.

.December 08, 2004
.
This Week:

• Porsche(R) Reveals New 911 Cabriolets for 2005

• Explorer Sport Trac concept: More Powerful, More Versatile, More Advanced

• GM To Reduce Stationary CO2 Emissions 8 Percent By 2005

• BMW Group's Year-To-Date Sales Increase 5.9 Percent

• Toyota to Create Consolidated R&D and Manufacturing Operations

• Saab to Launch 9-5 BioPower Flex-Fuel Vehicle in Sweden

• Mercedes Car Group: Sales of Mercedes-Benz and smart vehicles up sharply in November 2004

• Hyundai Boosted Sales Growth in Europe

• Mondeo 2.5 V6 Wins China's 2005 Car Of The Year

• Maybach expands its Asian sales network by establishing a new Center in Shanghai

© 1998 - 2004 Copyright & 
Disclaimer
Automotive Intelligence,
www.autointell.com
All Rights Reserved .
For questions please contact
editor@autointell.net 

.
Mercedes Car Group: Sales of Mercedes-Benz and smart vehicles up sharply in November 2004

• Mercedes Car Group registers worldwide sales growth of ten percent in November

• Sales of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars increase by eight percent in November - world market leader in the segments for C-, E- and S Class

• smart sales up 23 percent in November

Mercedes-Benz significantly outpaced the market as a whole in November, increasing worldwide sales by more than eight percent to 91,000 units. A total of 955,300 customers worldwide opted to purchase a Mercedes Benz model through November (first 11 months of 2003: 1,004,400).

Mercedes-Benz sales in Germany up 22 percent in November

As was the case in October, Mercedes-Benz' biggest sales increase in November was recorded in its primary sales market Germany: A total of 32,200 Mercedes-Benz passenger cars were delivered to customers in Germany, an increase of 22 percent from November 2003 (26,400). The biggest contributor to this growth was the new A Class. "The new A-Class has gotten off to an excellent start," says Dr. Joachim Schmidt, Executive Vice President Sales and Marketing, Mercedes Car Group. Since its launch in mid-September, we've delivered about 40,000 units to customers in Europe." In November alone, sales of the compact model series rose by 62 percent, setting a new record of 16,600 units. The model's primary markets - Germany, Italy and France - have all posted high sales figures, thus contributing to the excellent performance of the A-Class. Additional sales potential will be generated when the right-hand drive version of the A-Class is launched in the UK and Japan, as well as through the launch of an automatic transmission version at the beginning of 2005. With sales of 4,800 units, the SLK also posted another record month in November, thus further consolidating its global market leadership. Demand for the roadster more than doubled to 46,700 units through November. Meanwhile, sales of the new generation C-Class were up 15 percent in November, to 29,900 units.

With global market shares of approximately 32 percent for the E-Class and 35 percent for the S-Class, Mercedes-Benz' two top model series clearly remained the world market leaders in the upper-range and luxury segment last month. The new CLS, which has established a new segment for four-door coupes, has also gotten off to a tremendous start, with deliveries of 4,200 units in the first two months that the vehicle has been available.

Sales of Mercedes-Benz passenger cars in the U.S. were up more than three percent in November, to 18,800 units. A total of 194,700 vehicles have been delivered to customers in North America since the beginning of this year. In the Asia/Pacific region, DaimlerChrysler delivered a total of 7,600 Mercedes-Benz passenger cars in November. Demand developed particularly well in Southeast Asia, where sales increased 31 percent to 2,100 passenger cars. A total of 79,800 Mercedes-Benz passenger cars were delivered to customers in the Asia/Pacific region through November (first 11 months of 2003: 83,600).

smart sales up 23 percent in November

The smart brand continues to post dynamic growth. Led by demand for the smart forfour, sales of the brand rose 23 percent in November to the record figure of 12,500 units. A total of 36,500 smart forfour have been delivered to customers worldwide since the vehicle's market launch last April. Deliveries of smart-brand vehicles increased 22 percent to 126,000 units through November. Above-average growth was recorded in Spain (6,700 units, up 66 percent), France (11,500 units, up 37 percent) and Portugal (2,700 units, up 45 percent).

As part of the brand's sales offensive, smart models became available in Malaysia at the end of November. This Southeast Asian country offers solid growth opportunities for the company, because the small car segment accounts for approximately 80 percent of the total automotive market there, and demand for premium vehicles is constantly increasing. The first smart showroom in Romania will also open in Bucharest this week, after which the smart brand will be present in 36 countries.

Overview of Mercedes Car Group Sales

* Mercedes-Benz passenger cars

(Dec 07, 2004)