The head of Corporate Communications for Mercedes-Benz Asia Pacific has reportedly stated that the smart brand may soon be discontinued in the Australian market. Low sales, despite price cutting, is cited as the reason.
B2B portal goauto.com.au is carrying a report which quotes senior manager of Corporate Communications David McCarthy as saying that the next generation fortwo and a closely related four-seat model may not be imported to Australia. Both cars are due to be revealed to the media later this month.
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“We need to assess the business case on the car and see if we can make money on it,” McCarthy said. “If we don’t make money on it we don’t bring it.
“Even though the current car is sitting at $18,990 (US$17,857), it is very hard to move. And at this point we don’t see a big change in price for the next car. And the price competition under that is really severe. And the new forfour will be in the same situation.
“But it’s not a done deal. We’re still having discussions. You have to remember we are not a volume market”.
Mercedes-Benz’s man’s naming of the forthcoming four-seater car confirms worldwide speculation on what this model will be called. The shapes of both new smarts can be seen right at the end of this recently released video.
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