Mercedes-Benz is a German brand of automobiles, buses, coaches and trucks from the DaimlerChrysler company (formerly known as Daimler-Benz), commonly known as Mercedes. Mercedes-Benz is the world's oldest automobile manufacturer. Mercedes' primary competition includes BMW, Cadillac, Jaguar, Audi, Lexus, Acura, Infiniti and Lincoln. The famous three-pointed star was designed by Gottlieb Daimler to show the ability of his motors for land-, air- and sea-usage. The sign first appeared on a Daimler vehicle in 1909. The Benz laurel was added in 1926 to symbolize the union of the two firms. The plain ring seen today was first used in 1937.

Their products have been known for the introduction of advanced technologies to cars—notably fuel injection and anti-lock braking systems, amongst many others. However, it does not always work: recently, an active brake system installed in over 600,000 cars has been recalled to fix potential problems. In addition, the brand's reputation of reliability has been called into question when it was recently ranked rather low in consumer surveys. To address the problem, the brand invested heavily in recent years to stem the problem.