Mercedes-Benz is a German automotive brand that was formed with the merger of Benz & Cie., the world's oldest car company, and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft in 1926. It is part of the Mercedes-Benz Group AG, a German car manufacturing company. The following is a list of trucks produced by Mercedes-Benz.
1926–1944
The first Mercedes-Benz truck range, presented at the 1926 Berlin Motor Show (October) and at the 1927 International Motor Show for Trucks and Special Vehicles in Cologne (May) included three basic models with the payloads of 1.5, 2.5 and 5 tons. Each model was available with a standard and a low-frame chassis. Low chassis made sense especially that time to make easier loading and unloading of the vehicle. Also the low chassis has been used to build the buses. The models with the standard chassis were L1, L2 and L5 (L stood for Lastwagen, German word for a truck, and the digit stood for the rated payload in tons). The models with the low chassis were N1, N2 and NJ5/N5 (N stood for , meaning low car). The trucks were equipped with the four-cylinder petrol engines (M14, M2 and M5), developing 45HP, 55HP and 70 HP. Mercedes-Benz L1 and L2 were the new models, but Mercedes-Benz L5 truck was basically a continuation of famous Benz 5CN truck, which was developed before the merge of Benz & Cie and Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft companies.
In 1927 Mercedes-Benz presented its first diesel engine (OM5), which immediately became a sensation. It was the world's first six-cylinder diesel engine, installed on the commercial vehicle. Also from 1927 Mercedes-Benz offered the more powerful six-cylinder petrol engines (M16, M26 and M36) developing 50HP, 70HP and 100 HP. Four-cylinder engines were discontinued only one year later. Therefore, in 1927–1928 most of the trucks from the series L1, L2, L5 were available with four- or six-cylinder engines. To distinguish that, six-cylinder versions of the trucks were referred sometimes as, for example, L1/6 or N2/6.
In 1927–1928 Mercedes-Benz also expanded the range of the truck models, adding the small model L3/4 with the payload of 750 kg (3/4 ton), which was developed from the passenger car Typ 200 Nürnberg, and a heavy three axis model N56 with a payload of 7–9 tons. The payloads of L1 and L2 models was increased with the new 6 cylinder engines from 1.5 to 1.75 tons (model L1/N1) and from 2.5 to 3.0–4.0 tons (model L2/N2). To fill the newly formed gap between L1 and L2 models, Mercedes-Benz offered new 2.5 tons model L45/N46 and (a bit later) 2.75/3.0 tons model L57/N58.
Resulting diversity of the trucks made an impressive lineup of Mercedes-Benz commercial vehicles, but also required a new, better system for their designations. In fact, by the year of 1930, only the model L5 still referred to its payload (5 tons). L1 model's payload has been gradually increased up to 2 tons, L2 model's payloadup to 4 tons, and L45/N46 and L57/N58 model names were not saying about their payload at all from the beginning, but were rather the company's internal model designations. So in October 1930 a new system for the commercial vehicle designation has been introduced. Basically, instead of the one digit, standing for the rated payload in tons, a four digits number, standing for the rated payload in kg, has now been used. This number followed the same letter L for the trucks (as before), or the letters Lo (LO) for the low chassis, or the letter O for the buses (O stood for the German word Omnibus, what is translated as a bus). According to that, the model L1 was renamed to L2000, model L45 was renamed to L2500, model L57 was renamed to L3000, model L2 was renamed to L4000, model L5 was renamed to L5000 and the model N56 was renamed to L8500. This nomenclature has been used for more than 20 years, until 1954.
