“Motor Klassik Award 2013”: Five Awards for Mercedes-Benz

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The readers of “Motor Klassik” classic car magazine have decided: in the “Motor Klassik Award 2013” a Mercedes-Benz vehicle has won in all of five categories. “In this vote, three historic cars as well as two current Mercedes-Benz models won,” Michael Bock, Head of Mercedes-Benz Classic, was pleased to say. “The G-Class and the CLS Shooting Brake thus quite clearly show that they deserve to become the classic cars of the future.”

The winners were selected in a total of 19 categories. This year, the “2013 Cars” contest for current models complemented the classic car competitions, and votes were also held for outstanding personalities, events, and auctions.

In the “Classics up to 1930” section, first place was won by a six-cylinder compressor sports car: the Mercedes-Benz SSK, an exclusive and exciting edition from the legendary S series. The model designation stands for Super-Sport-Kurz (Super Sports Short) and the 165 kW (225 hp) powerful SSK demonstrated its outstanding sportiness even with a wheelbase shortened to 2950 mm. On 29 July 1928, Rudolf Caracciola drove an SSK built specially for hill races to first-time victory at the Gabelbach Race and went on to win other famous races. In 1930 and 1931, the SSK helped him to win the European Hill Climb Championship.

In the “Classics 1947-1961” category, the winner, as last year, was the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL “Gullwing” (W 198). The series-production sports car, derived from the successful W 194 racing car, became the foundation of the SL myth which has endured up to the present day. Right from the moment when the first car was delivered to a customer, the “Gullwing”, which was built from 1954 onwards, was viewed as the epitome of dream cars – and it has stayed that way ever since as a classic with exceptional charisma. A total of 1,400 cars were built. The equally exciting 300 SL Roadster (W 198) took over from the “Gullwing” in 1957.

540 K Special Roadster is “2012 Auction Car”

The “2012 Auction Car” special category was snapped up by a 1936 Mercedes-Benz 540 K in a rare version as a special roadster. This breathtakingly beautiful car was auctioned in August 2012 at a Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance auction by Gooding & Company for 11.8 million US dollars. The car has an unbroken history: the purchaser, the Prussian aristocrat Baroness Gisela von Krieger, took the 540 K special roadster with her during the Second World War: first to Switzerland and from there to the USA, where the car stood unused in a garage for more than forty years until her death, after which it was restored to perfect condition.

The classics of tomorrow bear a star

The readers of “Motor Klassik” also chose two particularly desirable models from the current Mercedes-Benz range. In the view of knowledgeable readers, the new CLS Shooting Brake already shows all the features of a classic. So in the “Luxury Segment” category, with 42.0 per cent of the votes, placing it far ahead of the car in second place, the competition was decided by a fascinating car concept which combines the luxury and style of a coupé with the luggage space of an estate car.

In the “Off-Roader” category there was even a car that won 42.2 per cent of the votes and has been in the Mercedes-Benz model range ever since 1979: the G-Class. Thanks to constant and consistent further development, Mercedes-Benz has ensured the special status of this off-road icon. The current generation of the off-road vehicle series stands out with its ultra-modern drive technology and high-class interior. At the same time, the G-Class has retained its typical, highly valued basic virtues such as utter robustness and excellent off-road handling.

More than 22,000 “Motor Klassik” readers participated in the “Motor Klassik Award 2013” survey. The result shows yet again that Mercedes-Benz historic cars rank among the most outstanding icons in the history of the automobile. With its successes in two “2013 Cars” categories, the brand also demonstrates convincingly that the potential classics of tomorrow will bear a three-pointed star.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2013, mercedesgla. All rights reserved.

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Lightweight design makes for award-winning concept: the SL wins EuroCarBody Award 2012

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The Mercedes-Benz SL has secured a first place for itself by picking up the EuroCarBody Award 2012. This highest of vehicle body awards is presented each year by Automotive Circle International in recognition of outstanding developments in the body construction industry.

