Ladies and gentlemen,

On behalf of my design team at Mercedes-Benz, I would like to say what an honor and joy it is for me to be able to introduce our work to you here at this internationally renowned design museum, already well established as the New Collection.

Ever since Carl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler invented the automobile back in 1886, automotive design has continued to inspire us. The car’s purpose is to bridge distances and bring people together. But the promise of great individual freedom also gives rise to technological and aesthetic aspirations. For we desire to know more than just whether a car can transport us from place to place. We also want to see that it fulfills this purpose in an efficient and contemporary fashion.

We are proud to present here seven outstanding designs drawn from Mercedes-Benz history. These examples are automotive icons whose design instantly reveals the intention that lies behind each record-breaking car, sports car or luxury sedan.

An automotive icon is the product of technical know-how and individual aesthetics at the highest level. Only then does an automobile become a cultural representative worthy of being exhibited in this building.

What links the various exhibits in this show is the work required of the designers from various eras to satisfy this lofty aspiration. The CLS of 2004, for example, reinterprets the same elegance and comfort one recognizes in the “Autobahnkurier” of 1938.

The task we inherited from Gottlieb Daimler can be summed up in the words “The best or nothing.” For this reason we are never satisfied simply to offer what is technologically possible. Mercedes-Benz design is about realizing the style of the brand with utmost precision in every vehicle – about making it visible, making it tangible.

Good automotive design has of necessity become a decisive factor – nowadays, perhaps, the decisive factor – in the success of an automotive brand. For design is what gives the vehicle a face, lends it character and makes it distinctive.

Design is a reflection of the brand. It is a visual image of our values and reflects public aspirations towards our brand. At Mercedes-Benz, therefore, design is not just an equipment feature. Our design translates the concept of the automobile that we as manufacturers share with our public.

The work of a designer is successful if a car is driven not just for rational reasons, but also with equal measures of heart and reason, when good automotive design pairs sense with sensibility.

The particular constellation of exhibits in this show is also a first for us. We are naturally hopeful this tradition is destined to become a firm fixture in the years ahead.

Thank you for your attention.