Gottlieb Wilhelm Daimler (German: [ˈɡɔtliːp ˈdaɪmlɐ]; 17 March 1834 – 6 March 1900) was a German engineer, industrial designer, and industrialist. He was a pioneer in the development of internal-combustion engines and automobiles. He created the first high-speed engine powered by liquid petroleum.

Daimler worked with his lifelong business partner, Wilhelm Maybach. Together, they aimed to design small, high-speed engines that could be used in various types of vehicles. In 1883, they built a horizontal cylinder engine that could control its speed, making it useful for transportation. This engine was named "Daimler's Dream."

In 1885, they created a vertical cylinder version of the engine. They attached it to a two-wheeled vehicle, which became the first internal-combustion motorcycle. This vehicle was called the Petroleum Reitwagen (Riding Car). The same engine was later used in a coach and a boat. Daimler nicknamed this engine the "grandfather clock engine" (Standuhr) because it looked like a large pendulum clock.

In 1890, Daimler and Maybach formed a stock company called Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG, or Daimler Motors Corporation). Their first automobile was sold in 1892. Daimler became ill and took a break from the business. When he returned, he faced challenges with other company members, leading to his resignation in 1893. This decision was later reversed in 1894. Maybach also resigned at the same time but returned later. Daimler died in 1900, and Maybach left DMG in 1907.

Daimler is known as "the father of the motorcycle."

Early life and education (1834–1862)

Gottlieb Wilhelm Daimler was born on March 17, 1834, in the town of Schorndorf near Stuttgart, Kingdom of Württemberg, a region that is now part of Germany. His parents were Johannes Däumler (Daimler), a baker, and his wife, Frederika. By the age of 13 (in 1847), he had completed six years of primary school at a Latin school and developed an interest in engineering.

After finishing secondary school in 1848, Daimler trained as a gunsmith under Master Gunsmith Hermann Raithel. In 1852, he completed his training by passing a trade examination. He graduated in 1852 after passing the craft test by creating a pair of engraved double-barreled pistols. That same year, at the age of 18, Daimler decided to pursue mechanical engineering instead of continuing as a gunsmith and left his hometown.

Daimler enrolled at Stuttgart's School for Advanced Training in the Industrial Arts, where he studied under Ferdinand von Steinbeis. He was a hardworking student and even attended extra classes on Sundays. In 1853, with Steinbeis’ help, Daimler began working at a factory called Rollé und Schwilque (R&S) in Grafenstaden. This factory was named after its manager, Friedrich Messmer, who had previously taught at the University of Karlsruhe. Daimler performed well, and in 1856, when R&S started making railway locomotives, he was appointed as a foreman at the age of 22.

Instead of staying at R&S, Daimler spent two years studying at Stuttgart’s Polytechnic Institute to improve his skills. There, he gained a deep understanding of steam locomotives and developed a strong belief that steam power would eventually be replaced. He began designing small, inexpensive, and simple engines for light industrial use, possibly influenced by the new gas engines being developed at the time.

In 1861, Daimler resigned from R&S and traveled to Paris before moving to England. There, he worked with leading engineering firms and became familiar with machine tools. He spent the autumn of 1861 through the summer of 1863 in England, a country known as "the motherland of technology," at Beyer, Peacock & Company in Manchester. One of the company’s partners, Beyer, was from Saxony. While in London, Daimler visited the 1862 International Exhibition, where a steam-powered carriage was displayed. However, these carriages did not inspire him, as his goal was to improve machine tools for metal and woodworking machinery.

Career through 1882

Daimler worked at Maschinenfabrik Daniel Straub, Geislingen an der Steige, where he designed tools, mills, and turbines. In 1863, he joined the Bruderhaus Reutlingen, a Christian Socialist toolmaker, as an inspector and later became an executive. While there, he met Wilhelm Maybach, then a 15-year-old orphan. Because of Daimler's organizational skills, the factory made a profit, but he left in frustration in 1869, joining Maschinenbau Gesellschaft Karlsruhe in July.

In 1872, when N.A. Otto and Cie reorganized as Gasmotoren-Fabrik Deutz, management chose Daimler as factory manager, without considering Otto. Daimler joined the company in August, bringing Maybach on as chief designer. While Daimler improved production, weaknesses in Otto's vertical piston design, along with Daimler's strong preference for atmospheric engines, caused the company to face challenges. Neither Otto nor Daimler were willing to compromise. When Daimler was given the choice to start a Deutz branch in Saint Petersburg or resign, he resigned and opened a new business in Cannstatt, using savings and shares from Deutz. Soon after, Maybach joined him there.

