Research is the motor of progress. It has a long-standing tradition at Daimler where it occupies a key position. Findings from our own research have always set the pace in the development of new vehicles – and this is why we officially established a dedicated Research unit in the early 1970s.With our innovations, we have been setting standards on a global scale – and will continue to do so in the future.

Research has always been the basis of our success, as borne out by history which goes back to the founding fathers of our company: in 1885, Gottlieb Daimler installed his high-speed internal combustion engine in a two-wheeler, the Riding Car. Independently of Daimler, Carl Benz presented his Patent Motor Car in 1886 – the world’s first holistic design of an automobile.

Nobody talked about research cars in either case at the time but both the Riding Car and the Patent Motor Car marked the starting point of our tradition of creating groundbreaking vehicle concepts in order to obtain findings for the development of tomorrow’s motor vehicles.In Mercedes-Benz research cars, new technologies can be experienced, tested and evaluated. They are fully operational and ready to drive. With these cars, we are continuously further developing a combination that is characteristic of Mercedes-Benz – that of fascination and responsibility.

The Mercedes-Benz F 100 of 1991, for instance, featured not only a novel seating concept with a correspondingly pioneering bodywork design but also numerous electronic functions for enhanced safety and comfort. The Mercedes-Benz F 400 Carving of 2002 was designed as a sporty vehicle, demonstrating new findings in suspension technology. The latest addition to our lineup of research cars is the Mercedes-Benz F 700 which made its debut in 2007. With this car, Mercedes-Benz redefines the concept of motoring refinement.

This study of a luxurious limousine of the future shows how outstanding ride comfort can be combined with great environmental compatibility – and superior performance with unusually low fuel consumption. With its innovative DIESOTTO drive concept and the PRE-SCAN suspension – both developments of corporate Research departments – the F 700, too, is setting new standards.This brochure presents the company’s more recent research cars to you – from the Mercedes-Benz C 111 of 1969 through to the F 700. And our researchers are already working on the next research car – because the future of the automobile begins today.