Mercedes-Benz E-Class – 70 years of Malaysia’s most trusted business sedan

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class is Malaysia’s most trusted business sedan, for good reasons. No other nameplate can match the E-Class’ steeped heritage, a trust that has been passed down from one generation to another.

Tales of a family business’ rags to riches story is not complete without a Mercedes-Benz E-Class (or its predecessors) in it.

The history of Mercedes-Benz in Malaysia is essentially the history of the E-Class, as the first Mercedes-Benz passenger car sold in Malaysia was the W136 generation 170D, the model from which the E-Class’ lineage starts from.

In 1951, Cycle and Carriage clinched a franchise deal for the Mercedes-Benz marque. Prior to that, Mercedes-Benz vehicles were imported in low volumes into the then British colony by Messrs Katz Bros in Singapore, and later Brinkmann & Co, the latter focused on Mercedes trucks.

Cycle and Carriage heavily promoted the German cars to two distinct group of business owners – taxi operators and tin miners – the two biggest group of car buyers then. Their pitch? The trusty W136 170D, the genesis of today’s E-Class.

The Mercedes-Benz 170D kick-started Malaysia’s taxi industry and also established Mercedes-Benz sedans as a trusted business companion.

The first Malaysian buyer of a 170D was Mohamed Jee, who ran a taxi company in Kuala Lumpur. Soon, other taxi business owners like Fazel Deen from Kuala Lumpur and Hassan bin Musti from Raub placed more orders for the 170D, and eventually converted their entire fleet to Mercedes-Benz cars.

It should be noted that unlike today, the taxi operators then had a very different, cleaner, more respectable image. At that time, only slightly wealthier families could afford to ride in a taxi.

Back then, taxis were very well maintained and older readers would remember a time when Mercedes-Benz W123 taxis’ had seats covered in white cloth, driven by respectable gentlemen.

At the same time, Mercedes-Benz trucks and buses were also becoming known for their reliability, a fact that is not lost on tin miners in Ipoh looking for machineries to support their businesses.

In the ‘50s, Ipoh was the world’s largest producer of tin, and had more millionaires per capita than Texas. Think of it as the Dubai of the ‘50s, when Dubai was still an empty desert.

The W136 had just been replaced by the ‘Ponton’ W120 180D, which was then followed by the ‘Fintail’ W110 190D and 230 (petrol).

The ‘Ponton’ established the template for a business sedan, one that continued until today.

It was around this time that a Mercedes-Benz sedan is considered an essential companion for any self-respecting businessmen. Short of a Rolls-Royce, no other alternative was acceptable.

BMW was not yet a household name for luxury then, neither was Audi.

So even back then, businessmen (and women) instinctively knew that it was either ‘The Best or Nothing.’

Mercedes-Benz sedans were in such high demand that sales personnel at Ipoh Motors’ - the local agent for Cycle and Carriage - would only need to make sure they close the first sale (which was the hardest) with an influential tin mining towkay.

If the most influential tin miner places an order for a new Mercedes, his peers and business associates would eventually follow suit.

Contrary to popular opinion, businessmen don’t always see having a Mercedes-Benz as a means to show-off, but an essential accessory for their image as a trusted, reliable, business partner.

A Mercedes-Benz sedan is synonymous with financial stability. Even if a sedan is little bit traditional and not as fashionable, it projects an image of trustworthiness. For businessmen, there are important qualities that only an E-Class can project. 

To highlight the difference in image, Ipoh tin mining tycoons would drive Mercedes-Benz sedans while their playboy sons will race the streets in Alfa Romeo Giulias.

The ‘Fintail’ W110 made way for the W115 for the ‘Stroke 8,’ with its iconic vertical headlights.

The city of Ipoh was buying so many Mercedes-Benz cars that Daimler presented a gift to the town – a large Mercedes-Benz logo was erected on top of Gunung Rapat, which overlooked the entrance into Ipoh (for travelers coming from the South).

The two-storey high logo was imported from Germany, and the installation work was done by Wing Lee, Ipoh’s biggest sign maker. At night, the two-storey tall logo was lit up in blue and purple. It was the pride of Ipoh.

Sadly, this historic monument has since been torn down. For four decades, the logo was maintained by a Taoist temple in the limestone hill below, supported by a RM 200 monthly donation from Ipoh Motor, the local Mercedes-Benz dealer for Cycle and Carriage.

By the ‘90s, the logo was falling apart and bits of the structure were falling down to the foot hill. The cost to repair it was about RM 50,000 but Cycle Carriage decided to dismantle the logo in 1998, at the cost of RM 20,000.

The E-Class lineage would reach new heights with the W123 and W124, after which the entire range adopted the E-Class naming convention.

The legendary W124 was launched at a time when KLCC and KLIA were being built. It and the subsequent quad headlamps W210 E-Class were the icons of the roaring ‘90s, until everything came crashing down with the ’97 Asian Financial Crisis.

But our country recovered and resilient local businesses chinned up and adapted to the Internet era. The W211 and W212 E-Class ushered us into the 2000s.

Today, the latest W213 generation is the 10th generation of a lineage that began 70 years ago.

As you would expect, the technology has jumped by quantum leaps. If the former tin mining tycoons who built this country were still alive today, they would have their minds blown by the current E-Class’ MBUX and Intelligent Drive features. But one look at the three-pointed star, businessmen of all generations will immediately recognize the timeless promise of a Mercedes-Benz E-Class.

Also, they would be pleased to know that they no longer have to use tin ores as collaterals to buy their Mercedes-Benz. In the old days, when auto financing was not yet a thing, tin miners would contra their car purchase with tin smelters, who would release the cash to the Mercedes-Benz dealer.  

Today, there’s Agility Financing. Progress is good.

Officially, Daimler says the E in E-Class doesn’t refer to a specific word. Previously, the E in early models like 230E referred to Einspritzmotor or fuel-injected engine, but this is no longer valid today. We think the letter E in E-Class should be for Entrepreneur.