The Mercedes-Benz Museum is an
automobile museum in
Stuttgart
Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the Sw ...
, Germany. It covers the history of the Mercedes-Benz brand and the brands associated with it. Stuttgart is home to the
Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to as Mercedes and sometimes as Benz, is a German luxury and commercial vehicle automotive brand established in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a Mercedes-Benz Group subsidiary established in 2019) is headquarte ...
brand and the international headquarters of the
Mercedes-Benz Group.
The museum building
The current building, which stands directly outside the main gate of the Daimler factory in Stuttgart, was designed by
UN Studio. It is based on a unique cloverleaf concept using three overlapping circles with the center removed to form a triangular atrium recalling the shape of a
Wankel engine
The Wankel engine (, ) is a type of internal combustion engine using an eccentric rotary design to convert pressure into rotating motion. It was invented by German engineer Felix Wankel, and designed by German engineer Hanns-Dieter Paschke. ...
. The building was completed and opened on 19 May 2006. Architecture and exhibition concept are closely interwoven, as exhibition designer
HG Merz had already been commissioned before the architecture competition in 2001.
The building's height and "double helix" interior were designed to maximise space, providing of exhibition space on a footprint of just . The double helix also corresponds to the exhibition concept, which divides the museum into the "legend rooms" and the "collections", offering two alternative tours that can be merged at any given point of the museum.
The museum contains more than 160 vehicles, some dating back to the very earliest days of the motorcar engine. The vehicles are maintained by the
Mercedes-Benz Classic Center of
Fellbach. Previously, the museum was housed in a dedicated building within the factory complex and visitors had in recent decades been transported from the main gate by a secured shuttle.
Other details
The museum provides visitors with free audio tours in a variety of languages. In 2007, the museum was visited by 860,000 people.
Visitors are also offered the opportunity to take a tour of the nearby Untertürkheim engine factory. The factory produces many of the company's diesel engines.
Gallery
File:MB Museum Stuttgart 2.jpg, A McLaren SLR near the museum shop, 2008
File:MB Museum Stuttgart 1.jpg, Staircase along a gallery
File:Mercedes-Benz Formel-Rennwagen W25 (51559196205).jpg, Mercedes-Benz Formel-Rennwagen W25
File:Mercedes Benz Museum in Stuttgart (15364082140).jpg, Side view
File:Mercedes Benz Museum (17257783019).jpg,
File:20191018 Mercedes museum 1.jpg,
See also
*
Automuseum Dr. Carl Benz
*
List of automobile museums
An automotive museum is a museum that explores the history of automotive-related transportation.
* Bold – Automotive museums owned by automotive manufacturers
* ''Italics'' – no longer open to public access, excludes private or invitation o ...
*
Mercedes-Benz World
*
Museum for Historical Maybach Vehicles
Further reading
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References
External links
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Mercedes-Benz
Museums in Stuttgart
Tourist attractions in Stuttgart
Automobile museums in Germany
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