company, Daimler AG (formerly DaimlerChrysler AG), after previously being owned by Daimler-Benz . Mercedes-Benz has its origins in Karl Benz 's creation of the first petrol -powered car, the Benz Patent Motorwagen , patented in January 1886, [1] and by Gottlieb Daimler and engineer Wilhelm Maybach 's conversion of a stagecoach