The 10 Most Important German Cars in Modern Automotive History

Germany has produced some the automotive industry’s most compelling automobiles. Whether it’s setting the standard for technology, luxury, or performance, German engineering and design has made an outsized mark not just in Europe, but around the world. That being said, some of the most influential German cars are better known for their ubiquity than their social status, giving the country a flavorful mix when it comes time to point out which models have had a lasting impact.  

Here’s a look at the 10 most important German cars in modern automotive history.  

Volkswagen Beetle  

The Volkswagen Type 1 (better known as the Beetle) has had one of the most meandering, controversial, and unpredictable histories of any automobile, German or otherwise. Originally conceived by Adolf Hitler and his Nazi regime as a “people’s car” that could be bought at a reasonable price by any German citizen, the Beetle originally arrived in 1938. After WWII, the market for a cheap, practical coupe would expand dramatically, and it wasn’t long before the Beetle would shed its Nazi roots to become the tip of the spear of European imports capturing the imaginations of bargain-seeking American drivers. From there it was a short leap to becoming a counter-culture symbol of the flower power ’60s on its way to selling some 23 million examples worldwide over an astonishing 81 years of production.

The secret to the Beetle’s enduring success? Simplicity. With the engine at the back, there was plenty of room inside the cabin for passengers plus a respectable cargo compartment under the front hood. The air-cooled engine was cheap to fix and simple to maintain, and the basic Beetle platform lent itself to endless modification, reimagination (as a kit car), and celebration by enthusiasts.

Mercedes-Benz 300SL  

The word “supercar” has been largely supplanted by the even more laudatory “hypercar” in our era of hybrid-assisted automotive excess. That makes it easy to forget that the very first vehicle to lay claim to the supercar descriptor in the modern era was less an exotic piece of look-at-me machinery and more the expression of a dedicated racing program allowed to take its talents to the street.  

The Mercedes-Benz 300SL was an instant icon from the moment it popped its attention-grabbing gullwing doors, but those entry points weren’t a styling conceit but rather a design necessity given the tube chassis it borrowed from its racing sibling. Most of the 300SL, in fact, was cribbed from competition, including the use of aluminum body panels and fuel injection, two technologies that might as well have landed from Mars when they arrived on American shores in 1954. With smooth, six-cylinder power, a top speed of 161 mph, and exceptional handling from its four-wheel independent suspension and low-slung stance, Mercedes-Benz managed to sell 80 percent of its 300SL production in the United States, firmly establishing it as a luxury marque with bite that had no real equal from Detroit.

Related: 10 of the Most Awesome and Memorable Supercars of All Time

Porsche 911  

There are few sports cars—save the Chevrolet Corvette—that have been winning hearts and minds longer than the Porsche 911. Originally introduced in 1964, the 911 coupe’s rear-engine design was even more of a shock to the system of high-performance fans than the econo-minded Beetle that preceded it, delivering “lively” handling for those not used to its presto-reverso weight transfer in high-speed corners.  

Nevertheless, the 911 endured, and over time Porsche introduced turbocharging (whose explosive power only underscored the car’s somewhat twitchy character) and eventually chassis upgrades (that largely neutralized the threat of swapping ends). All the while it gradually accumulated trim levels, special models, and of course more power, until it had come to represent an entire clan of vehicles linked by the 911 badge. Porsche tried to kill it in the late ’70s, convinced the design was a technological dead end; fans of the brand wouldn’t hear of it. More than 45 years later, it’s still the centerpiece of Germany’s most famous sports car company.

BMW 2002  

BMW was just as eager as Porsche to make waves among sports car fans in the 1960s, but it opted to take a more conventional route to getting enthusiasts in its showrooms. The 2002—named after its two-door design and 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine—kept its powerplant between the front fenders. It represented an evolution of the Neu Klasse sedans that had arrived earlier that decade, enhanced with more power and a lighter curb weight that encouraged exceptional driving characteristics.  

Starting in 1968, the 2002 found itself comparing well against rivals like the Datsun 510, another import champion hailing from across a different ocean. Where things really took off for BMW, however, was the introduction of turbocharging in 1973, a game-changer that gave the pint-sized coupe giant-killing power, especially on a road course. The template for small, quick BMWs with sharp handling had been set, and so had customer expectations for the company’s next three decades.  

Volkswagen Golf  

The car that eventually supplanted the Beetle in Europe and North America is just as worthy of adulation, even if it doesn’t enjoy the same kind of visual cachet or pop culture status. The Volkswagen Golf, which appeared in the mid-’70s, was an astounding improvement on nearly every aspect of the Type 1 that preceded it (apart from the possible exception of complexity).   

Roomier, more practical, and a better handler, the front-wheel-drive Golf was a packaging triumph, and in GTI form it amply illustrated the charms of cheap European speed to the American public in a way few cars had before. The Beetle might have made Volkswagen a household name, but the decision to replace it with the much more modern Golf is what kept the coffers full for the second half of VW’s century. The first two generations are the best distillation of what made it such a hit.