L1, L2, and L5 (1926–1932)
Source:
1st generation, 4-cylinder engines (1926–1929)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19261928M 14, 4-cyl3680 cc2.0 t1.5 t19261927Typ 33Typ 43M 2, 4-cyl5750 cc3.63.9 t2.5 t19261929Typ 34M 5, 4-cyl8143 cc5.4 t5 t
2nd generation, 6-cylinder engines (1927–1931)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19271930M 16, 6-cyl3921 cc2.2–2.3 t1.51.75 t19281930M 16, 6-cyl3921 cc2.7 t2.5 t19271929M 26, 6-cyl7069 cc4.0 t3.04.0 t19281931Typ 36 7793 cc7069 cc8573 cc5.9 t5 t19281930Typ 39 7793 cc8573 cc7.0 tTyp 39N56 (Niederwagen 8½ Tonnen) 7793 cc8573 cc8.5 t
3rd generation (1930–1932)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19301932M 32, 6-cyl3921 cc2.4 t2.0 tM 16, 6-cyl2.7 t2.5 tM 56, 6-cyl4170 cc3.0 tM 36, 6-cyl7793 cc4.1 t3.54.0 tTyp L 35L 50005 t19301933L 8500 (6×4)8.59 t
L3/4 and L1000 Express (1927–1936)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload 1988 cc2581 cc2581 cc19291936Typ 37L 1000M 11, 6-cyl2581 cc1.0 t
Light trucks (1932–1941)
1st generation (1932–1935)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerTruck weightPayload19321935Typ L 60Typ L 59Typ L 64Lo 3500
2nd generation (1935–1937)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19351937Typ L 603770 cc3770 ccTyp L 594942 cc4849 ccTyp L 64Lo 37507413 cc7274 cc3.75 t
3rd generation (1937–1941)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19371940Typ L 604562 cc4562 ccTyp L 59L 2750L 30004942 cc4849 cc3.0 t19371941Typ L 64L 3750L 40007413 cc7274 cc3.75 t
Semitrailer tractors (1932–1938)
Mercedes-Benz semitrailer tractor family was developed from Mercedes-Benz Lo2000-Lo3750 trucks.
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload1934–1937Typ L 60LZ 40003770 cc3770 cc4 t19321938Typ L 59LZ 60004942 cc4849 cc6 tTyp L 647413 cc7274 cc
L5000 (1932–1936)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerTruck weightPayloadProduction figures19321933Typ L 35L 50005.8 t5 t14919341937Typ L 35L 50005.9 t5 t1095
Heavy-duty trucks (1934–1939)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerTruck weightPayloadProduction figuresTyp L 54L 6500 (4×2)5.2 t213719321934Typ N 56L 8500 (6×4)8.5 t19341936Typ N 56L 8500 (6×4)OM 546125178.0 t8.5 t8519351938 1938–1939Typ N 56L 10000 (6×4)10 t
LG and LR (1934–1944)
LG means Lastwagen Geländewagen (off-road truck). LR means Lastwagen Raupenfahrzeug (caterpillar truck). The Mercedes-Benz LG65/2 and LG65/4 were experimental models.
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19341935Typ LG 65/2LG 2000OM 67, 6-cyl7274 cc2.02.6 t19361939Typ LG 65/3LG 2500 (6×6)OM 67, 6-cyl7274 cc2.32.5 t19341935Typ LG 65/4LG 3000 (8×8)OM 65, 4-cyl4849 cc3.34.3 t19351938Typ LG 63L 3000 (6×4)OM 67, 6-cyl7274 cc5.7 t2.03.0 t19371939Typ LG 68LG 4000OM 67, 6-cyl7274 cc6.6 t2.73.7 t19361939Typ LR 75LR 75M 142, 6-cyl3208 cc2.1 t0.8 t19431944Typ LR 303L 4500 R MaultierOM 67/4, 6-cyl7274 cc7.7 t4.5 t
L1100, L1500, and L2000 (1936–1941)
The lighter L1100 family was first presented in 1936, but because of the Nazi government's Schell Plan Mercedes-Benz were forced to focus on heavier trucks; the lighter trucks were mainly built with petrol engines for the armed forces as civilians could no longer buy trucks.
