Mercedes-Benz continues to be regarded as the world’s most valuable premium automotive brand. In the latest ranking by respected brand consultancy Interbrand Zintzmeyer & Lux, ‘Best Global Brands 2011’, the three-pointed star brand again took twelfth place – as it did last year – and is therefore the most valuable European brand. Its brand equity has risen to US$ 27.455 billion, an increase of 9 percent compared to 2010. Mercedes-Benz’s brand equity has therefore risen continuously since 2009.

So in future, real-life road tests, in arctic cold or the blazing heat of the desert, will only take place with prototypes that have already reached an advanced stage of development by being thoroughly tried and tested under the most extreme climatic influences. This enables Mercedes-Benz to achieve the highest possible quality. The clear ambition to do so has been a key element in the philosophy of the world’s oldest automotive manufacturer for the last 125 years.