Mercedes Celebrates 105 Years of Building Four-Wheel Drive Vehicles

DaimlerDaimlerGermany, 1889 > present12 models
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, the parent of Mercedes-BenzMercedes-BenzGermany, 1924 > present197 models
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, put the Dernburg-WagenDaimler Dernburg-WagenGermany, 1907 > present4 photos
, the first four-wheel drive on sale 105 years ago in 1907. Not only did the Dernburg-Wagen have the first consumer four-wheel drive system, it also featured four-wheel steering. 

The Dernburg-Wagen has 32cm of ground clearance and was powered by a 6.8-liter, four-cylinder engine with 35hp at 800rpm. It had solid steel wheels to protect the drum brakes and could carry five passengers. 

Mercedes introduced its ultimate four-wheel drive vehicle, the Unimog, in 1947. Unimog stands for Universalmotorgerat in German, which means universal vehicle. It has always featured four-wheel drive with front and rear differential locks and high ride height. 

Today, Mercedes has four SUVs, the Unimog and all-wheel drive versions of some of its cars. 

In 1972, Mercedes introduced the G-ClassMercedes-Benz G-ClassGermany, 1979 > present3 series
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or Geländewagen, which means off-road car. It was intended only for commercial purposes, but like the JeepJeepUnited States of America, 1941 > present33 models
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it became so popular that it was offered to the public in 1979. Like the Unimog, it is still in production today but with significant upgrades.

Mercedes introduced its 4Matic branded all-wheel system in 1985 on the E-ClassMercedes-Benz 300 TE 4MATICGermany, 1989 > 19931 photo
. The earliest systems forced drivers to decide on the torque split. There were three options: all power to the rear, 65% to the rear and 50% to the rear. The system was not able to react on its own if it sensed a loss of traction. A new generation of 4Matic came in 1998 that could sense wheel slippage and intervene automatically. 

Since the introduction of the Derburg-Wagen in 1907, all-wheel drive has become increasingly normal. Audi popularized the idea of performance all-wheel drive in the 80s, and since then all-wheel drive has become available on increasingly smaller cars. Mercedes plans to give the new A45 AMGMercedes-Benz A-Class Gen.3 [W 176]Germany, 2012 > present33 versions
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all-wheel drive when it is released next year.