The first “Historic Mercedes-Benz Concours 2011” to be staged here on May 8 will see the largest ever convergence of the vintage three-pointed star marque in South East Asia to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the invention and innovation of Daimler and Benz. The Concours is Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s initiative to celebrate Mercedes Benz’s jubilee year commemorated worldwide to mark Mercedes-Benz’s 125 Years of Innovation and mark the registration of Carl Benz’s “vehicle with gas-engine drive” bearing patent number 37435 with the Berlin Patent Office on January 29, 1886. At the same time as Benz, Gottlieb Daimler developed the first four-wheeled motor car.
“The pioneering efforts of Carl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler led in the shaping and development of the Mercedes-Benz. Daimler trail-blazed the development of the automobile more diversely and enduringly than any other motor vehicle manufacturer – in all relevant areas, from drive train technology to comfort and safety through to design.
“Innovation is the cornerstone of Mercedes-Benz’s enduring success and since 1886, the company has underpinned its claim to technological leadership with over 80,000 patent applications since Carl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler, respectively unveiled their ‘Patent-Motorwagen” and “motorised carriage”.
“As the world’s first car, the Benz Patent Motorwagen is the symbol of pioneering spirit par excellence and from the very beginning the exquisite three-wheeler and Daimler’s motorised carriage signaled that a new age of mobility had dawned,” said Mercedes-Benz Malaysia Sdn Bhd President and CEO Roland S. Folger.
These two-vehicles represent the evolution of a unique success story – one that has continuously had many new chapters added to it by Mercedes-Benz, evolving from the “horseless carriage”, which initially critics said had “no future” to an icon of personal freedom, but also a significant factor within the economy.
Folger said the introduction of the first modern passenger car, the Mercedes 35 hp in February 1900 marked the transition from the long-legged “motor carriage” to the motorcar of today.
The decisive technical innovations were its long wheelbase, wide track, low centre of gravity and angled steering column. These improvements created the fundamental DNA for comfortable and safe driving, a concept turned into reality in a Mercedes.
“As we celebrate the 125th anniversary, the Mercedes-Benz brand has reached a new milestone with the delivery of 30 million automobiles bearing the three-pointed star to customers around the world since post-war production in 1945.
“Mercedes Benz cars have made their home in Malaysia beginning with the delivery of the first Mercedes-Benz to HRH the late Sultan of Johore, Sultan Sir Ibrahim Iskandar Al-Masyhur ibni Almarhum Sultan Sir Abu Bakar in 1910,” said Folger.
In 1951, Cycle & Carriage was awarded the first distributorship of Mercedes-Benz in the then Malaya. To date, more than 100,000 Mercedes-Benz cars have been sold through a network of Mercedes-Benz dealers.
The Historic Mercedes-Benz Concours to be held at the Palace of Golden Horses, Mines Resort City on Sunday May 8 will showcase cars covering the vintage (pre 1960), Classics (1961-1975) and Modern Classics (1976-1989) period.
Folger said the Concours was Mercedes-Benz’s initiative to thank the tens of thousands of loyal Mercedes-Benz supporters in Malaysia and provide them with a platform to showcase their timeless and is some instances priceless classics.
“The cars participating in the Concours proudly reflect the history, longevity, build quality, leading edge technology and design and the painstaking efforts by the owners to maintain these rare collectibles in classic conditions,” he said.
The cars will be judged based on preparation, condition, correctness, cleanliness and originality and an independent panel of judges including a classic car expert from Mercedes-Benz’s Classic Car Centre in Germany will evaluate them in the following categories: Engine & Engine Compartment, Exterior, Interior & Trunk/Boot and Undercarriage/Suspension/Wheels.
The owners of the top car in each of the three categories will win an all-expense paid vacation for two to the Mercedes-Benz Museum and Classic Car Centre in Germany. “We are confident that the Historic Mercedes-Benz Concours will be a success and also a visual treat for all car lovers and this unique gathering will also reinforce the numerous innovations in design, style and technology which make the three-pointed star a passionate and most celebrated symbol of a timeless pursuit of excellence.
Of the participating cars is a 1957 Mercedes-Benz 300 SL Gullwing Rudge Wheel, a former category prize winner at the renowned Pebble Beach Concours D’Elegance while another, a 1936 Mercedes-Benz 500K Roadster was also displayed at the same show.
“It was Carl Benz who said: “the love of inventing never “dies” and Gottlieb Daimler coined the famous maxim: “the best or nothing”. Mercedes-Benz has remained true to these guiding principles and these principles will be amplified by the owners and their cars at the Historic Mercedes-Benz Concours,” Folger added.
The Concours will also showcase competitor’s cars including the 1936 Mercedes-Benz 500k Roadster, 1958 Mercedes-Benz 300 LS Gullwing, 1963 Mercedes-Benz 220 SE Ponton Cabriolet and various versions of the Mercedes-Benz Fintail. Mercedes-Benz will also showcase its current portfolio of passenger cars, vans, buses and trucks at the Concours.
Incidentally, the Mercedes-Benz has also starred in over 500 films and in more than 300 pop songs including one entitled “Mercedes-Benz” in which the legendary late Janis Joplin pleads with the Lord to buy her a Mercedes Benz!
Registration for the Historic Mercedes-Benz Concours 2011 closes on May 4 and owners of classic Mercedes-Benz cars can register online (www.mercedes-benz.com.my/125) or contact 1-800-88-1133 for more information. This event is jointly organised with Historic Motoring Ventures (M) Sdn Bhd.
