1954 Mercedes-Benz W196 Monoposto

At the 1954 French Grand Prix, W196 debuted with a closed-wheel streamlined body designed specifically for the high-speed circuits of Reims and Monza. This more conventional open-wheel version was introduced at the European Grand Prix at the Nurburgring. The 1955 Formula 1 season was cut short after the 1955 Le Mans disaster, but W196 won every race except the Monaco Grand Prix.

This car, chassis 00013, one of the last built, was raced three times during the 1955 season. Juan Manuel Fangio drove this car to victory in the Dutch Grand Prix and to a second-place finish at the British Grand Prix. In the British Grand Prix at Aintree, against strong opposition from the Maserati 250Fs as well as the Vanwalls, Gordinis and Coopers, Stirling Moss was fastest by two-tenths of a second over his teammate Juan Manuel Fangio, with whom he had been swapping the lead throughout the race.

The first Daimler-Benz formula racing car built after the war. In this car, Juan Manuel Fangio won the 1954 and 1955 world championship titles. When new formula racing regulations were introduced in 1954 that allowed an engine displacement of 750cc in the supercharged version or of 2.5-liters in the naturally aspired version, Daimler-Benz opted for the naturally aspirated version and the development of the car was put in the capable hands of Rudolf Uhlenhaut. The first entry of the new W 196 R in the French Grand Prix at Reims ended with Juan Manuel Fangio and Karl Kling scoring a double victory. Overall, Daimler-Benz won four out of the six remaining races after entering the competition three races into the 1954 season. The 1955 season proved even more successful, with the Daimler Benz team winning 5 out of 7 races.