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Old 31st July 2004, 01:54   #1
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It would be logical for everyone of us to think that sales of the C Class would be naturally more than that of the E Class....which would be more than the S Class, right? After all they all look "Mercish" and the common man does not know one from the other.

WRONG! The new Mercedes E Class has hit on strong with the Indian market...so much so that its starting selling more than its smaller brother C.

C Class sales figures

April 2004 - 51
May 2004 - 19
June 2004 - 13

E Class sales figures

April 2004 - 44
May 2004 - 55
June 2004 - 114

You are probably attributing this to the launch of the E270 etc. etc. and the upgradation of the new C Class? Probably. But dont forget what the Honda Accord V6 also has to offer. Skoda has also entered this price bracket with the Superb.

Food for thought - The S Class averages about 12 - 13 cars per month.

GTO

Source - Economic Times Article
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Old 31st July 2004, 02:08   #2
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[/quote]Food for thought - The S Class averages about 12 - 13 cars per month.[quote]

Wow, now thats some amazing statistic. Lets do some math then. Lets suppose DCIL sells 150 S-Classes a year averaging Rs. 70 lakhs a piece. You have Rs. 105 crores worth turnover just from a single product, wow, i think Maruti or Hyundai would love to sell something like this!

But i guess its just a statistic again. As for the E-class, i can see a few more reasons. With the C-Class costing anywhere between 26 and 30 lakhs on-road Mumbai, its gone into a self-created segment, far away from the likes of the Accords and Camrys. Also increasingly at another 10 lakhs u get the brilliant E, keys in hand. Its kinda stuck nowhere actually so i am just not surprised. Ideally, DCIL really need to think about repositioning the C-class lineup but i don't think its easy as for a brand like Mercedes, going down with prices means loss in brand-value and thats something they can't afford to mess with.

Sure u might argue that the facelifted C comes at no extra cost and thats good, but still it seems a tad overpriced. What worries me is not just the Superb but Audi with its A4 speculated for an early 2005 launch. The A4 is renowned worldwide to be the best combination between being sporty (ala BMW) and a tech tour-de-force (ala Merc) yet being more comfortable than the two. Its entry, if it does happen, could mean some tough times for Merc, especially in the metros. And the clincher could be the brilliant diesels from the VW group in the Audi and that 1.8 Turbo that spools out an awesome 160+bhp. All of it at a price probably lower than Mercedes.

Its tough times ahead for DCIL in the D-segment.

Revv



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Old 1st August 2004, 20:26   #3
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hey revvmaster
i with u when it comes to the d segment. ......
audi has some mouthwatering models and now tht they r finally comin to india ...........
merc and beemer start sayin yr prayers.........



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Old 10th November 2005, 23:51   #4
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What are the latest Sales figures in Merc??

Ps: how about comparing with similarly priced models of BMW and Audi??
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