C-Class and GLE anchor the three pointed star in February. Wayne Gerdes – CleanMPG – Mar. 1, 2017 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLE 550e – $67,225 incl. the $925 D&H Charge to start offers owners a somewhat paltry 12 miles of all-electric range and just 20/23 mpgUS city/highway on the 3.0L V6 mated to the 7-speed AT as a hybrid. Mercedes-Benz February 2017 Sales Overview Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) including Mercedes, Sprinter and smart, sold 27,383 vehicles, up 6.8 percent over the 25,632 sold in February of 2016. Mercedes-Benz on its own accord sold a February record 24,522 vehicles, up 6.9 percent over the 22,941 vehicles sold in February 2016. YTD sales of 55,283 vehicles is up 5.1 percent over the 52,594 sold through the same period of 2016. Mercedes-Benz February 2017 Sales Highlights Mercedes-Benz volume leaders in January included the C-Class and GLE. The C-Class lead the three pointed star brand as 6,145 were sold in February, up 0.7 percent over the 6,102 sold in February of 2016. YTD sales of 12,598 are up an impressive 12.7 percent over the 11,181 sold through the same period of 2016. 2017 Mercedes-Benz GLE 500e A great winter drive shot in the mountains. The GLE experienced sales of 4,017 vehicles, up 1.7 percent over the 3,948 sold in February of 2016. YTD sales of 7,987 was up 4.9 percent over the 7,611 sold through the same period of 2016. U.S. February 2017 Sales vs. February 2016 Sales Ranks and Results for the top 18 Automobile Manufacturers GM February 2017 Sales Up 4.2% with 237,388 Vehicles sold Ford February 2017 Sales Down 4.0% with 208,440 Vehicles sold Toyota February 2017 Sales Down 7.2% with 174,339 Vehicles sold FCA February 2017 Sales Down 10.1% with 168,326 Vehicles sold Nissan February 2017 Sales Up 1.2 % with 122,003 Vehicles sold Honda February 2017 Sales Up 2.3% with 121,686 Vehicles sold Hyundai February 2017 Sales were flat with 53,020 Vehicles sold Subaru February 2017 Sales Up 8.3% with 45,500 Vehicles sold Kia February 2017 Sales Down 14.2% with 42,673 Vehicles Sold Mercedes-Benz February 2017 Sales Up 6.8% with 27,383 Vehicles Sold VW February 2017 Sales Up 12.7% with 25,145 Vehicles sold BMW February 2017 Sales Down 2.5% with 24,712 Vehicles sold Mazda February 2017 Sales Up 5.9% with 22,824 Vehicles sold Audi February 2017 Sales Up 17.3% with 13,741 Vehicles sold Mitsubishi February 2017 Sales Up 38.8% with 10,924 Vehicles sold Jaguar/Land Rover February 2017 Sales Up 16.4% with 9,231 Vehicles sold Volvo February 2017 Sales Down 11.6% with 4,651 Vehicles sold Porsche February 2017 Sales Up 2.1% with 3,637 Vehicles sold In February, BMW moved ahead of Mazda, Mitsubishi moved ahead of Jaguar/Land Rover, and Volvo moved ahead of Porsche. In terms of Market Share, GM was a clear winner in February with a 0.9 percent gain over February of 2016. Nissan was up 0.5 percent while both Kia and Toyota took a 0.5 and 0.8 percent hit respectively. Regarding segment sales totals, Silverado and Sierra outsold the F-Series. Consider the Niro’s first full month sales totals. From nothing to the 4th best-selling Hybrid in the country! The Prius moved back ahead of the surprisingly strong Fusion Hybrid. Remember the Fusion Hybrid outsold the Prius last month for the first time in history. YTD, sales of the Prius (9,971) are ahead of the Fusion Hybrid (9,795) by just 176 vehicles. With the Ioniq entering the C-segment hatch hybrid space, the Prius may lose more sales than the midsize sedan based Fusion Hybrid. It will be a very interesting year based on the monthly and yearly sales results. February sales exceeded 17 million vehicles for the eighth straight month although February sales were off 0.01 million vs. February of 2016. The seasonally adjusted annual selling rate (SAAR) for light vehicles was approximately 17.5 million vehicles.
...just a passing thought, with only 12 miles of all electric range, I wonder why they would even bother to add the electric only feature to this Mercedes ? Seems to me this feature would add considerable complexity and expense to the vehicle for what seems like little practical gain. This doesn't make sense to me. With the way things are rapidly changing in the industry, take for example the Volt with it's 52miles of all electric range; that's enough range for many urban commuters to bypass the ICE altogether unless a long road trip was contemplated. This is a beautiful car, no doubt pure luxury for those with far deeper pockets than I, but the electric part escapes me. Anyone know what Mercedes thinking might be ? Almost seems a kind of proof of concept idea.
Hi Mortimer: I think it has a lot to do with California ZEV credits so they can continue to sell as many very profitable and inefficient AMGs as they can possibly supply. As you wrote, 12 miles in today's environment is like releasing a BEV with 45 miles range. It "aint" going to sell. Mercedes-Benz does not break out the 550e from the GLE volume but I can bet not more than a handful are being sold with a $14,000 upcharge. It is a hybrid and gains a fw mpg over the base engine but both are pretty bad. Wayne
Thanks fo the thoughts Wayne...point well taken on the Calif eco credits. However, "It "aint" going to sell.", it might sell a bit better than you think. This car isn't designed to please the techno ecowarriers, it's marketed as a luxury sedan for the wealthy. With a +$60K price tag, it's for those folks who neither care about the cost of filling a 60 litre gas tank, nor will they worry about how many tons of CO2 come from the tailpipe. The electric part is pure bling and not much else. It has curb appeal and bragging rights with it's ability to silently drive away from The Club after your conicerge brings it to the door. Disclaimer... former owner of a Mercedes 300D drven during my mispent youth.. and yes, you could actually fix it yourself. Mort...
Hi Mortimer: Good points although we have seen the Hybrid variants of other vehicles - Toureg and Jetta to name a few - sell in handfuls because of the steep price premium cost over the standard vehicle. I do not expect people to line up to pay another $14k over the std. GLE with just 12 miles of AER no matter what their income is. PS: Loved the 300D! And the new but now unavailable E 250d as well. Mercedes-Benz Gets Serious About North American Fuel Economy with Diesel <-- Read through to the end on this one. WOW! Wayne
