Founded in 1926 , the Mercedes- Benz brand traces its roots all the way back to 1885 , when Karl Benz first constructed the Benz Patent- Motorwagen . Widely regarded as the first practical automobile , the self-propelled vehicle resembled a motor tricycle , fixed with a rear-mounted engine . Close to a century later , the Mercedes-Benz Group AG ( MBAG ) is one of the globe ’ s leading suppliers of premium and luxury cars , and an independent manufacturer of commercial vehicles . Headquartered in Stuttgart , Germany , within the state of Baden- Württemberg , the group achieved revenues of 169 billion euros in 2021 .
It was thanks to the work of Max Hoffman , an Austrian-born , New York-based importer of luxury European automobiles , that importation of Mercedes-Benz vehicles to the US began in 1952 . Hoffman recognized a growing demand for existing and new models in the post-war American market , one on which he sought to capitalize . Among the cars brought across the Atlantic was the iconic Mercedes 300SL Gullwing , introduced at the 1954 International Motor Sports Show
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