Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft
Mercedes M 218 2-litre eight-cylinder Grand Prix car

Why it matters

Ferdinand Porsche's 2-litre eight-cylinder was DMG's first inline eight and ran at up to 7000 rpm, but its poor torque curve and tricky handling made it hard to race. It is best remembered for Rudolf Caracciola's win in a four-seater version at the 1926 German Grand Prix on the AVUS.

How rare is it?

Six separate kinds of rarity – never combined into one number.

Each kind of rarity is rated separately and never combined.

History

Completed in September 1924, the car had its debut at the Italian Grand Prix at Monza on 19 October 1924 with four entries (Werner, Neubauer, Zborowski, Masetti). Masetti retired out of fuel, and Zborowski's fatal accident caused the other two cars to be withdrawn.

In 1925 Werner had a hill-climb version built with a larger radiator and conventional rear tank, which won the Schauinsland hill climb record. In July 1926 Caracciola won the German Grand Prix at the AVUS in a version with a lengthened body and two extra seats, the only use of the four-seater. Werner reached 184.1 km/h over the flying kilometre at Freiburg in 1927 with the hill-climb car.

Technical specifications

Engine

Transmission & drivetrain

Chassis, body & dimensions

Performance

“Not yet verified” means no source has been checked for that value yet. Nothing is estimated to fill a gap.

Identification guide

How to tell an original from a replica or later conversion.

The first version, finished in September 1924, had a flat radiator with a single Mercedes star; the four cars entered at Monza had a slightly pointed radiator with two stars. The engine sits behind the front axle and the two seats just in front of the rear axle, with the fuel tank between the frame rails behind the gearbox. The hill-climb version had a larger, higher radiator, a rear-mounted tank and spare wheels in the tail.

Sources

Each number links to the exact facts it supports.

1. 1
   Mercedes 2-litre 8-cylinder "Monza" racing car, 1924 Level A Mercedes-Benz Group AG, Mercedes-Benz Public Archive (Classic M@RS)

   • eight-cylinder inline engine; spur gear cascade at the rear end of the crankshaft
   • eight-cylinder inline engine
   • displacement limit of 2 litres
   • two intake and two exhaust valves per cylinder
   • with the new eight-cylinder engine it ran constantly
   • output of the eight-cylinder inline engine was now 170 hp/125 kW
   • maximum power at 7000 rpm
   • transmission, which only had three gears
   • rigid axle suspended on semi-elliptic springs with friction shock absorbers
   • inside shoe brakes on the front and rear wheels
   • fuel tank which held more than 90 litres

   Accessed 2026-11-12