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Premium car sales drop sharply, Merc hopes SUVs will help counter downturn

The new GLC

The new GLC

The new GLC

Inside the GLC

The GLE

Inside the GLE

The G-Class

Inside the G-Class

4th November 2015

By: Irma Venter

Creamer Media Senior Deputy Editor

  

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The economic slowdown in South Africa has now also reached the country’s big earners it seems.

Sales of new premium luxury cars in South Africa were down 25% in September compared with the same month last year, says Mercedes-Benz South Africa (MBSA) co-CEO and MBSA Cars executive director Florian Seidler.

The segment is down 9% year to date, he adds.

“We expect this year’s premium luxury segment to be down between 11% and 12% compared with last year.”

Seidler says the segment includes 20 brands, according to MBSA’s definition, including BMW, Ferrari, McLaren and Jaguar.

The total South African new-vehicle market is in a tough spot, he notes, with year-to-date sales down 4.5%. However, current expectations are that it will recover by the end of 2016.

“There is nothing wrong with a market going down, but you need to manage the situation. You cannot flood the market with cars and destroy the brand.”

MBSA’s year-to-date share in the domestic passenger car market is 7.2%, according to Department of Trade and Industry data, up from last year’s 6.9%.

This growth trend is expected to continue for the rest of the year, says Seidler.

MBSA’s actual new-car sales are, however, expected to drop in 2015 over 2014, as the German manufacturer will not escape the downturn in sales evident in the South African market.

One of the factors driving MBSA’s market share growth is the rapid expansion of its product portfolio.

“By the end of the year, we will have 29 models in South Africa. Fifteen years ago, we had eight,” says Seidler.

A range of new and spruced-up sports-utility vehicles (SUVs) is also firing on market share growth.

Internationally, MBSA has seen SUV sales increase by 25% in 2014 over last year. In South Africa this uptick stands at around 30%.

Ten years ago, MBSA could offer local customers only the G-Class. Now, however, there are five different SUV models, says Seidler.

“Every platform comes with its own SUV and coupé derivative.

“Traditionally, 50% of our sales come from the C-Class, so the new mid-size GLC SUV is a big volume opportunity for us.”

The GLC was previously known as the GLK.

Apart from the GLC SUV, based on the C-Class platform, South Africa, in November, sees the introduction of the fresh-faced go-anywhere G-Class, as well as the spruced-up GLE, or the former M-Class.

Three Newcomers
The GLC favours the city, but also makes use of an off-road engineering package which can see it tackle some rougher terrain.

The vehicle offers a handling-control system with five driving programmes as standard. In addition to the Eco, Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual settings which are familiar from other models, the off-road package comprises up to five programmes, namely Slippery, Offroad, Incline, Rocking (with a ground clearance of up to 227 mm) and Trailer. The latter facilitates moving with an attached trailer over wet grass, for example.

Almost all of the driver-assistance systems which are familiar from the C-, E- and S‑Class are also available in the new GLC, such as active lane-keeping assist.

City-driving is also made easy with a 360° camera, which shows the vehicle and its surroundings from different perspectives. Active parking assist also manoeuvres the vehicle fully automatically into parallel and end-on parking spaces.

The GLC also features a heads-up display, which relays important information on the front windscreen for the driver to see. The system provides information on speed, posted speed limits and navigation instructions, for example.
Pricing for the GLC starts at R599 900.

The spruced-up GLE has a new front and rear look, among many other new features.

Fuel consumption and carbon dioxide emissions across the engine range have been cut by an average of 17% compared with the predecessor model series.

Also, as an option on the GLE 250 d, GLE 350 d and GLE 400, the latest generation of Comand Online offers infotainment with a 20.3 cm display and intuitive touchpad. This system allows rapid data communication with download speeds of up to 300 Mb/s, and includes fast navigation with real-time live traffic data, various interfaces such as an SD card slot, Bluetooth or USB, as well as a DVD player and traffic sign recognition with wrong-way warning function.

Customers can order the optional rear-seat entertainment system with remote control or a TV receiver. Also available are sound systems from Harman Kardon or Bang & Olufsen to elevate the music experience.

Pricing starts at R863 000.

For the serious off-roader with nothing less than R1.4-million in his or her pocket, the new G-Class offers up to 16% more power and up to 17% lower fuel consumption than its predecessor.

The range includes the G 350 d, with the power output increased from 155 kW to 180 kW, with torque at 600 Nm, and the Mercedes-AMG G 63, with power output up from 400 kW to 420 kW, and torque at 760 Nm.

The G 350 d accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 8.8 seconds, up from the previous 9.1 seconds. Fuel consumption drops from 11.2 l/100 km to 9.9 l/100 km.

The AMG version completes the 0 to 100 km/h run in 5.4 seconds. You can make the trip for R2.15-million.

A new suspension and enhanced electronic stability programme sees increased driving stability, safety and road comfort on the G-Class, promises MBSA. The exterior and interior have also been given an upgrade.

A new colour palette is available for AMG G-Class customers and includes solar beam, tomato red, alien green, sunset beam and galactic beam.
 

Edited by Creamer Media Reporter

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