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19361941Typ L 70L 11001.1 t19371941Typ L 70L 15001.5 t19371940Typ L 81L 2000 L (light)M 142, 4-cyl3210 cc2.0 t2.0 t
L1500, L3000, and L4500 (1939–1944)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineDisplacementMax powerTruck weightPayload19411944Typ L 301L 1500 A/SM 159, 6-cyl2594 cc2.22.5 t1.41.7 tTyp L 662.63.1 t19391944Typ L 303L 4500 A/SOM 67/4, 6-cyl7274 cc5.3 t4.5 t
1945–1960
The immediate post-war era was marked by rebuilding the trucking industry. In the mid-fifties, however, Germany's first federal transport minister Hans-Christoph Seebohm enacted a number of laws promoting the Bundesbahn at the expense of the trucking industry. Severe weight and dimension restrictions were particularly harmful to export-dependent Mercedes-Benz, as they had to develop duplicate truck lineupsone for export, and one for the restricted German market. These restrictions were eased beginning in 1960, leaving Mercedes-Benz free to focus their efforts on a unified lineup once again.
L4500 (1945–1961)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19451948303L 4500OM 67/467270112 HP10.5 t4.5 t19481952303L 5000OM 67/467270112 HP10.5 t5.0 t1952–1953303L 5500OM 67/867270120 HP11 t5.5 t19531957325L 5500/ L 325OM 32567270125 HP11.312 t5.96.6 t19571961330L 330 (export)OM 31568280125 HP1213 t6.67.6 t
L3500/L4500 (1949–1961)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19491950311L 3250OM 3126458090 HP6.5 t3.25 t19501961311L/LP 3500 / L/LP 311OM 3126458090100 HP6.7 t3.5 t19531961312L/LP 4500 / L/LP 312OM 3126458090100 HP8.5 t4.5 t19571959321L/LP 321OM 32165100110 HP9.3 t5.25.4 t
L6600 (1950–1962)
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19501958304L 6600 / L/LP 315OM 31568280145 HP12.6 t6.6 t19571958326L/LP 326OM 326610810192200 HP16 t8.6 t329L/LP 32912 t6.5 t19571959331L/LP 331 (export)OM 326610810150172 HP15 t8 t19581962332L/LP 332 (export)OM 326610810172 HP17.5 t11 t334L/LP 334 (export)OM 326610810192200 HP19 t12 t The nomenclature: In 1954 the old four-digit model series designation (indicated the payload in kilograms), was replaced by a three-digit model series designation, which basically corresponded to Mercedes-Benz internal model designations (in-house design codes). This nomenclature have been used for almost 10 years, from 1954 till 1963.
A cab-over-engine versions of most of the trucks were also available from 1954. For example, LP4500 (1954) and LP315 (1955). However, there was only a single model which existed only as a cab-over-engine version, "the Millipede" (LP 333). YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19581961333LP 333OM 326610810200 HP
1960s
Kurzhauber (1959–1988)
Cab-over-engine versions (LP) of most of the trucks were also available; the cabins were built by Wackenhut until the introduction of the "cubic" cab LP-series.
1st generation (OM312, OM321, OM322 engines), 1959–1963
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19611963323L/LP 323OM 31264580100 HP7.5 t4 t328L/LP 3289 t5 t322L/LP 32210.5t6.5 t327L/LP 327
2nd generation (OM352 engine), 1963–1970
YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19631970323L/LP 710OM 35265675100 HP7.5 t4 t19631969328L/LP 911OM 35265675110 HP9 t5 t322L/LP 1113OM 35265675126 HP10.5t6.5 t327L/LP 1413OM 35265675126 HP14 t9 t The nomenclature: In 1963 a new designation system was introduced: a three- or four-digit number where the first one or two digits indicate the rounded GVW in tones, and the last two figures indicate the engine power to tens of horsepower. This index system remains in use until now.
3rd generation (OM352 and OM 360 engines), 1967–1988
LP versionssee below. YearsInternal designations (BM)Sales designationsEngineNumber of cylindersDisplacement (cc)HorsepowerGVWPayload19681988353L 911 BOM 35265675110 HP9 t5 t358L 1113 BOM 35265675130 HP11 t7 t352OM 35265675130 HP19711976360
Kurzhauber with longer hood (1959–1988)