Some of the Mercedes that never reached production
Mercedes-Benz is often seen as having a conservative image, yet the company has boldly tested the boundaries with a raft of unusual, innovative cars.
Many of these far-thinking models came close to reality, while others were more flights of fancy. Most, however, helped further the cause of Mercedes’ technical development.
From saloons to sports cars, hybrids to leaning trikes, here’s our look at some of the Mercedes-Benz vehicles that never quite made it to production. The list is arranged in chronological order.
1. 1926 Mercedes-Benz W103 G1
Although Germany was forbidden from building military vehicles in the post-First World War period, Mercedes developed the G1 as a three-axle off-roader.
It was pitched as a machine to use in extreme terrain for exploration and could carry six passengers.
The straight-six, 3.1-litre engine, however, was not really up to the job and the G1 had a top speed of around only 35mph on the road.
It’s thought seven G1s were made before Mercedes decided to go back to the drawing board to produce better truck and all-wheel-drive designs, such as the G4 that saw a limited production of 57 six-wheel staff cars.
2. 1931 Mercedes-Benz W17
Long before Ferdinand Porsche designed the Volkswagen Beetle, Mercedes-Benz offered its idea of a rear-engined small car with the W17.
It used a ‘boxer’ flat-four engine layout and, with this at the rear, it allowed for maximum passenger space in the cabin.
The simple styling of the W17 was a far cry from Mercedes’ large saloons and this car didn’t see the light of day.
However, the basic configuration of the W17 informed how the later Hans Nibel-designed W23 130 mid-sized saloon was made.
3. 1934 Mercedes-Benz W30 T150 Roadster
Inspired by Mercedes’ racing exploits, its chief engineer Hans Nibel saw a gap in the market for a smaller and more affordable sporting model with the W30 T150 Roadster.
Using a 1.5-litre, in-line, four-cylinder engine which was mid-mounted, the T150 claimed a top speed of 78mph.
Before the Roadster plans moved forward, Mercedes built six coupé versions to use in rallying with some success.
This led to a pair of Roadsters being readied for the 1943 Berlin motor show.
Some claimed 20 Roadsters were built, but order books make clear only two of these small, open-top cars were ever sold.
4. 1956 Mercedes-Benz W127 220SL
The 190SL (pictured) had the appearance but not the pace to satisfy keen drivers, so Mercedes-Benz looked to create a more powerful, six-cylinder version with the 220SL.
The marque’s racing department managed to fit a 300SL engine into the 190 and used it in the 1956 Alpine Rally, but it was far too complex to consider for production.
This led to a 190SL being trialled with the 2195cc, six-cylinder motor from the 220S Coupé and Cabriolet range.
It proved quick, but production costs saw this car shelved, and Mercedes did the same with the proposed 220SL version of the W113 Pagoda SL that gave way to the production 230SL model.
5. 1960 Mercedes-Benz W118
Mercedes-Benz nearly took a very different path with its medium-sized saloon when it developed the W118 to appeal to Germany’s expanding middle class.
The front-wheel-drive layout was radical for the brand, along with most other car makers at the time, and it was initially set to use a 1.5-litre ‘boxer’ four-cylinder engine.
This motor was replaced by a more conventional, in-line, 1.7-litre, four-cylinder unit for the W119 development car.
However, Mercedes pulled back from production and it missed out on providing a real threat to BMW’s Neue Klasse.
6. 1961 Mercedes-Benz W189 300d Pullman
As if the W189 range of Mercedes 300d cars was not luxurious enough, the German company came up with a Pullman version.
Only three were ever made, with one landaulet for Pope John XXIII and the other two limousines kept by Mercedes to offer for state use as required.
Each came with a wheelbase extended by a further 450mm (18in) over the already lengthy 300d’s, which freed up huge amounts of space for anyone fortunate enough to ride in the back.
The landaulet came with a single, centrally placed, raised seat for the Pope to see out better and be seen more clearly during processions.
7. 1969 Mercedes-Benz C111
When Mercedes-Benz pulled back the covers on the C111 at the 1969 Frankfurt motor show, it caused a sensation.
Nothing like it had come from Mercedes before and this experimental car was equally stunning under the skin.
Power came from a mid-mounted, three-rotor, Wankel rotary engine with 276bhp, which was upgraded to a four-rotor version in 1970 with 345bhp and top speed of 186mph.
More C111 versions followed, with a diesel-powered car in 1976 that set 16 world records.
