German Car Zone

Dunno why this hasn't been posted yet.

http://www.daimlerchrysler.com/dccom...-0-0-0,00.html

Mercedes Car Group with Best Ever Salesin September

* Mercedes-Benz with record sales in September of 106,500 premium-class cars; sales increase in the U.S., Europe and Asia
* Mercedes-Benz has a younger, more diverse range of products than any other manufacturer of premium automobiles
* smart sales increase by seven percent through September

Stuttgart, Germany, October 07, 2005
In September 2005, sales of Mercedes-Benz and smart brand cars rose significantly to 117,900 units (September 2004: 112,300) so that sales of 878,600 vehicles after the first three quarters of 2005 surpass those of the same period last year (872,600).

Mercedes-Benz achieved a sales record for the month of September by increasing customer deliveries by eight percent worldwide to 106,500 vehicles (September 2004: 98,200). During the first three quarters of 2005, Mercedes-Benz sold 773,900 passenger cars, compared to 774,300 vehicles for the same period last year. The new S , R , M- and B-Class vehicles and the powerful new V6 and V8 engines are expected to generate substantially more growth in the coming months.

As was the case in August, Mercedes-Benz increased customer deliveries in all triad markets in September. In the U.S., the brand’s sales rose by one percent to a new all-time high of 17,600 units. The continuing strength of Mercedes-Benz in North America was particularly emphasized by the success of the new M Class and brisk sales of E and C Class sedans. In Europe, the brand’s positive development was supported by rising sales in the four largest markets — Germany, Italy, France and the UK. In the Asia/Pacific region, DaimlerChrysler delivered 9,700 Mercedes-Benz cars to customers, eight percent more than in September 2004.

Excellent response to the new Mercedes-Benz S-Class
With the world premiere of the new S-Class, Mercedes-Benz once again set standards in the luxury segment. Following the enthusiastic reception at the International Motor Show in Frankfurt, the S-Class also met with an excellent response at dealerships on the first weekend after its market launch. Customers are also responding very positively to the B- and R-Class sports tourers. More than 28,000 B-Class vehicles have been sold in Western Europe since its market introduction in early June.

Mercedes-Benz also posts impressive results for the second-generation A Class, with more than 200,000 vehicles deliveries since the model was launched in September 2004. The A-Class, which for the first time is available as a three-door and five-door version, is selling particularly well in Germany, where about 105,000 customers purchased one of the highly variable compact vehicles over the past year. Despite intensifying competition, Mercedes-Benz thus clearly remains the number one manufacturer of premium compact cars.

The E-Class meanwhile continues to experience its positive trend. In September, worldwide sales increased by eight percent so that the E-Class further extended its global market leadership in the upper-range segment.
Diesel’s share of smart forfour sales climbs to 42 percent
Despite the continued sluggishness of the small-car segment, the number of smart cars delivered to customers between January and September rose by seven percent to 104,700 units. A total of 11,400 units were delivered in September 2005.

Besides the BRABUS variants with their range of high-quality equipment, the extremely popular fuel-efficient diesel versions of the smart forfour did particularly well. As a result, their share of total forfour sales climbed to 42 percent in September. Sales of the diesel models will be further boosted by the announcement that smart will equip all new vehicles with particulate filters beginning in spring 2006 and that the automaker will then retrofit all vehicles now being delivered free of charge.

I can't wait to see the year end numbers and the first full month sales figures for the S-Class.

I suspect the R-Class will do better in Europe than in the U.S.

M

The S-class sales are going to be interesting indeed.

Merc1, I am interested to know why do you think the R will be more succesfull in Europe than the US when Mercedes projections are to the contrary?

Interestiing isn't it? Well I think the short wheelbase R will do well in Europe with diesels moreso than the long R will do here with gas engines. From what I'm reading so far the response hasn't been that great to the R-Class in my immediate area, but its still early. Plus I think the R is overpriced for the U.S. market. A fully loaded R500 costs what a loaded CLS500 does and the R doesn't have the same quality interior.

M

That's quite ironic really considerring it was designed and built primarily for the US market - isn't it also built in Alabama?