Mercedes - Automotive Heritage for the Masses

In the 1960's Mercedes was aligned with German luxury. Their sports cars were exotic and their large models combined comfortable transport with a certain cache. The Gullwing Mercedes was particularly esoteric. Owning a Mercedes Benz was once the privilege of the famous and the wealthy.

With the advent of the Ford Sierra/Mondeo sized Mercedes 190 in 1985, Mercedes Benz ownership became more accessible. Granted, the three pointed star will never be synonymous with cheaper brands, but owning a Mercedes is no longer as expensive; neither is it as pricey to maintain as other luxury barges.

Mercedes have steadfastly branded their classes of vehicle according to the alphabet for many years. The A class is the smallest of the hatchbacks and the S class the largest of the saloons, with the Ford Mondeo sized C class, and the Range Rover competitor M and G classes residing somewhere in the middle amongst the B E and R classes.

The current S class is a technological marvel, loved by ambassadors embassie sand royalty around the world and always has been in previous incarnations. Famed also for its tank like construction, unfortunately the leviathan that was the 1991 - 1998 S Class was unable to save the life of royalty when it crashed at high speed in a Paris tunnel.

The baby Mercedes A class came along in 1998 and admittedly received mixed reviews, failing the now infamous Elk test (this is where Swedish car testers made cars swerve abruptly at 65 mph) Unfortunately the tall baby Merc toppled over! The problem with the car's electronics is obviously is now fixed. However in general terms this economical car opened up Mercedes ownership to a new group of people and made the marque more affordable to a wider clientele.

Mercedes has a reputation for innovation with inventions such as the Electronic Stability Programme, pre tensioners and curtain airbags. Most rear wheel drive cars, including Mercedes will punish you if you turn a corner too fast in the wet. I was in the supermarket car park in my Mercedes and the car almost pirouretted during a rainy morning. Thankfully the ESP did its thing and the car twitched briefly like an electrocuted eel before it retained its composure.

However many of the models, such as the 2000- 2007 C Class, retained the quirky foot applied parking brake and the dash mounted release handle for it. The company is also known for a fantastic range of diesels as well as some blisteringly fast V6 ands V8's. The AMG sport range of Mercedes cars melt tarmac.

Some say that Mercedes has declined in quality but that has not put off millions who own the marque throughout the world. The German car giant will always be associated with quality engineering, comfort and reliability.