Otto four-stroke engine (1876)

In 1872, at the age of 38, Daimler and Maybach began working for the world's largest company that made stationary engines at the time, called Deutz-AG-Gasmotorenfabrik in Cologne. The company was partially owned by Nicolaus Otto, who was searching for a new engineer in charge of development. As directors, Daimler and Otto focused on improving gas engines, while Maybach worked as the chief designer.

In 1876, Otto created a new type of engine called the gaseous fuel, compressed charge four-stroke cycle engine, also known as the Otto Cycle. This engine used four steps in its process: intake, compression, power, and exhaust. Otto hoped his invention would replace steam engines, which were common at the time, even though his engine was not yet advanced or efficient.

Otto’s engine was patented in 1877, but one of his 25 patents was later questioned and canceled. Daimler, who wanted to build his own engine, worried that Otto’s patent might stop him. Daimler hired a lawyer, who found that an earlier patent for a four-stroke engine had been issued in Paris in 1862 to Beau De Rochas, a French engineer.

At the same time, serious disagreements developed between Daimler and Otto. Otto reportedly felt jealous of Daimler because of his university education and knowledge. Daimler wanted to create small engines for transportation, but Otto had no interest in this idea. When Otto excluded Daimler from his engine patents, the two men became very upset with each other. Daimler was fired in 1880 and received 112,000 Gold marks in Deutz-AG shares as compensation for the patents held by both Daimler and Maybach. Later, Maybach also resigned and joined Daimler.

Independent inventor of small, high speed engines (1882)

At Cannstatt, Daimler and Maybach worked together to design an engine. Daimler wanted to replace the difficult-to-use slide-valve ignition system with a hot tube ignition system created by an Englishman named Watson. This was because electrical systems were too slow to operate effectively.

In the summer of 1882, Daimler moved to Cannstatt, a town near Stuttgart, and bought a cottage in Taubenheimstrasse using 75,000 Gold marks from compensation received from Deutz-AG. Maybach joined him in September of the same year. In the garden, they built a brick addition to a large glass summer house, which became their workshop. Their work worried nearby neighbors, who told the police they suspected Daimler and Maybach of making counterfeit items. The police got a key from the gardener and searched the house while they were away, but they only found engines.

Daimler and Maybach spent many hours discussing how to best power Otto’s four-stroke engine design. They chose a type of petroleum product that was widely available. At the time, the main types of petroleum products were lubricating oil, kerosene (used for lamps), and ligroin (a type of petroleum naphtha). Ligroin was mostly sold in pharmacies and used as a cleaner. As described by antique car expert Michael Plag, "Leichtbenzin [which includes ligroin and similar petroleum products] was commonly available in pharmacies at that time. This is a flammable fuel called n-hexane."

Dream engine (1883)

In late 1883, Daimler and Maybach received a patent for their first engine powered by ligroin. This patent was officially recorded on 16 December 1883. The engine met Daimler's goal of being small and capable of operating at 750 revolutions per minute (rpm). Over the next four years, improved designs increased the engine's speed to 900 rpm. In early 1884, Daimler built three engines using this design, and one of them included a flywheel. Compared to engines made by other inventors at the time, this design was smaller and lighter. Daimler used hot tube ignition until 1897, when he switched to the electrical ignition system developed by Bosch.

Grandfather clock engine (1885)

In 1885, an engine with a flywheel was built into a lightweight vehicle called the Reitwagen, which was the first vehicle powered by an internal combustion engine.

After a lot of work and testing, the inventors improved a 0.5 horsepower (0.37 kW; 0.51 PS) vertical single-cylinder engine. This engine was placed in the Reitwagen, a specially designed two-wheeled frame with two spring-loaded stabilizers.

