Won't you buy me a Mercedes-Benz? One of the world's most iconic luxury vehicle nameplates was formed on June 28, 1926, when Benz & Cie and Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft finally merged after a two-year corporate partnership to create Daimler-Benz AG ( MBGA.F 1.38% ). The Benz name, despite a stronger automotive pedigree ( Karl Benz did invent the modern automobile, after all), wound up secondary to Daimler's Mercedes brand. Daimler's three-pointed star logo also wound up on the new company's cars, further cementing its primacy in the ostensible merger of equals.