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China and the Middle East markets get first dibs and preferential treatment for the G-wagon. Notice there are absolutely NO constraints on any of the Magno paints, wheels, or accessories in these markets?
The North American market get filtered allocations with constraints STILL on certain finishes and options.
China and the Middle East markets get first dibs and preferential treatment for the G-wagon. Notice there are absolutely NO constraints on any of the Magno paints, wheels, or accessories in these markets?
The North American market get filtered allocations with constraints STILL on certain finishes and options.
And Edition 1 for some countries are full year run production not limit edition like in NA,lol
Mercedes presumably is good at figuring out what it's steady state market is. They want to optimize assembly lines, vender contracts, and other supply chain elements to the long term annual production volumes, not the pent up demand that spikes after a new product launch.
That said, creating scarcity in the near term is also good for business by generating exactly the sort of hype and chatter we are part of now
High dollar vehicles like the G or upper end S class represent a disproportionate fraction of overall profits, so it makes no sense to optimize to an artificially low number over the medium/long term. These shortages will go away in ~2 years, due to changes in supply, demand, or both.
As others have said, this happens all the time with other manufacturers. Recall even at the low end of the market, back in the early days of Asian imports, Honda dealers had huge markups over MSRP on the 'new' Accord. (It normalized, but the impression of scarcity fueled their reputation for years)
As someone else noted, Rolex is currently enjoying a similar feeding frenzy for certain products. Their stainless GMT and Daytona models cost 2X MSRP. What is extremely interesting in their case is that their authorized dealer are still required to sell at MSRP, so the entire market has shifted to grey market secondary sellers. At least MB dealers get to enjoy the party while it lasts
With all this talk about supply, demand and upping production just be thankful that when you do purchase one, no matter what year, new or used that they don’t plummet in value like a Range Rover will! I hope they continue to be difficult to get as their values will hold strong!
Well.... "China and the Middle East markets get first dibs and preferential treatment for the G-wagon. Notice there are absolutely NO constraints on any of the Magno paints, wheels, or accessories in these markets?"
In markets where MSRP is 2 1/2 to 3 times times the MSRP here in the US - of course they get the build they want - but ALL markets don't get the # of G's t"hey say they want" and that's the reason for the Exporter Calls To Every US Dealer..
Well.... "China and the Middle East markets get first dibs and preferential treatment for the G-wagon. Notice there are absolutely NO constraints on any of the Magno paints, wheels, or accessories in these markets?"
In markets where MSRP is 2 1/2 to 3 times times the MSRP here in the US - of course they get the build they want - but ALL markets don't get the # of G's t"hey say they want" and that's the reason for the Exporter Calls To Every US Dealer..
Interesting. Maybe that partially explains why I don't see many new ones on the road in my part of the country. At 2 to 3 times MSRP in other markets it makes one wonder about the export business.
I was in Singapore, Shanghai, Paris and Berlin this month. I saw zero 2019 Gs except in Berlin. I was only in Berlin for 12 hrs and I saw 3 new G500/G63s.
In the Seattle area I have seen many new 2019 G63/550s and there are at least 3 new ones in my neighborhood/area that I see regularly.
Again, very ancadotal data but I guess it is something.
As another point, I put my name down for the new RS6 avant on the day they announced and I was told I was number #16. There was also no deposit yet and I am sure that only a fraction of the people on the list will actually end up buying one. The same goes for Gs, I think there are lots of people on the waiting lists that will end up not actually buying one once their turn comes up. I am also sure there are people on the list that are hoping/are flipping them. And once the economics of it change and no one is paying over MSRP; they will drop off also.
I am assuming that within the next year it should all normalize to the point where you can go in and order a new one without markup with a reasonable (3-4 month) delivery schedule. I don't think it's going to change to be a car that is going to be common on dealer lots due to the low production numbers and honestly a limited appeal/market.
Well.... "China and the Middle East markets get first dibs and preferential treatment for the G-wagon. Notice there are absolutely NO constraints on any of the Magno paints, wheels, or accessories in these markets?"
In markets where MSRP is 2 1/2 to 3 times times the MSRP here in the US - of course they get the build they want - but ALL markets don't get the # of G's t"hey say they want" and that's the reason for the Exporter Calls To Every US Dealer..
It is because the cost of an US imported vehicle is still cheaper in those countries not because of supply constraints.
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