Haute Couture 'Baby Mercedes-Benz' Pedal Cars to Be Auctioned Off at 16th Annual Carousel of Hope

Fashion Designers and Celebrities Design One-of-a-kind Benz's: Versace, Roberto Cavalli, Hilary Duff, Ozzy Osbourne and More

LOS ANGELES, Oct. 20 -- Mercedes-Benz has teamed up with notable designers and celebrities to create the world's most fashionable fleet of toy cars. The child-sized pedal cars, designed by some of the world's most established fashion visionaries such as Versace, Roberto Cavalli and Missoni are each a one-of-a-kind work of art that will be auctioned off to benefit the Children's Diabetes Foundation October 23rd at The Carousel of Hope presented by Mercedes-Benz.

Nine cars are on display at Sotheby's before they go on the auction block at the Beverly Hilton Hotel. The designer participants include:

                     Baby Phat by Kimora Lee Simmons
                            Giannfranco Ferre
                               Hilary Duff
                              Juicy Couture
                                 Missoni
                              Ozzy Osbourne
                             Roberto Cavalli
                       Spiderman 2 by Sony Pictures
                                 Versace

Designers sketched and created their concepts on toy versions of Mercedes-Benz's classic Gullwing and SL convertible cars. The cars range in design from solid gold glamour to gothic crosses and neon flames.

ABOUT MERCEDES-BENZ

Mercedes-Benz USA, headquartered in Montvale, N.J., is responsible for the sales, marketing and service of all Mercedes-Benz vehicles in the United States. In 2003, Mercedes-Benz USA achieved an all-time sales record of 218,717 new vehicles, setting the highest sales volume ever in its history and achieving 10 consecutive years of sales growth. More information on Mercedes-Benz and its vehicles can be found at www.mbusa.com.

ABOUT THE CAROUSEL OF HOPE Since its founding in 1977 by the Davises', The Carousel of Hope has raised over $60 million to date on behalf of the Barbara Davis Center for Childhood Diabetes (www.barbaradaviscenter.org) in Denver, Colo., where more than 5,000 youngsters receive specialized care for diabetes. The renowned center will double in size over the next year.

This year the coveted "High Hopes Award" will be presented to Academy Award-winning actress Halle Berry by Oprah Winfrey.