The all-terrain vehicle brand produced by Mercedes-Benz since 1951 is Unimog.
The Unimog began as a compact agricultural and utility machine after the Second World War. Its name is derived from the German “Universal-Motor-Gerät,” meaning universal motor machine. The design combined tractor-like equipment capability with road-going speed, four equal-sized wheels, portal axles and switchable four-wheel drive.
Early Unimogs were built by Gebrüder Boehringer in Göppingen. Daimler-Benz took over production in late 1950, and series manufacture began at the Mercedes-Benz plant in Gaggenau in 1951. The first Daimler-Benz examples still used the Unimog’s ox-head emblem; the three-pointed Mercedes star appeared on the bonnet from 1953.
Unimogs have served farmers, forestry crews, militaries, emergency services and municipal operators. They are not simply SUVs: their modular equipment carrier design allows tools, winches, snowploughs and other attachments to be fitted. Production moved from Gaggenau to Wörth am Rhein in 2002.