Benz backs right-hand drive

Australian Mercedes-Benz customers will no longer be treated like second-class citizens, with the company vowing to make all model variants available to right-hand drive markets.

The initiative, revealed by Benz’s research and development chief Dr Thomas Weber during a media roundtable at the Frankfurt motor show, will kick into full force with next year’s launch of the new W205 C-Class family, which rides on a new and more flexible Benz ‘MRA’ architecture.

Dr Weber said the move reflected Benz’s need to shift its focus more globally as sales in Western Europe have declined and the importance of China has grown.

It is also understood the increasing importance of India as a new-car sales market has raised the priority of right-hand drive at Mercedes-Benz.

Australia and other right-hand drive markets have missed out on a slew of Mercedes-Benz models over the years, as the company has focussed on the bigger volumes offered in left-hand drive markets.

A recent and notorious case was the GLK SUV, which was never ‘package protected’ for right-hand drive despite the expectation of significant sales demand for the car in Australia, the UK and other right-hand drive markets.

Right-hand drive and Australian sales have already been confirmed for the second-generation GLK, which also rides on the MRA architecture and goes on sale here in 2015.

There have been plenty of other less obvious cases where Australia and other RHD markets have missed out, including 4MATIC E-Class and S-class passenger cars and their AMG spin-offs, including the all-wheel drive version of the brand-new S 63 AMG and latest E 63 AMG.

Fitted as standard in Australia with the S performance pack, the latter sprints to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds, but the left-hand drive-only  E 63 S AMG 4MATIC sedan lowers that to four seconds dead.

“In the past sometimes based on complexity reasons always there was a question of why you do all these technologies and not make them available for right-hand drive,” Dr Weber said.

“Based on our new architecture it’s now easier and part of our strategy … we see a growing importance there. Its definite we will do as fast as possible technologies for the right-hand drive versions.”

Dr Weber admitted the complexity of individual model lines with multiple petrol and diesels powertrain requirements had pushed right-hand drive down the priority list in the past.

“In the future we will do it different,” he promised. “First we will address all the major markets in a shorter time period. Not to focus on Germany or Europe and then to go in the different markets with the huge bandwidth of displacements.

“Now our strategy is as fast as possible all markets, including right-hand drive markets. All-wheel drive maybe with some restrictions on the drivetrain side.

“Therefore hopefully having some variants available earlier you will accept not having from the beginning all displacements available.”

Dr Weber said Benz’s more global perspective was emphasised by the expansion of its manufacturing footprint from Western Europe to the USA, Hungary, South Africa and China.

That is part of the company’s 2020 strategy which plans to refresh most of its entire current line-up by the end of 2016 and introduce 13 new models by 2020 as it aims to almost double its annual global sales to two million.

That’s a response to rivals BMW and Audi’s more rapid rates of growth and recent profit warnings from parent Daimler due to slow European car and truck demand.

“Yes we had some trouble, but those troubles are behind us,” Dr Weber said.

He confirmed the new S 500 Plug-In Hybrid, launched in Frankfurt this week, would be built in right-hand drive.

That takes it a big step closer to being sold in Australia, although there are other calibration and business case issues still to be overcome.

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