« Special Edition of the New Motorola RAZR2 : GlobalGiants.com | Main | Automakers Envision the Melding of Robotics and Cars »
October 12, 2007
Mercedes-Benz: From Benz Velo and Study A to A-Class : GlobalGiants.com
Fascinating innovation and ingenious disregard for convention: using modern technology to produce such a groundbreaking vehicle has always been the engineer's desire. In the history of Mercedes-Benz this vision has been realized time and again.
The Benz Velo initiated a paradigm change:
Photo: The world's first production car and the first small car: The Benz Velo of 1894.
Carl Benz wanted to develop an inexpensive and preferably lightweight motor car. To do this the design engineer looked beyond current automobile design which was still influenced by coach construction and borrowed from the bicycle. The Velo took its name from the latter as well as its wire spoke wheels. The modern Ackermann steering however came from the luxury-class Benz Victoria car, launched in 1893. The filigree Velo, launched in 1894, weighed barely 280 kilograms and was thus much lighter than the Benz Victoria. In its first version with a 1045 cubic centimeter displacement, its single-cylinder engine developed as much as 1.5 hp (1.1 kW) at 450 rpm and accelerated the car to a top speed of 20 km/h. Three forwards gears and one reverse gear provided distribution of the engine power.
Photo: Small, light and trendsetting: The Benz Velo of 1894 was one of the most popular cars of its day and age.
It worked extremely well, as we now know. Carl Benz (and also independently of him Gottlieb Daimler) managed to have their idea and finally also the Velo accepted - the 1200 units produced thus testified to the paradigm change from the horse-drawn carriage to the automobile. The appearance alone clearly illustrated this: next to horse-drawn carriages the Benz Velo appeared extremely light and agile with its filigree steel construction.
Photo: Modern production and large unit figures: The 8/20 hp Benz, shown here as a taxi with landaulet bodywork (1914).
Photo: Mercedes-Benz 130 sedan, 1933.
In February 1934, at the Berlin Automobile Show, Mercedes-Benz presented the 130 model. This car was a sensation and with various innovative designs it showed the way of the future: the sedan, known in-house as W 23, was the first Mercedes-Benz with a rear-mounted engine as standard and the first Mercedes-Benz of the small-car class. The model stood out with its aerodynamically optimized bodywork and small exterior dimensions.
1993 - Vision A 93 and Study A:
Photo: Motoring pleasure in a compact format: Vision A 93, a forerunner of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class (1993)
Mercedes-Benz gave the public a foretaste of the A-Class in September 1993 at the Frankfurt International Motor Show. Here the Stuttgart-based company presented their Vision A 93, a car with front-wheel drive and a novel bodywork concept, in which the engine, transmission, tank and axles were situated beneath the passenger compartment.
Photo: Christina Aguilera celebrating the glamorous finale of the "Star Tour" for the Mercedes-Benz A-Class in Milan Sep 21, 2007.
In 1994 Mercedes-Benz showed the concept car, modified in details, under the name ' Study A' at the Geneva Motor Show. The American magazine "Motor Week" awarded the Study A the title "Best Concept Car 1994". The concept of intelligent lightweight design was developed later on for the A-Class. |GlobalGiants.com|
Edited & Posted by the Editor | 2:34 AM | Link to this Post
