DaimlerChrysler has scotched earlier rumours that the Mercedes-Benz A-class would be dropped at the end of its model life by saying that the next-generation model will be more profitable and be sold in the United States.
While the C-class is the company’s smallest model in the U.S., M-B sells the A-class in most other world markets as an entry-level model, aimed at women, retirees, and parents with young children.
Go deeper with GlobalData
Discover B2B Marketing That Performs
Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.
Speaking to journalists at an event in Lisbon, the company said that, although it made an operating profit on the A-class, it has not been able to recover the investment in plant and equipment for the car which is built in Germany and Brazil.
“We expect to show a profit with the successor model,” Mercedes-Benz unit head Juergen Hubbert said. “If you have to invest in new product, you can’t get the money back in the first generation.”
Mercedes ran into a storm of controversy after launching the A-Class in 1997 when Scandinavian journalists found it prone to rollover in their now-infamous elk-avoidance test – a sudden lane-change manoeuvre. The company stopped production to modify the suspension and add standard electronic stability control. It also recalled thousands of early production models for updating.
Despite this initial setback, Mercedes has gone on to sell 570,000 A-class to date though Hubbert would not reveal how much DaimlerChrysler had invested in the model so far.
Mercedes-Benz has just revised the first generation A-Class with a new interior, the cabin’s second update in response to criticism the initial materials used looked cheap, and has also added an extended wheelbase option that significantly boosts rear cabin room.
The company has targeted 43,000 sales of the LWB version in 2001, 30 percent of volume.
Hubbert also would not say when the next-generation car will debut and when it would be launched in the United States.
To view related research reports, please follow the links below:- DaimlerChrysler Strategic Review |
