Will the S-Class be the Last Mercedes Sedan Standing?

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2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Though SUVs are no match for the flagship S-Class, smaller sedans are feeling the heat on the sales floor, even from within the family.

At the head of the Mercedes table is the S-Class. Every bit of technology every car and truck on the road has today, the flagship sedan first had years before. It doesn’t follow trends; it creates and delivers them to the masses.

Not every trend belongs to the S-Class, though. The rise of SUVs over the past few decades is among said trends. Mercedes read the room early on, adding more models to go with its iconic G-Wagon. And while the S-Class has nothing to worry about at the moment, if ever, CarBuzz ponders about the future of the rest of the Benz sedans.

2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

“We’ve had unbelievable success with SUVs,” Mercedes boss Ola Källenius told Autocar, “but the upper-luxury limousine segment is very robust. We believe that with the new life cycle, we can grow volume again, despite the SUVs. The segment seems to be particularly resilient for us.”

Thus, the S-Class is on solid ground. However, the other sedan Classes may be looking over their shoulder.

Back in July, Reuters reported Daimler AG would cease production of sedans in the United States and Mexico following their Q2 2020 losses. This includes the C-Class, assembled in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and the A-Class, built in Aguascalientes City, Aguascalientes. Both plants will continue to manufacture SUVs, including the GLE, GLS, and GLB.

2020 Mercedes-Benz GLC

Reuters also notes Mercedes is considering its options among its more niche models, like the C-Class and E-Class convertibles. Could they disappear in favor of more capacity for SUVs? It’s within the realm of possibility.

According to CarBuzz, the GLC is Stuttgart’s biggest hit in the U.S. Not just the best-selling SUV in America, but the best-selling Benz in America. Around 74,000 were sold Stateside in 2019, each starting at $42,500. That’s compared to just over 12,500 copies of the outgoing S-Class, each going for $95,000 at minimum.

2021 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

Yet, the S-Class is the standard all others, including the G-Class, follow. Its hegemony remains unchallenged to this day, its future brighter than ever. It may wind up the last sedan left standing in the years to come.

Photos: Mercedes-Benz

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Cameron Aubernon's path to automotive journalism began in the early New '10s. Back then, a friend of hers thought she was an independent fashion blogger.

Aubernon wasn't, so she became one, covering fashion in her own way for the next few years.

From there, she's written for: Louisville.com/Louisville Magazine, Insider Louisville, The Voice-Tribune/The Voice, TOPS Louisville, Jeffersontown Magazine, Dispatches Europe, The Truth About Cars, Automotive News, Yahoo Autos, RideApart, Hagerty, and Street Trucks.

Aubernon also served as the editor-in-chief of a short-lived online society publication in Louisville, Kentucky, interned at the city's NPR affiliate, WFPL-FM, and was the de facto publicist-in-residence for a communal art space near the University of Louisville.

Aubernon is a member of the International Motor Press Association, and the Washington Automotive Press Association.


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