Posted on BenzWorld from Press Release

Mercedes, a subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler AG, produced a record 95,558 vehicles in Vance last year, including the redesigned M-Class sport utility vehicle and the all-new R-Class sports tourer.

The German automaker sold 5,400 M-Class SUVs in December, a record month for the company, said Ron Mueller, manager of the sport utility and touring division of Mercedes-Benz USA. The rising sales for M-Class, which in 1997 became the first vehicle produced in Alabama, are an indication that the popular SUV "still has a lot of life left in it. In fact, it's gaining momentum with age," said Mueller. "At the rate we sold them (in December), that's more than 60,000 a year," he said. "That's insane! The M has performed just way beyond anybody's expectations."

Mueller said American consumers are still discovering the R-Class, a category-defying vehicle that combines an SUV with a sedan. Mercedes sold 5,000 of the vehicles during the last three months of 2005, including 2,400 in December, Mueller said. "It's gaining traction, particularly in New York and Los Angeles, and that's where the trend should catch on," Mueller said. "It's a very hot car for us right now, and we've just started launching it in Europe, where we think it's going to be huge. They embrace new concepts a lot faster than we do" in the United States, Mueller said.

The GL, now in test production at Vance, is a full-sized SUV that should have broad appeal, Mueller said. Its projected price in the mid-$50,000 range is $15,000 to $20,000 below the average prices for its chief competitors, he said. "It's going to be a heavy hitter for us. It wouldn't surprise me at all to see it take off the way the M-Class did," Mueller said. The M-Class, a so-called crossover SUV, had a 12-month waiting list less than two months after production started in Vance, according to Mercedes."

 

Does anyone have the contact info for Mr. Ron Mueller, manager of the sport utility and touring division of Mercedes-Benz USA? I have an SUV question I'd like to ask. Mailing address, phone number, email, anything.

Thanks in advance.

 

Ah, ClayJ, I see you liked that post.

Here's another one, about the new GL...


GL's target market: Families, celebrities

Sunday, January 15, 2006
MICHAEL TOMBERLIN
News staff writer

DETROIT - The full-size GL-Class was designed to be the big daddy of the Vance family - and it arrives at a time when some have to wonder if a full-size sport utility makes sense when pump prices hover over two bucks a gallon.

Mercedes-Benz isn't concerned about the timing, convinced its biggest SUV will carry a sticker price lower than expected and certain it will appeal to families despite higher gas costs.

"Just because gas prices are $2.50 a gallon doesn't mean you don't have three kids still," says Ron Mueller, sales manager for Mercedes vehicles in the United States. "You've got Jimmy, Johnny and Suzie, you can't just say, `Johnny, you've got to go stay with Aunt Mae now because I can't afford to carry you around anymore.' You still need passenger capacity, you still need cargo capacity."

Mueller said that with the GL, Mercedes has given dealers and the customer a third distinct choice, along with the R-Class and the M-Class, also made only in Alabama. Test models of the GL are now being produced, with the SUV expected to arrive in dealer showrooms in the spring.

"The primary market is families, families, families," Mueller said. "It's our first heartland vehicle I feel very confident in. It's the first vehicle that dealers in the truck market know exactly who the market is."

Celebrities

Apart from families, there is another market. The popularity of Mercedes' Gelaendewagen as well as the Cadillac Escalade with the upscale urban market - particularly sports stars and hip-hop artists and rappers - makes that another area to direct sales.

"Being Mercedes-Benz, we've got interest in the urban market as well," Mueller said. "We expect to see some of that. That customer likes M-B as a whole and they also like how they can customize it. We will cater to that."

Final pricing for the GL-Class hasn't been set, but Mueller said the company is shooting for the mid-$50,000 range, far lower than some had expected.

"Everyone was expecting us to go after Range Rover with our pricing, so they were expecting $72,000," Mueller said. "But we said, no, we're going after the mainstream segment."

He said Mercedes is looking to sell from 15,000 to 20,000 of the GLs this year and turn that into a 20,000 to 25,000 average over the vehicle's life cycle.

Hitting those numbers will include bringing the automotive press to Alabama for a test drive and closer look in the coming days. Later, Mercedes will invite automotive journalists to California's Napa Valley to experience some quality time with the vehicle. An Internet marketing campaign has kicked off with more traditional advertising slated to start in April.

The initial advertising will focus on Mercedes-Benz engineering. A separate campaign later this year will focus on the family of vehicles made in Vance.

E-mail: mtomberlin@bhamnews.com

 

Wolfgang, my friend - it seems that i have found that I seem to like all of your posts(!)...but don't get a fat head about it! LOL

Thanks for another one.

...and are you going to post this one up on the GL thread -- or will I have to do it...again...? LOL