Key features of the 1885 engine included:
• A single horizontal cylinder with a size of 264 cc (16 cubic inches) and dimensions of 58 mm × 100 mm (2.3 in × 3.9 in)
• Air cooling
• A large cast iron flywheel
• A surface carburetor
• A hot tube ignition system (patent 28022)
• Cam-operated exhaust valves, which allowed the engine to run at high speeds
• A power output of 0.5 horsepower (370 watts)
• A running speed of 600 revolutions per minute (RPM), faster than earlier engines, which typically ran at about 120 to 180 RPM
• A weight of approximately 50 kilograms (110 pounds)
• A height of 76 centimeters (30 inches)

In 1885, the inventors created a carburetor that mixed gasoline with air to be used as fuel. That same year, Daimler and Maybach built a larger version of their engine, which had a vertical cylinder with a 100 cc displacement and produced 1 horsepower at 600 RPM (patent DRP-28-022: "non-cooled, heat insulated engine with unregulated hot-tube ignition"). This engine was named the Standuhr ("grandfather clock") because Daimler thought it resembled an old pendulum clock.

In November 1885, Daimler placed a smaller version of this engine into a wooden two-wheeled frame with two outrigger wheels, creating the first internal combustion motorcycle (Patent 36-423impff & Sohn "Vehicle with gas or petroleum drive machine"). The vehicle was named the Reitwagen ("riding car"). Maybach rode it for three kilometers (two miles) along the river Neckar, from Cannstatt to Untertürkheim, reaching a speed of 12 kilometers per hour (7 miles per hour).

First automobile (1886)

In 1886, Karl Benz and Gottlieb Daimler each created an automobile independently in Germany, about 60 miles apart.

In Mannheim, Karl Benz designed a motorized vehicle with an engine he built himself. He received a patent for his invention, called the motorwagen, on January 29, 1886.

Gottlieb Daimler tested his engine by installing it in a four-seater phaeton, a type of horse-drawn carriage. The engine was built by Maschinenfabrik Esslingen and powered the rear wheels using a system with two different gear ratios and belts.

On March 8, 1886, Daimler and Maybach secretly delivered a coach made by Wilhelm Wimpff and Sohn to their home, telling neighbors it was a birthday gift for Mrs. Daimler. Maybach installed a larger version of Daimler’s engine, called the Grandfather Clock engine, into the coach. This became the first four-wheeled vehicle to reach 16 kilometers per hour (10 miles per hour). The engine power was sent to the wheels through belts. The vehicle was tested on a road near Untertürkheim, where the MHPArena now stands.

Daimler wanted to use his engine in many ways. He and Maybach applied it to:

• Water: In 1886, they placed the engine in a 4.5-meter-long boat called Neckar, named after the river where it was tested. The boat reached a speed of 6 knots (11 kilometers per hour; 6.9 miles per hour). This was the first motorboat. Daimler later made boat engines his main product for several years. Early customers worried about the engine exploding, so Daimler covered it with ceramic and claimed it was "oil-electrical."
• Streetcars and trolleys.
• Air: In Daimler’s balloon, which is often considered the first airship, the engine replaced a hand-powered engine designed by Dr. Friedrich Hermann Wölfert of Leipzig. Daimler flew over Seelberg on August 10, 1888, using the new engine.

In 1887, Daimler and Maybach sold their first foreign licenses for engines. Maybach traveled to the 1889 Paris Exposition to share their work.

First Daimler-Maybach automobile built (1889)

Engine sales grew, mainly for use in boats. In June 1887, Daimler purchased another property on Seelberg Hill in Cannstatt. This location was far from the town on Ludwigstraße 67 because Cannstatt’s mayor did not support the workshop. The new building cost 30,200 goldmarks and had space for 23 workers. Daimler handled business matters, while Maybach oversaw the engine design department.

In 1889, Daimler and Maybach created the Stahlradwagen, their first automobile that was not based on a horse-drawn carriage. Instead, it was inspired by bicycle designs. The vehicle was not made in Germany but was allowed to be built in France. It was shown to the public in Paris in October 1889 by both engineers. That same year, Daimler’s wife, Emma Kunz, passed away.

Daimler Motors, thePhönixengine, and the first motorcar sold (1890 to 1900)

As demand for engines increased for use in motorboats, railcars, and other vehicles, Maybach and Daimler expanded their business. In 1890, Gottlieb Daimler founded his own engine company, Daimler Motoren Gesellschaft (DMG). Max Duttenhofer, a gunpowder maker, along with banker Kilian von Steiner and munitions manufacturer Wilhelm Lorenz, provided funding. DMG was officially established on November 28, 1890, with Maybach as its chief designer. The company’s goal was to build small, high-speed engines for use in land, water, and air transportation. Daimler expressed this purpose in a sketch that became the basis for a logo with a three-pointed star.

