1958

Event14

Front seat belts available as optional extra

Front seat belts available as optional extra

February 1958
Mercedes-Benz offers front seat belts on all car models as an optional extra ex factory. The lap belts are available fo...

Power-assisted steering for the Mercedes-Benz 300

3 March 1958
The Mercedes-Benz 300 is available with a ZF-Saginaw power-assisted steering gear as an optional extra. It is the first...

Buying into Auto Union

1 April 1958
Daimler-Benz purchases an 88 % share in the equity capital of Auto Union GmbH, Ingolstadt/Düsseldorf.

Rally success in East Africa in a Mercedes-Benz 219

Rally success in East Africa in a Mercedes-Benz 219

4 - 7 April 1958
At the Coronation Safari, a rally across Kenya, Uganda and Tanganyika, John Manussis wins the overall classification in...

O 317 and LP 333 go into production

O 317 and LP 333 go into production

May 1958
Production of the O 317 bus model gets underway at the Mannheim plant. At the same time, the Gaggenau plant begins serie...

New high-rise administrative building in Untertürkheim

New high-rise administrative building in Untertürkheim

May 1958
Construction of the new high-rise administration building in Untertürkheim is completed.

Safety door lock helps save lives

Safety door lock helps save lives

2 July 1958
The wedge-pin door lock with two security notches is registered as a patent. The innovative design detail, which preven...

Factory in Australia

30 July 1958
Together with Australian Motors Industries Ltd., Daimler-Benz sets up Mercedes-Benz Australia Pty. Ltd. in Port Melbour...

New sales structure in the USA

August 1958
The newly founded Mercedes-Benz Sales, Inc. (MBS) – a subsidiary company of Studebaker-Packard based in South Bend, Indi...

Luxury class with injection engine

Luxury class with injection engine

1/2 September 1958
The 220 SE (W 128) with injection engine is presented to the press in Sindelfingen. Already established for some years,...

100,000th 180 D

100,000th 180 D

September 1958
Less than five years from the start of production of the 180 D, the 100,000th unit of this model rolls off the assembly...

Cooling system for the 300

1 December 1958
Daimler-Benz offers a cooling system as an optional extra in the 300 model. This special equipment, known today as an a...

Investments ten years after currency reform

31 December 1958
Capital spending by Daimler-Benz AG since the currency reform on 20 June 1948, comes to DM 692.8 million, including DM...

Export share increases - exports to 136 countries

31 December 1958
For the first time in the history of Daimler-Benz AG, company sales exceed DM 2 billion. Export sales come to DM 965.4 m...