Sheer luxury would soon be a touch cheaper to buy! Mercedes Benz S-Class, an alternative or synonym to the word ‘luxury’ will be powered by a locally assembled engine in India. The decision was taken by Mercedes Benz India Pvt. Ltd after the government raised customs duty on import of pre-assembled parts from 10% to 30%.
The step is implemented to keep the price of the S-Class at a competitive level. The new S-Class with a locally assembled heart would be available in the next 4-5 months.
The engines for the S-Class would be assembled by Force Motors Ltd which assembles engines for the C- and E- Class models.
For a fact, Mercedes Benz India has been losing Rs. 10 lac on every S-Class sold because of the additional 20% duty since March 2011. Mercedes Benz India would have been more comfortable if they were informed beforehand about the change in duties as it takes 8-10 months to develop a new assembly line.
On 28th February of this year customs duty was raised from 10% to 60% on pre-assembled parts such as engines which brings it on par with the CBU units due to the taxation.
AutoWeek Netherlands has published an image of the new S-Class (learn why we call it the time machine) undergoing static (suspension?) tests in a lab. The flagship limousine (code – W222) is devoid of components except for the body panels and LED headlamps.
As it is a closed environment, testing was conducted in the absence of any camouflage. The new S-Class is expected in 2013 and real world testing is on in full swing.
The currently running S-Class was unveiled in 2005 and since then has received powertrains and variants. In India, the S-Class will receive upgraded engines this year.
click through to read more about the next gen S Klasse
After the Mercedes M Class, the Mercedes S-Class is another major launch from the Stuttgart based manufacturer. The 2013 Mercedes S Class has also been spied countless number of times by the International Automotive Press.
While this prototype is heavily camouflaged, it reveals some details of the car. The new car is expected to have a more streamlined appearance with a prominent grille and CLS-inspired headlights. It should also be a tad bit larger than the outgoing one.
No proper details of the engine options are available except the fact that a hybrid version is most certainly in the works. I guess we will have to wait to find out.
By Kaustubh Shinde To know the future of a person, one reads Palms, Face, Magic Balls, Tarot Cards et all. To know the future of cars, one visits the nearest Mercedes showroom to have a look at the S Class. This Mercedes Benz flagship always has been the definitive milestone in car history. Whatever fancy gadgetry this car has now will be in your regular car 10 years down the [ Read More ]
Relux is a popular German tuner in the U.A.E. Carjake informs us that Relux products have a demand in their country.
What Relux have done to the Mercedes Benz S-Class is not at all impressive. They have installed a new front wing with day time running LED’s which look cheap and out of place. The black alloys is the only thing that’s acceptable in this package.
The best part of the new Fab Design package for the Mercedes Benz S-Class is the 5-liter V8 engine, which equipped with a FAB DESIGN® supercharger, at 5500 rpm produces 540 hp and 750 Nm at just 4,000 rpm.
Hyundai Equus, the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes Benz S Class competitor, was shown to a group of 80 journalists at Namyang research and development center in South Korea. The company also allowed the journalists to test drive the car, and surprisingly, a Mercedes S Class and Lexus LS sedan were also provided for a comparitive study.
Did someone remark India’s suited only for small cars? We won’t term that statement is 100% wrong, but it makes scarcely any sense to say something like that. At a time when Mercedes-Benz India has sold a whopping 524 units of its S-Class luxury sedan this year, you begin to comprehend why Audi aggressively markets its A8 and BMW, the 7-Series, here in India. Flourishing sales figures has given rise [ Read More ]
Sheer luxury would soon be a touch cheaper to buy! Mercedes Benz S-Class, an alternative or synonym to the word ‘luxury’ will be powered by a locally assembled engine in India. The decision was taken by Mercedes Benz India Pvt. Ltd after the government raised customs duty on import of pre-assembled parts from 10% to 30%.
