People have already experienced a lot with Mercedes-Benz. Invented the car, put an S-Class on the wheels that had to be maneuvered backwards with dipsticks, which because of its dimensions didn’t fit on the car train to Sylt, a 450 SEL with which the author of these lines and his friends drove to Rostock to the legendary defeat of Eintracht Frankfurt for the German soccer championship. Since then, everyone who was directly or emotionally involved at the time has known: Lebbe is leaving. The SEL, a statement, won the title of Car of the Year in 1974. Since then, you wouldn’t believe it, the Swabians have never made it to the top of the winner’s podium for the industry’s most prestigious award. Til today. 52 years later, the Mercedes CLA takes the throne. Perhaps the team around Ola Källenius themselves didn’t believe in it, otherwise the chairman of the board shouldn’t have missed the opportunity to make an appearance on site. But his small, dedicated group of envoys did a good job. Above all, the technicians do a good job. The CLA makes excellent progress, especially as a model with electric drive, and its driving behavior is great. One can argue about the design, the CLA does not exude the timeless self-evidence of building the best cars in the world. This self-evidence has of course been somewhat lost throughout the company. There is no need to overestimate such an award, but it should bring fresh self-confidence to Stuttgart. And the realization that the technological leap worthy of the award should have been made with a different model. Mercedes, that’s S-Class. But now first: enjoy the great moment, this is one for Mercedes and also has an impact on the German car industry. May it not be another 52 years until the next one.
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