Built between 1975 and 1982, the Mercedes-Benz 1624 was a truck powered by a 12.7-liter V8 engine that generated 237 horsepower at 2,800 rpm. It could be configured to perform a wide variety of tasks — some buyers used it to haul lumber, some companies turned it into a delivery van, and more than a few automakers used it to transport new cars. Fitted with a fifth wheel, the 1624 could pull a trailer big enough to carry 10 mid-sized cars or 11 smaller models.
Unsurprisingly, Mercedes was among the automakers that used 1624s to transport new cars. The example displayed in the company’s official museum in Stuttgart, Germany, has been outfitted to carry four cars: a 230E, a 280CE, a 500SEC, and a w126 sedan. I imagine a 1624 loaded with w123s and w126s was a common sight around Mercedes’ Sindelfingen, Germany, factory during the early 1980s, but seeing one in the metal in 2016 (inside a multi-story building, no less) was a pleasant surprise.
Ran When Parked 
was that a V8 diesel or petrol?
Diesel — my bad, should have pointed that out.
This brings pleasant memories. I was driving a later incarnation of this truck for several years. The company I worked for owned a number of the 2538s and 1844s and I took a few of them all over Europe. Beautiful V8 engine, would run on and on without any problems. After the trucks had each done over a million kms my company sold them back to Mercedes who refurbished them and sold them on to happy new owners in the Eastern countries who are probably still putting millions of kms on them as we speak.
Large displacement for 237 hp!