Mercedes-Benz anniversary tour brings global motoring celebration to Namibia
Mercedes-Benz has brought its global anniversary celebrations to Namibia, with Windhoek becoming one of 140 destinations on a 50 000km journey spanning six continents.
The event, held at M&Z Motors on Tuesday evening, formed part of the manufacturer’s ‘140 Years. 140 Places’ campaign, marking 140 years since Carl Benz filed his patent for what is widely regarded as the first practical motorised vehicle on 29 January 1886.
Appropriately for a brand that built its reputation on engineering, endurance and long-distance motoring, the anniversary is being celebrated not in a museum, but on the road.
Three new Mercedes-Benz S-Class saloons are travelling across the world, visiting 140 locations before the journey concludes in Stuttgart in October.
Two of those cars arrived in Windhoek as part of the African leg of the expedition, which is travelling from Nairobi towards South Africa. The third car, named Bertha in honour of Carl Benz’s wife, is currently tackling the northern African section of the journey in Egypt.
A journey built for the road
Mercedes-Benz senior engineer Christian Smith, who is part of the touring team, said the journey was designed to celebrate more than the company itself. “We are really honoured to be here in Namibia,” Smith said.
“Mercedes-Benz was the inventor of the motorised vehicle. To celebrate that – not only our brand but automobilism in general – we are undertaking this enormous tour across the globe, and we have never chosen the easy way as a company.
“We’ve carried out the tour through South America, North America, Asia, South-East Asia, Oceania, India and now we’re here in Africa.”
For motoring enthusiasts, there is something particularly appropriate about seeing the S-Class take on such a journey.
The model has long represented the technological flagship of the Mercedes-Benz range, a rolling showcase for the company’s latest advances in comfort, safety, engineering and performance. Over the decades, innovations introduced on the S-Class have often filtered down through the wider automotive industry.
Now, the latest generation is being asked to do something rather different: cover tens of thousands of kilometres across vastly different roads, climates and continents.
Namibia’s testing connection
Smith said Namibia was a particularly significant stop because of the country’s long-standing relationship with Mercedes-Benz engineering and vehicle development. “Namibia is an important part of the tour for us because we have been testing our prototypes here for years and years, especially right in this place, and this is a big connection that we have as a company.”
That connection will resonate with anyone familiar with Namibia’s unique appeal as a motoring destination.
The country’s combination of extreme heat, long gravel roads, mountain passes, open desert and vast distances has made it an attractive environment for vehicle testing. It is also a place where driving remains an experience in itself.
The anniversary convoy has taken in the Zambezi Region, northern and central Namibia, Windhoek and the country’s south, including the Fish River Canyon.
It is a route that provides a striking contrast to the urban boulevards normally associated with the flagship Mercedes-Benz saloon.
Namibia is one of only five African countries included in the global campaign.
More than a birthday celebration
The Windhoek stop was also used to promote Namibia to an international audience, with local partners highlighting the country’s tourism appeal and investment potential.
Namibia Investment Promotion and Development Board executive spokesperson Catherine Shipushu said the global campaign offered an opportunity to put the country in the international spotlight. “Namibia is often referred to as Africa’s best-kept secret, so we are leveraging this platform to showcase our culture, economic potential and to position Namibia as a lucrative and safe destination for investment, leisure and business tourism,” she said.
“This is the objective of Brand Namibia, to inspire national pride and strengthen Namibia’s presence on the global stage as a country whose story is worth sharing with the world.”
The event also marked 90 years of Mercedes-Benz in Namibia and 120 years of M&Z Motors, underlining just how deeply the three-pointed star has become woven into the country’s automotive history.