Once again this year more than 500 experts from the automotive industry cast their votes to reward the best implemented body design. Out of all of the new vehicles which were put to the vote, the Mercedes-Benz SL emerged victorious at the 14th Global Car Body Benchmarking Conference held in Bad Nauheim. In carrying out their assessment, the experts took into account such criteria as development and design concepts, material development and application, production efficiency, customer value and engineering focus.

The traditional sports car from Stuttgart impressed the experts with its intelligent lightweight design. With the newly developed full-aluminium bodyshell of the SL - which is around 110 kg lighter than a comparable steel bodyshell - Mercedes-Benz is setting standards, according to the experts.

Made almost entirely from aluminium, the bodyshell makes a significant contribution to ensuring that overall the SL is up to 140 kg lighter than the preceding model. It provides the basis for sharp, agile, sporty handling, coupled with exemplary roll characteristics and ride comfort – benefits which are noticeable and can be experienced to the full by SL customers.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2012, mercedesgla. All rights reserved.

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Award for effective communication that is both innovative and bold - Mercedes-Benz honoured as 'red dot: client of the year'

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Mercedes-Benz has this year been honoured with the coveted title of 'red dot: client of the year'. In awarding this accolade, the most prestigious design competition in the world is acknowledging the particularly innovative and leading-edge marketing and communications work undertaken by the brand represented by the three-pointed star. The title will be conferred as the highlight of a gala ceremony to mark the presentation of the 'red dot award: communication design' at the 'Konzerthaus Berlin' concert hall on 24 October 2012.

"We are delighted, and tremendously proud, to receive this accolade. It is a great reward for us and our creative agencies after a year of intensive but ultimately successful hard work", said Anders Sundt Jensen, Head of Brand Communications for Mercedes-Benz Cars. "At the same time it spurs us on in our efforts to continue delighting people with often unexpected and fascinating communications around the three-pointed star". Professor Dr Peter Zec, initiator and CEO of the red dot design award, added: "The Mercedes-Benz brand has long been established as a global premium brand – thanks both to its unique history and to the boldness it has shown in setting new quality standards with its consistently self-assured product design. In terms of its communications, too, Mercedes-Benz has remained true to its motto of 'The best or nothing', and is therefore a very deserving recipient of the title 'red dot: client of the year 2012'. Mercedes-Benz has once again shown just what it can do: this coveted distinction, which is not something that can be applied for, underlines the automotive icon's ambition to lead, in what is a highly competitive business."

The title represents an acknowledgement of the greatest number of awards made to any company for its campaigns, advertising or other communications work in the 'red dot award: communication design' competition.In addition, Mercedes-Benz has this year also been the recipient of numerous "red dots" in the product competition. The B-Class, C-Class Coupé, SLS AMG as well as the Actros truck were all honoured for their impressive design with the 'red dot award: product design'. The smart eBike received the 'red dot award: best of the best' for design of the highest quality.

About red dot

The red dot design award is a design competition organised by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein Westfalen. Known since 2000 as the 'red dot award: product design', the award was first presented in 1955. The 'red dot award: communication design' has been made since 1993. The title 'red dot: client of the year' was conferred for the first time in 2010.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2012, mercedesgla. All rights reserved.

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Mercedes-Benz wins the AUTO BILD Design Award for the fourth time in 2012 - Germany's most attractive car is the new A-Class

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The readers of the leading car magazine AUTO BILD are delighted at the progressive design of the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class. In a poll in which around 100,000 readers took part, the new star among the compact cars was voted Germany's most attractive car. The new A-Class also won the vote in its segment. The Mercedes-Benz M-Class claimed the title of the most attractive vehicle in the SUV/Vans/All-wheel drive category. The readers' jury thus bestowed the AUTO BILD Design Award 2012 on two outstanding and innovatively designed characters on four wheels which boldly set distinctive design trends and clearly stand apart from the competition.

The winners of the AUTO BILD Design Award are traditionally determined solely by the readers' personal tastes. In this year's competition they were able to vote for 136 current models in five categories.

