1982

1 January 1982
Athens-based Mercedes-Benz Hellas S.A. – established in November 1981 – takes over the business operations of the previous general distributor.

1 - 20 January 1982
The French team of Georges Groine / Thierry de Saulieu/Bernard Malfériol wins the truck classification of the Paris - Dakar Rally in a Unimog U 1700 L. A U 1300 L driven by Pierre Laleu and Bernard Langlois comes in second.

4 January 1982
Airbags and belt tensioners are available as an option for all models in the Mercedes-Benz passenger car range.

February 1982
As part of the Freightliner acquisition, Daimler-Benz takes over Freightliner Credit Corporation, which extends its financing activities to Mercedes-Benz vehicles and is renamed Mercedes-Benz Credit Corporation.

21 - 28 April 1982
Daimler-Benz AG presents its first research car with electric drive system at the Hanover Trade Fair. Based on the estate model, it is fitted with a 30 kW / 41 hp electric motor and a 600 kg nickel-iron battery and is tested under real-world conditions in everyday traffic. Daimler-Benz also presents a hydrogen-powered passenger car – a 280 TE with petrol-hydrogen dual-fuel system – to the broad public for the first time.

20 - 26 May 1982
The MB-trac 1000 (441 series) is presented at the DLG show in Munich and serves as the link between the light model series and the heavy-duty MB-trac series introduced in 1976.

25 May 1982
The Board of Management of Daimler-Benz AG makes a pivotal decision to continue pursuing the project of a new headquarters building in Stuttgart-Möhringen. As a first step in the planning the company announces an architectural competition to start on 1 July.

26 - 28 May 1982
The substantially expanded O-Bahn test track in Rastatt is presented to the international press. A high-speed track allows speeds of up to 100 km/h.

1 July 1982
Mercedes-Benz Italia S.p.A. takes over passenger car operations from the previous general distributor Autostar S.p.A.

1 September 1982
The facelifted 123-series saloon, coupé and estate models come onto the market with enhanced standard equipment.

3 September 1982
The Mercedes-Benz Bremen plant tops out the new production buildings of the Holter Feld plant extension after an almost three-year build.

9 September 1982
The Indonesian company P. T. German Motor Manufacturing begins operations at a new assembly plant for Mercedes-Benz passenger cars and commercial vehicles in Wanaherang, near Jakarta.

13 September 1982
The two-millionth 123-series vehicle produced in Sindelfingen, a 200 D, leaves the assembly line.

October 1982
To mark the fifth anniversary of the death of Dr Hanns Martin Schleyer, Daimler-Benz endows the annual "Hanns Martin Schleyer Prize" for outstanding services in promoting the necessary basic consensus between management and labour in an economic and social order oriented to personal freedom and social peace.

3 November 1982
A new customer service centre and workshop is opened in Beijing to support the 4,500 Mercedes-Benz vehicles currently in service in the People's Republic of China. Daimler-Benz thus becomes the first European automobile manufacturer to set up a service workshop in cooperation with the Chinese state import company Machimpex.

24 November 1982
The Düsseldorf Mercedes-Benz plant produces its five-millionth power steering unit since steering production began in Düsseldorf in 1962.

29 November 1982
For the first time since the start of post-war production began, Daimler-Benz AG presents a compact class model in the shape of the 190 and 190 E (201-series), expanding the passenger car range by a third series to add to the mid-series and S-Class. The chassis of the the new models establishes a wholly new benchmark. The new shock-absorber strut front axle and innovative rear-axle concept – in the form of the patented multi-link independent suspension – ensure an equally high level of ride comfort and handling precision.

7 December 1982
1,200 units of the new Mercedes-Benz compact class start from the Sindelfingen plant on a rally to German distributors and company-owned outlets. The new series is available for inspection, test driving and sale starting on 8 December.

17 December 1982
NAW Nutzfahrzeuggesellschaft Arbon & Wetzikon AG, a commercial vehicle company in which Daimler-Benz has a 40 % holding, is founded in Arbon, Switzerland. The other partners in the company are AG Adolph Saurer with a 45 % share and Oerlikon Bührle Holding AG with 15 %.