by Gabrielle DeSantis

When it comes to luxury cars, you won’t find many that are more luxurious than the ones that bear the name of both Mercedes-Benz and Maybach. Seeing the two names on the same vehicle has prompted many people to ask if the vehicles are the result of two separate companies joining forces and collaborating or does Mercedes own Maybach?

Maybach creates its first car

Immediately following the end of WW1, Maybach started attracting the auto industry’s attention in 1919, when its first creation rolled off the line and found its way into the hearts of German luxury auto enthusiasts. The company continued to produce fantastic luxury cars for another 20 years.

One of the most famous vehicles that bore the name was the Zeppelin. The name was a not-so-subtle way of paying homage to the fact that in addition to creating top-of-the-line luxury cars, Maybach also created the engines for Germany’s famous airships.

According to the International Driving Authority, Karl Maybach was hailed as the “King of Designers.” In 1922, The German Engineers Association dubbed him a “pioneering designer.” Anyone who could afford to purchase a luxury car clamored for a Maybach creation.

Maybach’s official history page describes how the company was so dedicated to high-quality designs, they created a design training program that emphasized turning out well-schooled designers who would approach each design they handled with the heart and soul of a perfectionist. Aspiring designers continue to attend the company’s rigorous design training workshops.

The history of Mercedes-Benz

The Mercedes-Benz company traces its history back to the late 1800s. As the Victorian Era was yielding to the Edwardian Era, two bright young men, Carl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler joined forces and created a horseless carriage.

While the two struggled to find funding at a time when investors were more interested in financing stationary engines than dreams of what would kick off the automotive age, the pair never gave up. Eventually, they created a three-wheeled vehicle that Carl’s wife drove across Germany when she wanted to visit her parents. Daimler.com reports that the famous road trip took place in 1888 and covered a duration of 180-kilometer. 

The company went on to create several exciting and memorable vehicles, including the still-famous S-Class. Well over a hundred years have passed since Bertha Benz took that first drive. Since then, a great deal has changed. Mercedes-Benz now has a reputation for producing top-quality vehicles that are highly sought after by both luxury and sport car enthusiasts.

The merging of Mercedes and Maybach

Most people, especially drivers who love luxury cars, are aware that there’s a connection between Mercedes and Maybach. Fewer people know that Mercedes owns Maybach. According to CarCarePortal, Mercedes originally purchased Maybach in 1960. At the time, Mercedes took advantage of the new acquisition to use Maybach’s resources to create the W116 and W108 models. For several years, the two companies stood alone.

Inside Hook reports that it was at the 1997 Tokyo Motor Show that Mercedes revealed that it was using the Maybach name in connection to a few sedans it was dedicating five years of production time to. The vehicles didn’t arrive until 2002. Both vehicles, which were the Maybach 52 and the Maybach 62, were gorgeous and had hefty price tags. While the price was modern, both vehicles had an old-world kind of style.

Many people assumed that this was one of the first times the two company names were connected but that’s not the case at all. The two companies share a history that goes back a long way. Long before Mercedes formally purchased Maybach.

The history of these two companies can be traced back to 1896 when Maybach shared a friendship and love of locomotives with Gottlieb Daimler. The pair worked together and likely would have created an early version of the Maybach/Mercedes company had Maybach been able to agree with Nicolaus Otto who had also been brought into the group’s fold. In the end, the group fractured. Maybach and Diemler created Maybach, and Otto and Benz created Mercedes-Benz.

RELATED: $1.2 Million Mercedes-Maybach G650 Landaulet Is Rarer Than a Bugatti Veyron

The post Does Mercedes Own Maybach? appeared first on MotorBiscuit.

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Cell phones and cars are both evolving quickly and, all too often, their latest tricked-out features are being used at the same time. While high-quality infotainment systems and top-of-the-line safety technology show that the digital world and the driving world can co-exist, it seems that there’s a never-ending list of tragedies associated with technology use in cars. Car safety is more important than ever.

Typically, vehicle operators who used their phones during a drive are held accountable for any crashes and injuries that result. However, a 2017 tragedy left the family of one teenager wondering — could these apps, designed to keep us constantly reaching for our screens, also be at fault? 

2017 saw a Snapchat tragedy

An NPR article recently recapped the tragic 2017 deaths of three teenage boys. In May of that year, the young men had piled into a car and were speeding through long, corn-lined roads in Walworth County, Wisconsin. As the driver, a boy of only 17 years, reached higher and higher speeds, one passenger pulled out his phone. 

He clicked into the app Snapchat, a photosharing platform that allows users to easily spice up their captures with filters. The particular one he sought out was the famous “speed” filter, an overlap that displays how fast you are moving at the time of the picture. Just before the crash, his screen read “123 mph.”

Before any more posts could be made, the driver lost control of his vehicle. The car shot off the road and hit a tree, killing all three riders. 

The last snap led to a lawsuit by the boy’s parents

Cue the several handful of tech law types going apoplectic that this decision means the end of the internet as we know it. https://t.co/JS6JGtKj3t

— Ari Ezra Waldman (@ariezrawaldman) May 5, 2021

The absolute tragedy of the situation was undeniable, but some aspects of the case sparked debate. If Snapchat was the boys’ primary motivation for reaching high speeds — with the parents saying they were “hoping for engagement and attention from followers on the messaging app,” according to NPR — could the app be partially to blame for the accident? 

In the past, tech companies have been overwhelmingly protected by the Communications Decency Act, a law that states that apps are not held responsible for what users choose to post on their platforms. However, representatives for the boys asserted that it was not something that was posted that caused the problem — it was the design of a feature that celebrated achieving high speeds. 

To the shock of many, a federal appeals court granted the driver’s family the right to sue Snap Inc. The landmark decision, dubbed Lemmon v. Snap, has paved the way for these families to get a sense of justice. It also has many tech and car companies rethinking their designs and placing a renewed focus on car safety. 

What Lemmon V. Snap teaches about car safety

According to the Washington Post, Snapchat’s speed filter is no longer available for tracking car speeds. However, this change comes far too late for the Lemmon family and other victims of the 2017 crash. It also does not rectify many other driving temptations that millions face on the road each day. 

Whether it’s the instant gratification of seeing an MPH filter ticking up, or hearing the alluring bell of a notification, our cell phones are constantly vying for our attention. And though most cars entering the market in 2021 offer hands-free and Bluetooth technology designed to keep our eyes on the road, the quick glances it takes to set up these features can sometimes be deadly. 

It’s always wisest to avoid your phone altogether while driving. Tuck it into a cup holder or throw it in the back seat. But, if you do need to communicate with someone, take advantage of all safety features or — better yet — pull off into a parking lot. 

RELATED: 5 Teen Safety Features in New Cars

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