The AUTO BILD readers crowned a Mercedes-Benz model overall winner once again this year, voting a vehicle sporting the Mercedes-Benz star Germany's most attractive car for the fourth time in succession. After awarding the coveted title of "Germany's most attractive car" to the E-Class, the SLS AMG Coupé and the SLK in the preceding years, in 2012 they were won over by the design of the new A-Class. Mercedes-Benz also claimed another first place in this top-ranking automotive beauty contest with the M-Class, which the AUTO BILD readers voted the most attractive contender in the SUV/Vans/All-wheel drive category. Mercedes-Benz may thus justifiably claim to make the most attractive automobiles.

With the new A-Class and its radical, dynamic design idiom, Mercedes-Benz has opened up a totally new chapter in the compact class this year, visualising the beating pulse of a new generation of vehicles in fascinating guise. "The A‑Class is a clear statement on the new dynamism of the Mercedes-Benz brand," says Dr Dieter Zetsche, CEO of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes Cars.

The exterior of the new A-Class displays a particularly distinctive, sporty character which is complemented to perfection by an innovative interior exuding a particularly high-quality feel. "Realising the new dynamic style of Mercedes-Benz in the compact class was a thrilling challenge," relates Gorden Wagener, Head of Design at Mercedes-Benz. "No other car in this segment is as progressive as the A-Class. The sculptural aspect of the A-Class design is typically Mercedes. The feature lines on the sides in particular lend the A-Class structure and a welcome edginess. The new dynamic style is also immediately apparent inside the vehicle."

In the category of SUVs, vans and all-wheel drive vehicles it was the Mercedes-Benz M-Class that won the readers' favour and shone through as the most attractive contender. The award demonstrated the readers' appreciation of the trend-setter's characteristically striking design, which lends the car a high profile while also offering a variable interior with a high wellness factor and a first-class feel.

Credits: Daimler AG

Copyright © 2012, mercedesgla. All rights reserved.

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FleetBoard won Frost & Sullivan Award

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Daimler FleetBoard GmbH has won Frost & Sullivan’s “2012 Growth Leadership Award” in the category of medium and heavy-duty commercial vehicle telematics. The coveted award was presented to FleetBoard Managing Director Markus Lipinsky at the GIL 2012: European conference for Growth, Innovation & Leadership, in London. The provider of smart telematics solutions was honoured for its innovations and for recording the industry’s highest annual growth rates during the past three years.

The International business consultancy firm, Frost & Sullivan, had evaluated and compared leading suppliers of telematics services in Europe on the basis of four different criteria. In doing so it used a proprietary, certified research method and analyzed the range of standard equipment in the truck, the increase in modular product components, the expansion in new regions, and the establishment of growing partnerships. FleetBoard was the undisputed winner in this study, which guaranteed it the “2012 Growth Leadership Award”.

One of the reasons why Frost & Sullivan chose FleetBoard for the award is because the company is pursuing a new strategy of introducing telematics as standard equipment for trucks across Europe in order to strike out in new directions in a consolidating market. Frost & Sullivan also noted that FleetBoard provides a wide product range for all commercial vehicle segments, brands, and markets. Our company also offers expanded back office integration and vehicle-related logistics management solutions that greatly help boost the efficiency of commercial fleets. In addition, Frost & Sullivan pointed out that FleetBoard had penetrated markets outside Germany in order to increase its global presence in places such as Europe, Brazil, South Africa, and the Middle East. The study came to the conclusion that FleetBoard’s extensive experience, proximity to truck development units, use of Mercedes-Benz’ European sales network, and long-term partnerships with hardware and software suppliers are creating the basis for ergonomic growth in the years ahead.

“The Frost & Sullivan Award is a convincing argument to win over European transportation companies looking for a user-friendly and future-proof telematics solution,” says Markus Lipinsky, Managing Director of Daimler FleetBoard GmbH. “The trust expressed by more than 2,500 customers worldwide and the fact that 100,000 units were installed this year alone demonstrate that FleetBoard’s growth is unparalleled”.

Credits: Daimler AG

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