Mercedes-Benz A-Class sedan leads reinvigorated model rollout

Mercedes-Benz Australia is promising a rush of new models between now and the end of the year.

"We have some good product in the pipeline to come," local journalists were advised earlier this week by Horst von Sanden, CEO for Mercedes-Benz Australia/Pacific.

"We start a new era with the EQC, which is very exciting and we've had extremely good feedback from customers – and interest shown," von Sanden said during this week's launch of the new Mercedes-Benz A-Class sedan and the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe.

"Unfortunately, our allocation for the first year and even the second year is quite moderate. I'm pretty confident that demand will be greater than supply."

The Mercedes-Benz EQC is pencilled in for a launch date sometime prior to Christmas, making the battery-electric SUV one of the later arrivals to the local Benz range in 2019.

Before then, Mercedes-Benz is introducing the A-Class sedan, which has already been tested by the press in A 200 form. The entry-level A-Class sedan, the A 180, will follow in August. In October, Mercedes-Benz will launch the high performance A 35. A high-spec A 250 variant in front-wheel drive form will be released in November of this year, with a '4Matic' all-wheel drive version joining the range during the first quarter of 2020.

Based on the same platform as the A-Class, but closer in length to the C-Class, the new Mercedes CLA is just weeks away from a local launch, on July 8. The importer doesn't anticipate that the CLA will cannibalise too many sales from the C-Class or the A-Class sedan.

At the other end of the passenger-car range is the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe. Aussies are already taking delivery of the V8-engined 63 S 4Matic model, and there is a cheaper GT 53 model due soon, offering a starting price $100,000 below the V8 variant.

Also due to arrive in July is the all-new GLE SUV. The smaller GLC will be here a couple of months after that. And the biggest SUV in the Mercedes-Benz range, the GLS, is expected around the same time, September or October.

Stay tuned for our review of the Mercedes-Benz A 200 sedan, which will be published this coming Friday and the review of the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S 4-Door Coupe will follow the Friday after that, July 5.