jamesszzz

I’m in the market and I don’t understand why there is still a waiting list and how some dealers charge above MSRP?

The New G-Class sales are no better than the previous model if you look here: http://carsalesbase.com/us-car-sales...-benz-g-class/

In fact, sales seem to be declining and last month was especially lower than normal with only 373 sold.

Can anyone explain the demand? Why is it so hard for MB to produce enough to not have a waiting list or are they doing this purposefully? When a vehicle has demand, sales noticeably increase but that’s not the case with the new G. Is it built at a factory with very limited output capacity? The last time a luxury SUV had waiting lists and sold above list was when the Range Rover when it came out in 2013..but they sold thousands per month and sales were dramatically improved versus previous model. Its not the case with the new G.

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kim0217

I guess Factory in Graz is not capable of doing thousands per month.

alistairg

It does feel "odd" that there's apparent massive pent up demand and such limited supply. Looking at the EU sales figures (there are no China figures I could find) I also wonder if MB is moving additional vehicles to Europe and China vs the US market.

The stealership I'm working with claims that they didn't get any allocation for December/January, when they'd expected two G63s to be allocated in each month. I'm not totally sure I believe them though - there seems to be a lot of shadiness around the sale of this particular model IMHO.

kim0217

From what I know, Chinese market still have customers paying 60~70k mark up despite of its 300k~350k usd retail of G63. Lots of G63 were exported to China, that might also create some shortage in the North American market.

sam9187

I don't understand the demand for the G wagon. I also think the waitlist at dealership is not quite accurate as multiple people will add their name to the list. I was # 83 in the waitlist in April and now in 30s and I doubt they had 40-50 allocations.

fabbrisd1

First - the G-Wagon is a example of a well-managed Luxury SUV - and with Luxury you have a fixed or stable production level - matched with as strong - or stronger - consumer demand for that luxury item.

Yes - the output of Magna-Steyr in Graz is relatively fixed - as in Austria there are very strong labor laws - for example you can't fire/lay-off/reassign any worker to be replaced by a machine - and Magana-Steyr's relationship stretches back to the Ice Age as the exclusive G-Wagon factory.

If you go shop for a Rolex Daytona at this moment - or shop for a Porsche GT3 RS - or - or - EVERY SUCCESSFUL LUXURY ITEM is based/supported by Limited Supply - and MOST will have a market premium for "delivery now" .

I like this one " The stealership I'm working with claims that they didn't get any allocation for December/January, when they'd expected two G63s to be allocated in each month. I'm not totally sure I believe them though"

EVERY Mercedes dealership knows what they will receive in G550's and G63's because for every Mercedes Dealer both #'s will be roughly the same as what they received and sold for model yr 2018.

Now - if I had a G-Wagen on order with a dealer with a deposit - and now that dealer won't keep a commitment to sell you at MSRP - I'd tell them to f*ck off and give me my money !

There wasn't any dealer in the US - except MB Manhattan - that had 80+ G's with deposits on order with Mercedes in April... so somewhere in Texas some MB salesman is smoking cr*ck and talking sh*t..

jamesszzz

“Well managed” aka artificially controlled by Mercedes-Benz and/or fixed output at Gantz.

There is no more demand for the G-Class than other high end luxury vehicles. In fact, it is no more popular or in demand than its competitors. If Land Rover limiting the more popular Range Rover output to 400 per month or whatever it is with the G-Class in the U.S., there would probably still be a mile long waiting list and significant premiums even 7 years into production.

And it’s odd to see a vehicle in alleged bonkers demand like the G-Class posting monthly decline in sales which leads to my theory that it is in no more demand than other high end luxury vehicles but simply appears that way due Mercedes control of the vehicle.

I guess Mercedes can afford to do this with the G-Class since it has always been a low-volume niche vehicle and they have volume vehicles that are money makers. It’s by choice. Porsche or Land Rover limiting Range Rover and Cayenne production to a few hundred per month would probably bankrupt those brands. Moving production of the G-Class out of Gantz and making it more mass-produced is clearly not what MB wants because if G-Classes were readily available like S-Classes it would significantly reduce the values, image and the “hotness” of the model since they would be selling for big discounts like any other MB.

I am so turned off by the buying experience.

sam9187

Despite all this demand and vehicles being delivered I don't see them around.

Germancar1

Man what are you talking about? Did you actually look at the sales number for 2018 vs 2019? You are just completely wrong to say that sales are no better than before. Every single month this year vs last year the G has been up in sales:

2018 2019

349 427
295 1165
360 701
317 546
294 493
263 487
165 501
201 373

YTD sales are 4,693 for 2019 vs 2,241 for 2018 up >>> 109.4%

https://www.daimler.com/investors/re...sales-aug.html

Sales are on track to DOUBLE sales from last year. Clearly they are building more of them, but this isn't a family sedan so they aren't going to just flood the market with them and also a lot of the build is done by hand.

