The beginning of the auto era showed people lots of new horizons and completely different way of life. First cars were a sensation and a rarity, and no one could have thought then that they will soon be produced on wholesale conditions. But it happened, and in a very short time almost everyone could have a possibility to become a happy owner of the newest technique wonder, of course, if he had enough money to buy it.
The car industry developed as the answer on people’s requirements and trends, and the next stage in its development became competition between the constructors. The best way to decide whose cars were the toughest was found – that’s how car races appeared. It was also a good way to find out about the drawbacks of some certain model in order to avoid such mistakes in the next ones.
While Rolls Royce and Delauney Belleville companies worked hard to improve such characteristics of their products as convenience and availability, German Daimler concentrated on making sport cars. The first one appeared in 1901, created by Mercedes.
Daimler’s cars made a real boom and all the others seemed old-fashioned comparing to them. But German company wasn’t going to stop, the next Mercedes model had even stronger engine. Later appeared heavy-duty racing model with 90 horsepower engine, which was planned to take part in Gordon Bennett Trophy in 1903, but it got burnt in fire burst on the factory on mysterious reasons. An old sport car with 60 horsepower engine took its place on the competition and became a winner. It was a leader of that time’s sport cars and even now people who were lucky to drive this model, say that it’s really very convenient in driving, engine is almost noiseless and the gears shift very softly.
Mercedes 60 is also known as the tourist class car, that’s why it has such strange back wheels and no mud flaps. The company held the leading place on competitions for several years up to 1908. But the new rules about bounding the engine strength ended the age of such monsters.