From 1882 to 1890, Daimler refused to form a corporation or stock company. He had seen many inventors lose control of their companies to shareholders who believed they knew better how to manage them than the original founders. This happened to individuals like Henry Ford, Karl Benz, and August Horch. Daimler disliked forming a corporation and eventually sold his shares and resigned. DMG expanded, but its focus changed. New members wanted to build more stationary engines and considered merging DMG with Otto’s Deutz-AG.

In 1892, DMG sold its first automobile. The company developed the high-speed inline-two Phönix engine, for which Maybach designed a spray carburetor. This engine was used in a car that was later produced in 1895 after a disagreement between Daimler, Maybach, and the DMG board was resolved.

In 1892–1893, Daimler, who was 58 years old, had heart problems and collapsed. His doctor advised him to travel to Florence, where he met Lina Hartmann, a hotel owner 22 years younger than him. They married on July 8, 1893, and honeymooned in Chicago during the World Fair.

After returning from the 1893 World’s Fair with his new wife, Daimler tried to buy enough shares of DMG to regain control. This effort failed, and he sold all his shares and patents, resigning from the company. Maybach had already left earlier.

Disputes with Wilhelm Lorenz continued. Daimler tried to buy 102 additional shares to gain majority control but was removed as technical director. DMG owed 400,000 gold marks in debt, and other directors threatened bankruptcy unless Daimler sold all his shares and patents. Daimler agreed, receiving 66,666 gold marks, and resigned in 1893.

In 1894, at the Hermann Hotel, Maybach, Daimler, and Daimler’s son Paul designed a third engine called the "Phoenix." DMG produced it. The engine had four vertical cylinders, camshaft-operated exhaust valves, a spray nozzle carburetor patented by Maybach in 1893, and an improved belt drive system. This engine may be the one described by American author Henry Brooks Adams in his autobiography, based on his visit to the 1900 Paris Exposition.

Daimler and Maybach continued working together. They built a four-cylinder engine with Maybach’s spray nozzle carburetor, which competed in the first organized automobile race, "Paris to Rouen," and outperformed other entries from DMG. Frederick Simms, a long-time friend of Daimler, insisted that Daimler return to the company as a condition of paying £17,500 for Daimler licenses to the British Daimler Company. This helped stabilize DMG’s finances. Daimler received 200,000 gold marks in shares and a 100,000 gold mark bonus. Simms gained the right to use the name "Daimler" for his company’s products. In 1895, when DMG assembled its 1,000th engine, Maybach returned as General Inspector, receiving 30,000 shares.

During this time, DMG licensed the production of Daimler engines globally, including:
– France, starting in 1890, through Louise Sarazin’s partnership with Panhard et Levassor and Peugeot
– The United States, starting in 1891, through Daimler Motor Company in Long Island City, which partnered with Steinway & Sons, a piano maker
– The United Kingdom, starting in 1893, through Frederick Simms’ Daimler Motor Syndicate, later transferred to the Daimler Motor Company in 1896
– Austria, through Austro-Daimler

Gottlieb Daimler died in 1900, and in 1907, Maybach resigned from DMG.

Founding of Daimler-Benz

In 1885, Daimler created the first gasoline-powered car. A few months later, Karl Benz made the first car designed specifically for use, using a two-cycle engine he invented. Daimler and Karl Benz did not meet during the time of their inventions. In 1896, Daimler (DMG) sued Benz & Cie for breaking his 1883 patent on hot tube ignition. Daimler won the case, and Benz had to pay DMG money for using the patented technology. Daimler and Benz did not meet in court in Mannheim. Later, when the Central European Motor Car Association was formed, Daimler and Benz still did not speak to each other.

Years after Daimler's death, the two companies began working together. After many years of cooperation, on June 28, 1926, representatives of Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG) and Benz & Cie signed an agreement to merge the two oldest automobile manufacturers in the world. The new company formed from the merger was named Daimler-Benz AG.

Honours

Gottlieb Daimler was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 1978. From 1993 until July 2008, a stadium in Stuttgart, Germany, was named after him. The stadium, called the Gottlieb-Daimler-Stadion, hosted six matches during the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany.

Gottlieb Daimler's motto was "Das Beste oder nichts," which means "The best or nothing at all" or "Nothing but the best." In 2010, Mercedes-Benz used this motto as their slogan.