The philosophy of Klaus Kienle, founder and managing director of Kienle Automobiltechnik, which specialises in Mercedes-Benz classic car restoration, can be summed up in four words: “Nothing but the best”. Coined all those years ago by Gottlieb Daimler, it is Kienle’s guiding motto too.

A local man, Kienle qualified as a master auto mechanic at Mercedes-Benz and gained 20 years of experience with the company, ultimately as repair shop manager of the Daimler-Benz branch in Stuttgart Hallschlag. 33 years ago he then took the plunge and went it alone. Today the family business, which he runs together with his sons Alexander and Marc, ranks among the leading firms for the restoration, repair and servicing of classic Mercedes-Benz cars. With a selection of more than 50 classic cars on offer at any given time, the Heimerdingen-based company ranks among the Top Ten in the sector and also has one of the largest spare parts warehouses for classic Mercedes cars.

Drawing on more than 50 years of professional experience with the Mercedes 300 SL, the “big Mercedes” the 600 series, the 190 SL, the so-called Pagoda SL and the V8 models from the 1960s and 1970s, Kienle uses his know-how to combine traditional craftsmanship with state-of-the-art technology and Swabian industriousness. The result: Every single one of the cars body-off restored by the 85 highly qualified specialists in the Kienle car repair shop, sometimes taking more than 4,000 man/hours, is returned to factory condition – uncompromisingly, right down to the last detail. No wonder, then, that the renowned Stuttgart motor journal Motor Klassik noted that: “In the classic car scene ‘Restored by Kienle’ has become something of hallmark.”