The Benz behind Mercedes-Benz: a timid inventor and his bold wife

Karl Benz could easily be described as timid, at least when it came to business.

He worked long hours perfecting his invention: the gasoline-powered "horseless carriage." It needed to be perfect, absolutely perfect, before Karl would dare show his creation in public.

There was good reason for trepidation, of course. Both the church and the Kaiser, powerful figures in 19th century Germany, were against the idea of anything replacing horses as transportation. A few years prior, Karl Benz had humiliated himself at a fair when one of his prototypes got out of control and crashed into a wall.  He couldn't risk failure again.

His wife, Bertha Benz, knew he could succeed. Lacking her husband's apprehension, Bertha took one of his automobile prototypes and drove off-- leaving only a note behind.

Up until this moment, no motorized vehicle had been driven more than a few hundred feet. Bertha decided to visit her mother, 65 miles away. She stopped in every town along the way, making repairs and shocking villagers.

The news of a woman-- a woman!-- driving through towns on this novel contraption spread quickly, and those who weren't terrified were delighted. When Bertha returned from her journey, she brought detailed notes to her husband which allowed him to perfect the automobile.

127 years later, and we think we have perfected the automobile. That's why you're shopping here, at Mercedes-Benz of Calabasas. Just look through all of our new cars for sale-- none of these would be possible without the audacity of Bertha Benz, and the genius of Karl Benz.