Mercedes-Benz W126 S-Class 

For the entirety of the 1980s, Mercedes-Benz set the standard of what a top-shelf luxury sedan should be, and it did this by way of the W126-generation S-Class. This was the car that combined cutting-edge technology (including the popularization of traction control and anti-lock brakes) with bank vault build quality. It was wrapped in an attractively styled package and given available V-8 power for those who craved an ultra-insulated, super-comfortable living room that could travel at autobahn-eating speeds.  

The W126 was the high-water mark for Mercedes-Benz in nearly every important category, and you were just as likely to see the car transporting foreign heads of state around the world as you were to encounter it at the closest country club valet stand. Even today, the body shape of the W126 S-Class looks modern, and its longevity on the road stands as a testament to the reliability the automaker’s engineers infused into such a complex vehicle.

Audi Quattro 

If you’re going to base your brand’s entire identity around a single piece of technology, then you’d better be sure you introduce that feature with the kind of car no one could ever forget. The Audi Quattro was exactly this kind of opening salvo, a chunky wedge of a coupe that normalized the association of the Audi name with all-wheel drive (while also going on to do serious damage in professional rally racing).

The Quattro wasn’t just about adding extra foul-weather grip, but rather it focused on leveraging four-wheel traction to provide performance not possible from the rear-wheel-drive standard most of its Teutonic rivals employed. Featuring a turbocharged engine, flared fenders, and a top speed of nearly 140 mph, the Quattro was like nothing that had come from Audi before while simultaneously paving the way for future offerings that would continue down the same all-wheel-drive path. Its shape and attitude have made it an unforgettable part of both Audi and European motorsports history.

BMW E30 3 Series  

It’s tempting to paint the E30 BMW 3 Series as a continuation of the 2002, given that both were available as fun-to-drive two-door compacts. In reality, the E30 was a light-years leap forward when it came to technology, whether that be in chassis and drivetrain, safety, or comfort and features. Not only that, but the second-generation 3 Series (which went on sale in 1982) was also available in four-door, wagon, and convertible variations, building out its buyer base considerably.  

The BMW E30 was initially perceived as the yuppie chariot of choice, given its popularity among upwardly mobile professionals in the United States. Globally, however, its mission was broader, introducing modern motorists to what the automaker could produce. Throw in the M3 edition—perhaps the most romanticized European sport coupe of its era—and the E30 is clearly a legend that built the foundation for BMW’s global luxury car dominance over the next four decades.

Mercedes-Benz W124 E-Class 

The W126 S-Class was supported by a less fussy but completely indestructible midsize counterpart that cemented Mercedes-Benz’s status as the top choice for growing families (not to mention global taxi fleets). The E-Class, which went on sale in 1984, adopted the same variety of body styles as the E30, but in a larger package that also came with a dizzying list of drivetrain choices.  

Whether it was a dependable wagon, a classy drop-top, or a terrifyingly quick Porsche-tuned sport sedan (the muscle-bound 500E), the E-Class filled the driveways and garages of the upwardly mobile, those who couldn’t quite swing an S-Class but who could stomach the more modestly sized car’s reasonable pricing. The W124 was the workhorse of the Mercedes-Benz stable, well suited to nearly any role and ubiquitous for decades after its production ended in the late 1990s.

Porsche Boxster 

Cast your mind back to the 1990s, and Porsche was in a definite rut. In 1993, Americans only took home 3,000 Porsche models in total, the majority of which were 911s. Dwindling interest in the 928 and 968 proved that the company’s engineers had reached the end of each platform’s evolutionary possibilities, and there was little else available to jump-start interest in what had once been one of Porsche’s strongest markets.  

The claim is often made that the vehicle that saved Porsche from insolvency was the Cayenne, the strong-selling SUV that continues to do brisk business for the automaker to this day. But a stronger argument exists that it’s the arrival of the Boxster roadster in 1996 that turned the tide for the brand.  

The Boxster was a radical departure for Porsche, a mid-engine car that was gifted with better balance than the 911 when pushed to the limit (and whose engine output was specifically restricted so as not to eclipse its elder). The decision to go roadster-only belies how friendly the ’90s were to compact sports cars, with the success of the Mazda Miata convincing Porsche there was demand for a more potent version of the same concept with a premium badge affixed to the hood. It was right: Despite complaints from protectors of the Porsche flame that the car was derivative of the 911’s visual design, the Boxster was a sizzling success that had no true competitor, giving new customers a more affordable entry point to the automaker while delivering substantial thrills behind the wheel. It wasn’t until the Cayenne arrived on the scene post-millennium that the Boxster ceded its status as the bestselling Porsche in the showroom.

The 10 Most Important German Cars in Modern Automotive History 

• Volkswagen Beetle  
• Mercedes-Benz 300SL  
• Porsche 911  
• BMW 2002  
• Volkswagen Golf  
• Mercedes-Benz W126 S-Class  
• Audi Quattro  
• BMW E30 3 Series  
• Mercedes-Benz W124 E-Class  
• Porsche Boxster