For 1978, Mercedes gave the C111 a body with improved aerodynamics that set further endurance records, but the C111 never made it to production, even though 16 were built in all.
8. 1969 Mercedes-Benz W109 300SEL 6.3 Pininfarina
Jaws dropped when Mercedes fitted its 6.3-litre V8 engine into the luxurious W109 saloon to create a four-door hot rod.
For some, however, the rarity of the 300SEL 6.3 saloon was not enough, which led a Dutch businessman to ask Mercedes about a coupé or convertible model. The answer was ‘no’.
Undeterred, this customer turned to Pininfarina to create a one-off coupé using a standard 300SEL 6.3 as the base.
After considerable work to create the car, its original owner only kept it for two years before selling – it still exists today.
9. 1972 Mercedes-Benz ESF13
First seen by the public at the Transpo 72 trade fair in Washington, DC, in the USA, the ESF13 was a mobile test bed for emerging safety systems.
Mercedes would go on to build 35 cars in this series, with many of their innovations reaching production, even if the complete vehicles didn’t.
ESF13’s purpose was to withstand 80kph (50mph) front and rear impacts, and a side impact at 20kph (12.5mph).
It achieved this with help from an improved body structure to absorb an impact, new seatbelts and foam-filled bumper sections.
Other technology tested on ESF13 included adjustable headlamps with wash/wipe, rounded doorhandles and a repositioned fuel tank to move it further from the exhaust system.
10. 1979 Mercedes-Benz CW311
The Mercedes badges on the CW311 are slightly misleading, because this car was not designed or tested by the German firm.
Instead, the CW311 was the idea of Eberhard Schulz, who worked for Porsche and dreamed of building his own supercar.
With Mercedes’ blessing and working with tuning company BB, he used an AMG-tuned V8 that delivered a near-200mph top speed for the first CW311.
When Schulz realised this car was not production ready, he struck out on his own in 1982 to form Isdera and unveiled the Imperator 108i two years later.
There were two generations of the Isdera Imperator, but it’s reckoned no more than 30 of these handbuilt supercars were ever made.
11. 1981 Mercedes-Benz Auto 2000
Challenged by Germany’s Federal Ministry for Research and Technology to design a car capable of carrying more than 400kg (882lb) of load, four passengers, and return between 27 and 30mpg, Mercedes took on the task.
The competition was called Auto 2000, hence this sizeable estate’s name when it was shown at the 1981 Frankfurt motor show.
Its wagon body helped with the cargo requirement as well as aerodynamics, which were quoted by Mercedes as 0.28Cd.
Three engines were tested in the Auto 2000. There was a 3.8-litre V8 that could deactivate one bank of cylinders to save fuel, a 3.3-litre, straight-six, bi-turbo diesel capable of 37mpg and an experimental gas turbine.
While the Auto 2000 didn’t see production, its styling and technical influence were clear in the 140-series S-Class that arrived 10 years later.
12. 1981 Mercedes-Benz NAFA
NAFA is a contraction of NahverkehrsFahrzeug, which is German for ‘short-distance vehicle’ and exactly what this car was designed for.
Long before Mercedes-Benz helped with the Smart Fortwo, the NAFA was just 2.5m (just over 8ft) long and 1.5m (nearly 5ft) wide.
The tiny dimensions made it ideal for city driving, this further assisted by four-wheel steering to give it an amazingly tight turning circle.
Sliding doors eased access in cramped parking spaces, while the 1-litre, three-cylinder engine was mated to an automatic gearbox to take the strain out of urban driving.
13. 1982 Mercedes-Benz S123 Elektro-Antrieb
Plenty of car manufacturers were experimenting with electric power at this time, including Mercedes, but the German firm was also among the first to consider plug-in hybrid technology with the S123 Elektro-Antrieb.
Based on the company’s handsome estate, it used an electric motor to drive the wheels.
Power came from a vast battery pack in the boot, which was later made more compact, plus there was a range-extender two-cylinder petrol engine to work as a generator that charged the batteries as required.
Clever as it was, the weight of the drivetrain meant this 123-series wagon could only reach 50mph and had a driving range of 60 miles on battery power, with an additional 30 miles when the petrol engine kicked in.
14. 1990 Mercedes-Benz W201 190E Elektroantrieb
The ‘E’ in this Mercedes 190 saloon’s name did not refer to its fuel injection but its electric motor.
It broke cover in 1990, then was updated in ’91 with a pair of motors to power the rear wheels, giving a combined power of c43bhp and range of up to 68 miles on a full charge – however, the technology added to the weight of the standard saloon, so performance was slower.