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kim0217

curious the sales number of MY13 when they first came out also carry mark up.

mvb3

I'm based in Germany and and this is the information I obtained yesterday from 3 official Mercedes Stores (the actual Mercedes stores in Germany, not a random dealer that sells Mercedes). Basically they're flooded with orders.
- An order placed TODAY for a new G63 has a delivery time of late Q1 2021
- An order placed TODAY for the G63 Stronger than Time Edition (an overpriced limited edition to celebrate 40 years of G-Class, but you can't even choose an interior. The interior is black for everyone, it's like they're trying to get rid of their black leather stock) would be delivered by September 2020

I don't believe the demand is artificial, as this is by far the most coveted G-wagon they've ever released. The demand is so high that there are used ones with 40.000km being sold for nearly the new price, only because they're available immediately. It's ridiculous. I agree with you all, they should have predicted this (since it's the biggest upgrade the G has ever received) and prepare to produce more than at this current rate.

Germancar1

2013 - 2,494 units.


http://www.goodcarbadcar.net/2011/01...sales-figures/


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jamesszzz

No.

2018: 3,970
2017 (record high for the G-Class): 4,188
2019 will probably be around 5,500 using average sales.

http://carsalesbase.com/us-car-sales...-benz-g-class/

30% sales increase which is not amazing for a brand new vehicle. Especially a vehicle as dramatically improved as the G. That underperforms the average new Mercedes. Let’s be extremely generous and say people rush to buy G-Classes at unprecedented and double that to 60% just to prove my point.

It still is no more “in demand” than other high end vehicles when you compare sales volume of new model vs previous model

S Class (2012 - 2013) 90% sales increase
Range Rover (2012-2013) 65% sales increase
Panamera (2016-2017) 53% sales increase

jamesszzz

Yes of course people want it, it’s a nice vehicle, but waiting lists would also be the case if Mercedes-Benz severely restricted any of its top cars. The G-Class is no more wanted by consumers (probably even less so) than $100k+ vehicles like the S-Class, 911 or the Range Rover. Similarly, there would be long waiting lists and selling above list if any of the G-Class competitors and or other high end desirable luxury had severe production caps. Rolls-Royce Cullinan is a desirable vehicle that has driven the brand to record sales, yet you can walk into any dealer, order one and have it in a few months because without dealing with the games MB dealers play because Rolls-Royce increased production and factory employees to deal with demand. Same story for Lamborghini and the Urus. Doubt Mercedes has any interest in doing that.

This is 100% Mercedes doing.

Sweuk

But a sale is not a sale until the car is delivered, correct? So is there order numbers available? Sales probably look down because the US hasn't got that many allocated cars?

Kwesi400

You are comparing a car that’s hand assembled (GWagon) vs a car that’s completely assembled by robots/automated (Range Rover). Production of one will be faster than the other. You may see 20 Range rovers a day & 1 G wagon a week.

Kwesi400

And that’s why I love the G wagon. They aren’t common, you stand out. You may see 20 Range rovers a day but 2 G wagons a week. I’ve seen a couple of 2019 G wagons around. Sometimes I won’t even see any in a 2 week period

Kwesi400

I don’t think the demand is made up. Keep in mind, this is the first full redesign of the G bringing it up to modern standards. Everybody wants one. Imagine all the orders they have received from the Middle East & China. The car is also hand assembled unlike a Range Rover assembled by robots. Production of a range will be faster than a G.

johnnyderm

As a marketing professional, I can say that, yes, of course the inflated demand is artificial by some brilliant marketers who perfected the paradigm of price, availability and a marketable product with loud door locks that we desperately desire. The company is maximizing their profit, less trying to sell fewer trucks :-)

GTBNYC

Yes.

Mercedes chooses to keep the G-Class hand made at the factory in Gantz. To be sure, a brand as wealthy as Mercedes could easily move production and triple output if they wanted but they have made the decision not to.

Increasing production is probably not worth it because once the hype is gone a year from now, production would be excessive and they would start sitting on lots and selling for significant discounts like what is offered on S-Classes. I don’t think Mercedes wants the G-Wagen to be that type of vehicle. 300-500 units per month seems to be what the market will absorb long term.

Surge

@jamesszzz you wrote that the G is posting “monthly declines in sales”. That’s false. Looking at your sales data link, every month’s sales in 2019 and higher than the same month in 2018.

I feel your frustration but your hypothesis that demand is down and MB is artificially reducing supply to have a long wait has no data to support it.

Personally, my G just arrived today. I’ve been waiting for about 3 years, and I purchased 3 other MBs from the same dealer.

jamesszzz

I was more comparing it to the high mark of G-Class sales (2017). You're right though it is up compared to 2018.

But sales dropped significantly from July to August of this year.

Germancar1

I'm sorry but you have no clue what you're talking about. Sales are up over 100% vs last year. The supply was interrupted in 2018 which is why it dipped before the new 2019 model went on sale. 2019 will be the biggest year ever for the G.

NO ONE said that the G was in more demand than anything else, I just simply proved that your point about sales "not being any better than before" is flat WRONG. As far as it being in demand more or less than anything else, that wasn't what I addressed only the nonsense claim about sales not being any better than before. The actual sales numbers prove you're wrong.

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Germancar1

Sales of the G are up from 2017 also. Again, what are you talking about? July-August means nothing, sales can drop anywhere from July-Sept due to model year change over. The trend is way up from last year and from 2017 also. YTD Jan-August 2017 is 2960 units, YTD 2019 for Jan-August is 4693 units.

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n3rd

You realize that the factories close in August?