The manufacturer has confirmed that only 400 examples of the “130 Years Trucks Edition” will be produced, with the full vehicle due to be unveiled at IAA Transportation in Hanover in September.
For now, Mercedes has released only a handful of details about what buyers can expect — and the official image accompanying the announcement does not reveal the special-edition truck itself.
What do we know about the mystery Actros?
The anniversary edition will be based on the Mercedes-Benz Actros with the ProCabin cab and, unusually for a special-edition truck, customers will not be restricted to one type of powertrain. Mercedes says the model will be available both with a diesel engine and as a battery-electric truck. According to the manufacturer, this is the first time it has offered one of its edition models with both types of drive.
There will also be around 30 special equipment features, drawing on colours, materials and design elements from Mercedes truck history. Exactly what those features are remains part of the mystery.
Mercedes says further information about the truck’s design, equipment and available vehicle variants will only be announced at IAA Transportation. The company has given the edition the theme “Legacy meets Passion”, intended to combine historical influences with current truck technology.
Just 400 trucks
Production will be restricted to 400 vehicles, making the anniversary Actros a relatively rare sight once deliveries begin.
Interestingly, 400 is a number Mercedes has used before for an exclusive Actros. Its Edition 1, unveiled with the then-new Actros at the IAA in 2018, was also limited to 400 examples.
Mercedes-Benz Actros generations mark 130 years of trucks
The new edition arrives during a double anniversary year for Mercedes-Benz Trucks. While the company is marking 130 years since Daimler’s first truck, the Actros itself is celebrating its 30th birthday in 2026.
The first Actros was presented in 1996 and introduced technologies including electronic braking, CAN networking and integrated assistance systems to Mercedes’ heavy-duty range. Mercedes says more than 1.5 million Actros trucks have been sold since the model was launched.
Quite a change from four horsepower
The anniversary traces its roots back to 1896, when Gottlieb Daimler produced what Daimler Truck describes as the world’s first motorised truck. The vehicle would be almost unrecognisable as a truck today. It was essentially a converted horse-drawn goods wagon, complete with iron-clad wheels.
At the rear sat a 1.06-litre, two-cylinder “Phoenix” engine producing four horsepower, connected to the rear axle by a belt. The vehicle could carry a payload of around 1.5 tonnes.
And there is a British connection to the story. The first vehicle was sold to the British Motor Syndicate in London after Daimler struggled to find a buyer for his new invention in Germany.
One hundred and thirty years later, Mercedes is using that vehicle as the starting point for an Actros that could hardly be more technologically removed from it — particularly as some of the 400 anniversary trucks will be battery-electric.
For now, however, Mercedes is keeping the most interesting part secret: what its 130th-anniversary Actros will actually look like.
