Innovations

Numerous technological innovations have been introduced on Mercedes-Benz automobiles throughout the many years of their production, including:

• The internal combustion automobile was developed independently by Benz and Daimler & Maybach in 1886.

• Daimler invented the honeycomb radiator of the type still used on all water-cooled vehicles today.

• Daimler invented the float carburetor which was used until replaced by fuel injection.

• The "drop chassis"--the car originally designated the "Mercedes" by Daimler was also the first car with a modern configuration having the carriage lowered and set between the front and rear wheels, with a front engine and powered rear wheels. All earlier cars were "horseless carriages", which had high centers of gravity and various engine/drive-train configurations.

• The first passenger road car to have brakes on all four wheels (1924) ^[36]

• The "Safety cage" or "Safety cell" construction with front and rear crumple zones was first developed by Mercedes-Benz in 1951. This is considered by many as the most important innovation in automobile construction from a safety standpoint ^[37]

• In 1959, Mercedes-Benz patented a device that prevents drive wheels from spinning by intervening at the engine, transmission, or brakes. In 1987, Mercedes-Benz applied its patent by introducing a Traction control system that worked under both braking and acceleration.

• Anti-lock brakes (ABS), traction control and airbags in the European market, were Mercedes-Benz innovations.^{[citation needed]} These technologies were introduced in 1978, 1986, and 1980 respectively.

• Mercedes-Benz was the first to introduce pre-tensioners to seat belts on the 1981 S-Class. In the event of a crash, a pre-tensioner will tighten the belt instantaneously, preventing the passenger from jerking forward in a crash.

• In September 2003, Mercedes-Benz introduced the world's first 7-speed automatic transmission called '7G-Tronic'.

• Stability control, brake assist,^[38] and many other types of safety equipment were all developed, tested, and implemented into passenger cars—first—by Mercedes-Benz. Mercedes-Benz has not made a large fuss about its innovations and has even licensed them for use by competitors—in the name of improving automobile and passenger safety - In fact, crumple zones and anti-lock brakes are now used on all modern luxury vehicles. ^[37]

Mercedes M156 engine

• The most powerful naturally-aspirated eight cylinder engine in the world is the Mercedes-AMG, 6208 cc M156 V8 engine. The V8 engine is badged '63 AMG' and replaced the '55 AMG' M113 engine in most models. The M156 engine produces up to 525 bhp (391 kW), and although some models using this engine do have this output (such as the S63 and CL63 AMGs) specific output varies slightly across other models in the range.^[39]

• The (W211) E320 CDI which has a (VTG) turbocharged, 3.0L V6 common rail diesel engine (producing 224-horsepower), set three world endurancerecords. It covered 100,000 miles (160,000 km) in a record time with an average speed of 224.823 km/h (140 mph). Three identical cars did the endurance run (one set above record) and the other two cars set world records for time taken to cover 100,000 km and 50,000 miles (80,000 km) respectively. After all three cars had completed the run their combined distance was 300,000 miles (480,000 km) (all records were FIA approved). ^[40]

• Mercedes-Benz pioneered a system called Pre-Safe to detect an imminent crash and prepares the car's safety systems to respond optimally. It also calculates the optimal braking force required to avoid an accident in emergency situations and makes it immediately available for when the driver depresses the brake pedal. Occupants are also prepared by tightening the seat belt, closing the sunroof and windows, and moving the seats into the optimal position.

• Mercedes Benz developed a fatigue-detection system, known as Attention Assist that warns the driver when they are displaying signs of micro-sleep (when the eyes stay closed for slightly longer than a natural blinking action). The system will use a variety of data including the individual driving style, the duration of the journey, the time of day and the current traffic situation. Fatigue mostly sets in gradually.^[41]

• The fastest street-legal saloon car in the world is the Mercedes-Benz Brabus CLS Rocket (tuned) Mercedes-Benz CLS 'CLS V12' - based on the CLS-Class saloon.^{[citation needed]}

• Mercedes Benz invented the adaptive highbeam assist system which automatically and continuously adapts the headlamp range to the distance of vehicles ahead or which are oncoming. The new system continually adjusts the beam so that the headlamp cone falls just in front of other vehicles, at the same time always ensuring maximum possible range without dazzling other road users. The adaptive highbeam assist is introduced first in the new generation E-Class.

Half a century of vehicle safety innovation helped win Mercedes- Benz the Safety Award at the 2007 What Car? Awards ^[36]

Robot cars

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Main article: Driverless car

In the 1980s Mercedes built the world's first robot car, together with the team of Professor Ernst Dickmanns at Bundeswehr Universität München. Partially encouraged by Dickmanns' success, in 1987 the European Union's EUREKA programme initiated the Prometheus Project on autonomous vehicles, funded to the tune of nearly 800 million Euros. A culmination point was achieved in 1995, when Dickmanns´ re-engineered autonomous S-Class Mercedes took a long trip from Munich in Bavaria to Copenhagen in Denmark and back. On highways the robot achieved speeds exceeding 175 kilometres per hour (roughly 110 miles per hour; permissible in some areas of the German Autobahn). The car's abilities has heavily influenced robot car research and funding decisions worldwide.