The Techno Classica Essen 2014 was held 26-30 March at the Messe Essen exhibition centre in Essen, Germany. The trade show in Essen set standards for classic automotive culture, evidenced by more than 1,250 exhibitors from 30 nations offering everything one might be looking for in the area of vintage and classic motor cars and modern classics. While more than 2,500 collector vehicles from various eras were offered for sale at Techno Classica, the show also covered the complete range of topics in the area of restoration, replacement parts and service.
Mercedes-Benz honored 120 years of its motor racing history with more than 30 vehicles, ranging from the more than 110-year-old Mercedes-Simplex 40HP to the Grand Prix racing car of the last season. No classic motor show has ever before seen such an armada of racing cars from Mercedes-Benz brand history. The 4,800 square-metre Mercedes-Benz exhibition stand was supported by a strong showing of the official German Mercedes-Benz brand clubs.
“Techno Classica, as one of the most important venues for historical automotive culture in the entire world, is the befitting setting for this excellent presentation of original competition cars from twelve decades,” reported Michael Bock, Head of Mercedes-Benz Classic.
The Mercedes-Benz presentation in Essen traced a historical arc that began with the Mercedes 4.5-litre Grand Prix racing car of 1914. Exactly 100 years ago, Mercedes achieved a sweep of the first three places with this car in the 1914 French Grand Prix in Lyon. Via the legendary Silver Arrows W 25, W 125, W 154, and W 165 of the 1930s and their successor, the W 196 R model of 1954 and 1955, the exhibition took spectators to the car that won the Indianapolis 500 for the Penske-Mercedes team in 1994. Finally, the new Silver Arrows of the Formula 1 from McLaren Mercedes and Mercedes-AMG Petronas carried the glimpse of the premier motor racing further to the racing events of the recent past.
The racing and touring sports cars at the Mercedes-Benz exhibition went all the way back to the beginnings of the Mercedes brand: The Mercedes-Simplex of 1902 stood for the successes with which Mercedes already put its stamp on racing in the very early days. The Benz brand, still a competitor of the Stuttgart-based company in those days, was represented by a 1910 “Prinz Heinrich” special touring car. The period following the merger between Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft and Benz & Cie. was represented by the SSK. It is a member of the family of supercharged touring sports cars which dominated motor sport in the 1920s and early 1930s, and had the honour of being nicknamed “White Elephants” by spectators. The 300 SL (W 194, 1952) and 300 SLR (W 196 S, 1955) models told the story of the successful re-entry into motor racing after the Second World War. The Group C Sauber Mercedes C 9 racing sports car (1989) and the Mercedes-Benz CLK-LM (1998) continued the story, followed by the latest chapter of the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3.
For the first time Zagato was represented at Techno Classica — on the occasion of the company’s 95th birthday — with a Zagato-designed Alfa Romeo, Aston Martin, Ferrari, Maserati, Lancia and more. The 100th anniversary of Maserati was celebrated with an official company stand that displayed historical and new Maserati sports cars.
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Photographer Pavel Novitski offers the following selection of images from the 2014 Techno Classica Essen. We split up Pavel’s pictures into two galleries. The first gallery starting below features our favorite images, all displayed in the full-width view of Sports Car Digest, while the second gallery can be found on the last page of the article and gives a comprehensive view of all the photographs. To see more from Pavel, visit pavelnovitski.com/.
Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Featured Photo Gallery
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Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Two
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Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Three
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Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Four
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Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Five
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Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Featured Photo Gallery Page Six
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Techno Classica Essen 2014 – Main Photo Gallery (click image for larger picture and description)
The unauthorized use and/or duplication of any editorial or photographic content from sportscardigest.com without express and written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to sportscardigest.com with appropriate and specific direction to the original content.
[Source: Mercedes-Benz; photos: Pavel Novitski]
WOW
Wow , Makes me wish I hadn’t blown my last $ 36 mill on a Chinese Chicken Cup !!
Fantastic picture coverage, congratulations and thanks for sharing!
Wow!! Thank you!
OH MY GOOD, WE HAVE SOME SHOWS IN BRAZIL, BUT FAR FAR AWAY OF AUTOCLASSICA ESSEN LUXURY AND TECHNIC.
THANK YOU TO GIVE TO US THIS PICTURES.