There are so many examples of manufacturers breaking their regular mold of vehicles they are familiar with, and start doing something new and different on the side, to boost profits and sustain a solid growth figure – this is contradictory, though, because growth, by definition cannot be endlessly sustained…
Still, that thought hasn’t stopped Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Jaguar (with the X-Type), Audi, Porsche, and well pretty much all premium carmakers in trying, and being fully confident of the success of their strategy each and every time.
BMW nailed it with the MINI sub-brand, but when Mercedes-Benz tried out the waters with the awkward first-generation A-Class, they failed. It had some good ideas buried inside, but was poorly engineered, hence the early recall caused by its tendency to tip over– thankfully, though, the A-Class was a very safe car for its day, structurally, that is. One technical innovation was the fact that the engine would slide under the passenger compartment, in the event of a frontal impact, just like on the Citroen DS, from 1955.
The second generation A-Class was more of an evolution of the first, and it took Mercedes-Benz another eight years to finally figure out what it is that people want. The third generation car, launched last year, is specifically designed to appeal to younger buyers, who didn’t think they could afford a premium brand – now they can, and are, in fact, spoiled for choice.
The Three Pointed Star now says that its front-wheel drive models (currently the A-Class, B-Class and CLA) will bring about a much needed boost, which will take them back to the top of the luxury class. Keeping the pricing decent (until you add extras, of course), they want to “beat the competition – on a permanent basis,” according to Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche, who spoke to Bloomberg News.
He continues the idea by saying: “The course we have set is the right one. We will follow it – undeterred by the ups and downs of the markets.” By markets, he is of course referring to Europe, where their expectations are, understandably, not the highest. The US, as well as China (where sales begin in February 2014) seem to be the main markets targeted by this premium front-wheel drive car for people under forty-thing they have going on.
Still, the action may not be in full swing, yet, because Merc is still trailing Audi in the first quarter of 2013. Their declared sales increase over what was recorded last year is 3.5 percent, which is near half of Audi’s 6.8 percent figure, and exactly half of BMW’s 7 percent rise.
The Stuttgart manufacturer used to be the world’s largest manufacturer and seller of luxury automobiles (by sales volume), until 2005, when BMW took the crown. Furthermore, they were outranked by Audi in 2011, and have been third in the race since. Mercedes has been saying it is going to regain the first spot, and while it has tried, it is not where it expected to be in 2013, that’s for sure.
By Andrei Nedelea
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