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| Wheelbase | 2.345 m |
|---|---|
| Track | 1.345 m |
| Wheight | 1,200 kg |
| Cylinders | 4-in line |
| Ignition | magneto (spark) |
| Displacement | 5918 cm3 |
| Carburetor | two w/spray-nozzle |
| Cooling | honeycomb radiator |
| Top Speed | 75 km/h |
| Rated Output | 35 hp (950 rpm) |
| Transmission | 4-forward/1-reverse |
| Wheels | not removables, wooden spokes and steel rims |
| Tires | 910x90 front, 1020x120 rear |
The Mercedes 35 hp was a car model designed and produced in the year 1900 by the Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG), Wilhelm Maybach and Emil Jellinek in Stuttgart, Germany. Technically recognized as the first "true car" because it pioneered features like a high engine performance and an increased stability (large, wide and with low center of gravity).
Dreamt in the 1900s as a speed car for the Mercedes racing-team, it's name became Mercedes Benz, the main brand of the Daimler-Chrysler and one of the most importants in the modern World.
History
Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG)
The DMG was a car company of Cannstatt (Sttutgart) founded in 1890, originally as an amplification of the domestic business of Gottlieb Daimler and Wilhelm Maybach who, for their part, revolutionized the World with their patented inventions for engines and automobiles.
But this commercial amplification also meant the entrance of some capitalists (Max von Duttenhofer and William Lorenz) who had greedy (and even cruel) plans against the original founders. Hence Daimler and Maybach were openly excluded but the DMG kept exploiting all their inventions.
In commercial terms, the company marketed basically cars with the Daimler/Maybach's Phoenix engine of 1894, very successful also in the primitive races disputed in Europe.
Wilhelm Maybach
In the 19th century he developed all his industrial-designer career next to Daimler. Together they pioneered the construction and commercialization of petrol-engines, and also massively developed these for cars. Which earnings were invested in many commercial enterprises, the last of which was the DMG. Although the new investors quickly scorned them, and Maybach had to work isolated in his own house and later even exiled in Italy.
Emil Jellinek
Emil Jellinek was a reputed Austrian merchant residing in Nice and Viena, that was already known as "Monsieur Mercedes" in the Cote D'Azur where he successfully pioneered the expensive automobile commercialization to the local aristocracy. In the year 1900, his sales (28 units) represented a third of the total output of the DMG.
He was so much enthusiast of the Daimler's Phoenix of 28 hp (the first of which he acquired personally in Cannstat, 1897) that he inscribed two of this cars in the competition Nice-La Turbie Hill Climb (March 30 1990) and baptized his team Mercedes (Spanish girls' name meaning grace) because that was his daugher's (of 10 years) name. For the occasion the DMG commissioned Wilhelm Bauer, a mechanic deep connoisseur of the Phoenix who also unexpectedly decided to compete with one of the Jellinek's cars.
The adventure finished in tragedy when Bauer died in the first curve, crashing out of the racing track. As consequence DMG canceled all motorsport investment. Despite of what Jellinek rushed to press personally the company, finally signing a juicy agreement for which a new DMG car model would be designed to compete in the following racing season in Nice (1901). In exchange, Emil Jellinek acquired beforehand 36 of this new vehicles (to be delivered in October 15 1900) by the astounding sum of 500,000 goldmarks. The model should be baptized Mercedes, thing that DMG conceded because the brand-name Daimler was already conceced to the Panhard Et Levasor for all France.
Then, Jellinek went personally to Maybach's design office and ordered the implementation of some revolutionary enhances (aside faster speed) in the Mercedes: longer wheel base and lower center of gravity. During the next months Jellinek followed closely the workings progress first through telegrams but later also personally.
Maybach tested the new car for first time in November 22 and Jellinek his first unit in December 22.
Aftermaths of 1990
In March 1901 took place the Nice-La Turbie race. And Emil Jellinek looked for revenge incorporating 5 units into his Mercedes team, and with the pilot Wilhelm Werner. The cars unreachably led the race from start to finish with a record average speed of 51.4 km/h (beating the previous 31.3 km/h) and reaching 86 km/h.
The automobile society was astonished to the point that Paul Meyan (director of the French Automobile Club) declared: "We have entered the Mercedes era".
Inbetween March and August of that year DMG added other two new sibling models (12/16 hp and 8/11 hp) of the new car, most of them made familiar with the addition of two back seats. The commercialization was so successful to put the factory at full capacity work. While the name Mercedes was made official in June 23 1902, and registered in September 26.
In June 1903, a fanaticized Emil Jellinek switched his own real name to Jellinek-Mercedes, commenting: "This is probably the first time that a father has taken his daughter's name."
Revolutionary sizes
The overall handling of the automobile was stabilized in comparison with the classic coaches moved by horses, that were narrow and high, and suffered the risk of overturn at high speeds. Designs still not updated in the World of the automobile.
The Mercedes was 2,345 m long (Wheelbase) and 1,400 m width (Track). And its wooden wheels were all of the same height.
The total weight was also dramatically reduced to 1200 kg, because the main chassis frames were of pressed steel made from carefully designed U-shaped sections.
While the engine was also unloaded to 6 kg/hp and mounted onto the front axle without any improvised (for decoration) extra frames around. With the engine crudely welded in the steel sheet, the Mercedes was not just narrowed but also with a lower center of gravity.
The average speed was of 70-75 km/h, though in the races the Mercedes reached 85 km/h records.
The axles
The wide axles held unremovable wooden wheels of 12 spokes, with a steel cover and nearly similar tyres of 910x90 (front) and 1020x120 (rear).
Seized to these were the two (necessarily) powerful brake systems: one manual and the other at foot. The main hand-brake acted on the rear wheels with drum brakes of 30 cm width. The secondary device consisted of water-cooled cardan shafts.
Both axles were rigid, equipped with semi-elliptic springs in the extremes. Near of which were the steering-axles, and located there decreased this way the transmission of the road roughness over the driver's hands.
Also the steering wheel was made lighter, taken backwards and comfortably inclined.
Drive system
While the engine was at the front of the car, the rear wheels rotated by a large chain.
At driver's right hand was the gearshift, a gate-change system that granted a transmission with 4-speeds forward and also a one in reverse. The drum-like compact clutch system was attached to the flywheel ahead into this drive unit. Consisting of an automatically adjusting coil spring (of wound spring steel), with the tension at declutching regulated by a conical cam.
Engine
The Mercedes' main bearings was built with magnalium, an aluminium alloy with 5% of magnesium. And pioneered a crankcase made of aluminium.
With 4 cylinders (disposed in pairs) casted in grey iron without removable heads, that had a displacement of 5,918 cc each (bore/stroke: 116x140 mm). And each pair had it's own spray-nozzle carburetor.
The valves (intake and exhaust) no more opened snifting accordingly with the pressures in the cylinders. Instead, a gearset in the flywheel operated camshafts, down at both sides of the engine, in charge of driving all the 4 valves and also the low-voltage magneto make-and-break spark ignition (center gear set), the pumping of the water-cooling system (center gear set) and the radiator fan behind the radiator (gear set at the front of the engine).
The engine started by a starting-crank with decompressor.
Maybach's cooling tubular radiator, known as the honeycomb radiator and patented in 1897, is similar to the used in contemporary cars. With a rectangular grill of 8,070 pipes of 6x6 mm with squared shape (improving airflow), through which circulated 9 litres of water got cold by car's goings or by a small back-fan at lower speeds.
The Mercedes' engine rendered an engine speed from 300 to 1000 rpm, something controled by the driver with a lever on the steering wheel. Achieving 35 hp at 950 rpm.