The Mercedes-Benz
X-Class mid-size pickup truck was launched with great fanfare in 2017
but slow sales and a need to cut costs means production will end as soon as
May.
“It has been decided that from the end of May 2020, we will
no longer produce this relatively young model,” Mercedes said in a statement
released last week.
The X-Class rides on a platform borrowed from the Nissan
NP300 Navara and is positioned as a more premium alternative to existing
contenders in the global mid-size pickup segment, dominated by the likes of the
Ford Ranger and Toyota Hilux.
The formula has been unsuccessful, with X-Class sales
worldwide reaching just 15,300 units in 2019. The total is less than 15 percent
of the number of NP300 Navaras Nissan sells in a year.
Mercedes never offered the X-Class in the United States. To
avoid the long-standing Chicken Tax, Mercedes would have had to build the truck
locally, which seemed unlikely from the start. Instead, the X-Class was limited
to South Africa, Australia, Europe, and South America.
The news doesn't come as a huge surprise given the low
volumes. Mercedes parent company Daimler also said last November it was seeking
cost savings of around $1.1 billion by the end of 2022. The savings
are to come via cuts to jobs, slow-selling models, and investment in property,
plant and equipment.
by Viknesh Vijayenthiran
http://www.boscheuropean.com
No comments:
Post a Comment