IAB Report - Eberhard Kern says the 2015 Mercedes C Class will NOT launch in India this year

10/01/2014 - 18:01 | ,   | Anjan Ravi

Mercedes-Benz have announced the new generation 2015 C Class and the sedan will be seen for the first time at the Detroit Motor Show on Monday. Deliveries of the new C Class will commence in Germany from March this year.

However, Germany is a left-hand drive market and as of date, Mercedes is yet to speak about the right-hand drive version.

2015 Mercedes C-Class C 300 BlueTEC hybrid front three quarters
The new generation C Class will not be launched in India this year.

As a result, it could be until the middle of this year before the new C Class in its right-hand drive trim goes on sale in markets such as UK (which would undoubtedly be the first right-hand drive market for the new C Class).

Speaking to Indian Autos Blog today, Mercedes-Benz India's CEO, Mr. Eberhard Kern, said that the new C Class will not be seen this year in India. Even though the C Class is an important volume seller for the brand in India, we will have to wait until 2015 before we see it on our roads.

Mercedes GLA 250 front quarter
Mercedes will instead launch the CLA sedan or the GLA crossover in India this year.

Even without the new C Class in India, Mercedes expects to post a double digit growth in 2014. Key to achieving this sales performance will come from an all-new model (an NGCC model) which could be the CLA sedan or the GLA crossover. Kern added that Mercedes India outsold Audi in the second half of 2013, and 20% of the total sales volumes were generated by the A- and B-Class.

The C Class in India is sold with three engine options - two diesels and a petrol. In November last year, Mercedes launched the Edition C commemorating its global sale of 10 million units.

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