Brabus Isn’t Owned By Mercedes – Here’s Who Owns The Famous Benz Tuning Brand

Brabus, the tuner best known for its enhancements made to Mercedes-Benz vehicles, isn’t owned by the Mercedes-Benz brand. The history of Brabus goes back to 1977, when it was founded by Klaus Brackman and Bodo Buschmann, who created the company’s name by taking the first three letters of each of their last names.

As the legend goes, Buschmann’s father, who was a Mercedes-Benz dealer, forbade Bodo from parking his Porsche 911 at the dealership. Bodo then sold his 911 and bought a W116 S-Class Mercedes-Benz, vowing to make it faster than his former Porsche ever had been. Bodo had a talent for tuning these big Benzes, and it wasn’t long before his father’s customers wanted their cars upgraded in the areas of not just performance, but also in luxurious appointments. And even though Bodo’s college friend Klaus Brackman would leave the company soon thereafter, it would retain the Brabus name. The Brabus name and history runs up to the present day, including the most unbelievable features of the Brabus 800 G-Wagon.

Some of the legendary Mercedes-Benzes produced by Brabus over the years include the tiny 190E, with a 267-horsepower V8 under its hood in 1984; and the Brabus E V12 in 1996, a V12-powered 7.3-liter W124 with 574 horses and a top speed of 205 mph that would set a Guinness World Record as the fastest sedan in the world. The V12 would go on to grace E-Class station wagons and Benz sport utilities, creating more “world’s fastest” categories. Brabus then continued with enhancements to other brands, including the Brabus Smart Car and British premium marques.

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Which cars does Brabus enhance today?

Although Brabus still focuses on Mercedes-Benz vehicles, with an emphasis on the special G Wagon, it has gone in many other directions. Founder Bodo Buschmann died in 2018, following a brief illness. His son Constantin has followed in his father’s footsteps, continuing the business and exploring new areas of interest.

Brabus was recently voted the best tuning brand 2026 by readers of German automotive magazine Auto Motor und Sport. In addition to Mercedes-Benz models, the company also enhances the luxury and performance of the Rolls-Royce Cullinan, the Lamborghini Urus, and the Bentley Continental GT and GTC. Brabus also unveiled its Bodo Cabriolet at the 2026 Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance. This is the top-down version of its Bodo Coupe, both of which are shown above. The Cabriolet, intended to be, “…an unmistakable, attitude-forward Gran Turismo developed entirely in the spirit of BRABUS,” will be limited to 77 examples and is powered by a 5.2-liter V12 twin-turbocharged engine producing 986 horsepower (1,000 PS). Other areas being explored are an expansion of the company’s current marine lineup from day boats into yachts, with an announced strategic partnership with AB Yachts.

Brabus started out as a tuner that hot-rodded a wide variety of Mercedes-Benz models. The company specialized in providing what the Mercedes-Benz factory couldn’t, first with spectacular amounts of power, and later with unique luxury appointments. Now, with its expansion into boats, yachts, and its own branded vehicles, it has become a full-fledged luxury supplier to the fraction of the 1% who can afford to indulge themselves, whatever the cost.

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Read the original article on SlashGear.