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3 German Car Manufacturers Who’ve Mastered The Business Saloon

19 February 2018

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As the birthplace of the first automobile and one of the largest producers of vehicles in the world, Germany is undoubtedly the home of the modern car.

On the international stage, the country is revered for its automotive engineering prowess across a range of vehicle types, with brands like Audi, BMW, Porsche, VW, Opel, and Mercedes-Benz making the country famous for both quality and performance.

And as a place that’s known for getting things done, one area the German automotive industry has excelled in is business saloons. The market is dominated by the big three German brands, demonstrating their unique ability to marry stylistic form with practical function. As the German proverb goes, ‘Not bricht Eisen', ‘Necessity is the mother of invention.’

Let's take a look at what it is exactly that makes these German auto giants so successful and suited as company cars by profiling three of the industry's masters.

BMW

The formidable German brand Bavarian Motor Works (BMW), is known for producing some of the world’s sportiest and most luxurious cars. 

The original company that became BMW first built planes and then motorbikes, before its first motorcar in 1928, a licensed Austin Seven. The double-kidney grille and six-cylinder engine characteristic of the Seven soon came to define the brand, and some of its most iconic cars are the E30 M3, the first M3, the futuristic i8 plug-in hybrid, and the first mass-produced, Italian-inspired M1.

If you want your company fleet to embody quality and performance, you can’t go wrong with the BMW 3 Series — the quintessential business saloon.

Audi

Another German-born company, this time forged together from four leading motor manufacturers — Audi, Horch, Wanderer and DKW — Audi has generated almost cult status among its drivers.

Founded in the 1930s, the company has stayed true to its slogan, ‘Vorsprung durch Technik’, usually translated as ‘progress through technology’, for nearly a century. Producing such marvels as its first AWD car, the Quattro, the R8 handling dream, and the record-breaking DKW Monza.

Car of the Year in 2016, the Audi A4 demonstrates the ideal combination of practicality and style that the brand is so widely known for, and as a result, often wins the verdict for the best business saloon.

Mercedes Benz

Mercedes-Benz, a division of the company Daimler AG that also owns Chrysler and Smart, traces its roots way back to the 19th century, to the 1886 Benz Patent-Motorwagen — widely regarded as the first gasoline-powered automobile. 

But the company’s origins began officially in 1901, with Austrian entrepreneur Emil Jellinek who worked with DMG and named its first vehicle after his daughter, Mercedes. Since then, the company has made everything from world-class supercars to luxury yachts, with vehicles of note including the gullwing 300SL, the AMG C63, produced by its racing subsidiary, and the classic Ponton that paved the way for the modern-day C-Class.

Today, the C-Class arguably offers comfort, elegance, and style better than any other business saloon. With the latest models providing entertainment and technology that rivals any other car on the market.

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