Fate: Merged
Successor: Jaguar Cars
Founded: 1896
Defunct: 1960
Headquarters: Coventry, West Midlands, United Kingdom
Industry: Automotive
Parent: Jaguar Cars
Subsidiaries: Lanchester Motor Company
Current owner: Tata Motors
Country of origin: United Kingdom
Website: www.daimler.com

Daimler Motor Company was a British motor vehicle manufacturing company, founded in 1896, and based in Coventry. The company became a subsidiary of BSA in 1910, and was acquired by Jaguar Cars in 1960.
Ownership of the Daimler marque stayed with Jaguar Cars through subsequent mergers with British Motor Holdings and British Leyland, remaining with Jaguar when the company regained its independence in 1984. In 1989 the Daimler badge transferred to the ownership of the Ford Motor Company when Jaguar Cars became a subsidiary of the American giant, and was subsequently incorporated into Ford's Premier Automotive Group. In March 2008 the Daimler brand was included in Ford's sale of Jaguar Land Rover to Tata Motors of India.

Company origin

The UK patent rights to the Gottlieb Daimler's engine were purchased in 1891 by Frederick Simms, who produced them at his company F R Simms & Co. In 1893 this was renamed the "Daimler Motor Syndicate Ltd" and supplied engines to boat builders. In 1895 Harry Lawson bought the company for £35,000[2] and changed its name again to the British Motor Syndicate, a company mainly trading in patents. In order to capitalize on some of the patents he had bought, in 1896 he founded the "Daimler Motor Company" based in a disused cotton mill he bought in Foleshill, Coventry. Here, from 1897, he built Léon Bollée cars under licence as well as MC and Daimler cars. The first Daimler left the works in January 1897, fitted with a Panhard engine, followed in March by Daimler engined cars. The company claimed to have made 20 cars by July making the Daimler Britain's first motor car to go into serial production. These had a twin cylinder, 1526 cc engine, mounted at the front of the car, four speed gearbox and chain drive to the rear wheels.