Testing and development continued and Mercedes built 10 190E Elektros, including some produced with a manual gearbox rather than with a single-speed drive.
However, the poor range and charging times meant this 190E did not progress any further.
15. 1991 Mercedes-Benz C112
With no road car to capitalise on its Group C motorsport programme, Mercedes looked to the C112 as a roadgoing version of its C11 racer developed with Sauber.
Using a 6-litre version of the company’s M120 V12 engine, the C112 came with 402bhp to give a top speed of 192mph and 0-60mph in 4.9 secs.
That would have put the C112 among the fastest road cars in the world at the time, but the active suspension and automatically adjustable aerodynamics were what marked out this car.
There was a clamour from wealthy customers and Mercedes received 700 requests to buy a C112, but the company decided against it.
16. 1991 Mercedes-Benz F100
The F100 was unlike anything Mercedes had previously exhibited when it was revealed at the 1991 North American International Auto Show.
Pitched as an alternative to luxury saloons like the new S-Class that would launch in the same year, the F100 placed the driver in the centre of the cabin, because this was said to be the safest position.
Passengers sat behind and to either side of the driver, and there were sliding back doors to help with access.
Front-wheel drive was still a novelty for a Mercedes at this point, while technology such as lane assistance, adaptive cruise control, xenon headlights and tyre-pressure monitoring accurately predicted the future.
17. 1992 Mercedes-Benz W124 230E Wasserstoffantrieb
Following its tests with plug-in hybrid power, Mercedes-Benz then investigated hydrogen as a possible fuel of the future.
The Wasserstoffantrieb, German for hydrogen propulsion, used a 230E saloon complete with its internal-combustion engine.
Rather than Mercedes’ later F-Cell hydrogen fuel-cell cars, the 230E had a hydrogen combustion engine, though refuelling was difficult outside factory facilities.
That didn’t prevent Mercedes from completing more than 125,000 test miles in a car that could have been produced if the fuelling infrastructure existed.
18. 1994 Mercedes-Benz C140 S600 Zagato Masters Golfing Break
Commissioned by a wealthy Mercedes fan from Milan, Italian firm Zagato was selected to create an estate version of the V12-engined, 140-series S600 Coupé.
With the car in its hands, Zagato crafted a large, rear estate section, which made carrying the client’s golf clubs even easier than in the standard model’s generous boot.
While the C140’s original rear pillars remained intact, new rear glass, a new roof and a new tailgate were all grafted on.
Despite plans to offer a limited run of 25 cars, only one Masters Golfing Break was made, which was stolen early in its life and disappeared.
19. 1995 Mercedes-Benz Vario Research Car
Unlike Citroën’s C3 Pluriel that did go into production, Mercedes decided against it with its adaptable Vario Research Car.
Displayed at the 1995 Geneva show, the Vario took its name from a body that could be changed from saloon to estate to convertible to pick-up.
The idea was the owner popped into their nearest Mercedes dealer when they wanted to change body styles and 15 minutes later they drove off with a differently shaped car.
Mercedes planned to charge a small rent for each body style, so the owner simply paid for the use of whichever suited them at the time.
The idea didn’t catch on, but the shape of the estate did point clearly toward the new ML SUV that would arrive in 1997.
20. 1996 Mercedes-Benz F200 Imagination
The front-end design of the Mercedes F200 Imagination introduced the look of the forthcoming S-Class that arrived in 1998, but there was much more to this scissor-doored wonder.
The big news was in the cabin where you would quickly notice the absence of a steering wheel or pedals.
In its place was a centrally positioned joystick that operated the steering, acceleration and brakes.
Undoubtedly clever, the F200 failed to fire customers’ imaginations, but the steer-by-wire technology it pioneered will see production in the 2026 EQS.
21. 1997 Mercedes-Benz F300 Life Jet
The premise of the Mercedes F300 Life Jet was simple: offer the manoeuvrability of a motorcycle with the stability of a car.
To do this, Mercedes conceived an ingenious system called Active Tilt Control for this trike that used electronics to decide how much the body leaned on its hydraulically operated front suspension.
The chassis was made from aluminium and weighed only 89kg (196lb), while the fighter-jet-like body used aluminium and composites, and the two occupants sat in tandem.
Power came from a 1.6-litre, four-cylinder engine lifted from the new-for-1997 A-Class, so the F300 offered 0-60mph in 7.7 secs, 131mph and 44.3mpg average economy.
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