider won his fifth DTM championship at Le Mans. Thus, today’s brand ambassador became the record champion.
December 5, 1896 (130 years ago):Benz & Cie. launched the world’s first light commercial vehicle, the “delivery van”. This vehicle, called “Velociped”, also had a load compartment option.
