Benz, BMW, and a century of tech one-upmanship

Two carmakers have been trying to out-invent each other for more than a century

In March, BMW marked its centennial—and a century of technological rivalry with Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz. In newspaper ads, Benz, which can lay claim to having invented the car in 1886, congratu-mocked its Bavarian archenemy: “Thanks for 100 years of competition. The 30 years before that were a little dull.” That’s like M-B doing doughnuts on BMW’s driveway. Here, a timeline of the two companies trading pole position for automotive supremacy.

Scorecard or is 1 point

1 A lederhosen-clad leg up

2 Opening it up on the autobahn

3 Pitiless Arsch-whupping

4 Hasselhoff concert