THE HISTORY OF THE AUTOMOBILE
From the horse to the electric motor: we take you on a journey through the exciting history of the automobile. Learn more about one of the most important and formative inventions of mankind. Here in the Stuttgart Region, you can experience it up close like nowhere else.
It all began on 17 March 1834: on this day Gottlieb Daimler, the pioneer of automobile history, was born in a small half-timbered house in Schorndorf. He would later revolutionise the world with his invention.
Today, the Daimler family home serves as a museum with an exhibition featuring models and documents from Daimler's creative period.
The invention of the automobile
The 1880s were the birth decade of the automobile. In 1886, Carl Benz from Mannheim applied for a patent for his three-wheeled motor car. At the same time, Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach developed the world's first four-wheeled motor car. Although Benz and Daimler initially knew nothing about each other and never met, they made one of the most important inventions in world history almost simultaneously.
Information on the Gottlieb Daimler Memorial - the original site of Daimler's and Maybach's groundbreaking developments
The new technology
The early years of the 20th century were full of new technological developments. Spark plugs and hybrid engines were invented. And the world-famous Mercedes brand was born, which today as then makes the hearts of car lovers beat faster. In 1900, Emil Jellinek, a dealer in Daimler automobiles, gave the Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft the order to develop a new type of car - light, beautiful and fast. And so Wilhelm Maybach designed a racing car for him with 35 hp, which was named "Mercedes" after Jellinek's daughter. The "Mercedes" brand was born.
Bosch AG also played a major role in the success of the new invention. The development of the Bosch spark plug in 1901/02 solved the "problem of problems", namely the reliable ignition of high-speed engines, and thus made Bosch an internationally successful company.
Daimler AG
In 1926, Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft and the Mannheim-based company Benz & Cie finally merged to form Daimler-Benz AG. The achievements of the two fathers of the car, Gottlieb Daimler and Carl Benz, were brought together in one company. To this day, the name Daimler stands for first-class vehicle construction and great engineering.
Information on the Mercedes-Benz Museum
The Porsche AG
The exclusive sports car manufacturer Porsche also comes from Stuttgart. The city thus unites two of the best and most famous brands in the world.
First, Ferdinand Porsche designed and manufactured the VW Beetle - a cult object - from 1934 onwards. Finally, in 1948, the first Porsche was created, the 356 roadster. Fascinating design and impeccable elegance still define the racy sports cars today.