The design department at Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) – which had not yet merged with Benz & Cie – began developing Mercedes compressor vehicles in 1919. Gottlieb Daimler’s son Paul, who had succeeded Wilhelm Maybach as technical director and board member in 1907, drove the development work forward. DMG already had some experience with mechanical supercharging because compressor technology was used in aircraft and submarine engines.
The first Mercedes compressor racing cars made their debut in 1922 at the Targa Florio in Sicily. They included, besides the 1.5-litre racing cars driven by Paul Scheef and Fernando Minoia, a Mercedes 28/95 PS, whose engine had been fitted with a compressor for this race and had an output of 140 bhp (103kw).
