Report: Mercedes-Benz will be building…a pickup truck?? [UPDATE – CONFIRMED]

UPDATE: Mercedes-Benz officially confirmed a pickup truck from them will be in production by the end of the decade. Check out the press release after the jump!

It’s really not often that automakers will step outside their boundaries to make cars that they’re not really known for…actually, yes it is, what are we saying?

Case in point, Porsche was known to be the king of precision, yet affordable (relatively) and usable everyday super coupes and convertibles. But in the 2000s, they came from left field to introduce the Cayenne, which ended up being the automaker’s top-selling model and breadwinner, so that they could make enough different types of 911s and Boxsters to confuse everyone.

Draw a parallel with pickup trucks and Mercedes-Benz now–neither of the two are known to coincide with each other. But that’s apparently about to change, according to The Wall Street Journal.

According to the latest finding, Mercedes-Benz sees potential in the growing pickup truck market given the global success of non-American trucks like the Ford Ranger and the Toyota Hilux. Not to mention, Hyundai has a strong interest in doing their own version as well.

The kicker however is that Mercedes-Benz doesn’t see any potential for this truck in our market, but for Europe, South America, and Asia.

Nothing’s been confirmed for sure yet, but what do you think about the idea of a Benz pickup?

UPDATED PRESS RELEASE:

Get ready for the Mercedes-Benz among pickups: Mercedes-Benz Vans to launch midsize pickup

  • Expansion of product range for sustained global growth
  • Market for midsize pickups primed for first model from a premium manufacturer
  • Mercedes-Benz to enter the high-volume midsize segment before end of decade
  • Main markets: Latin America, South Africa, Australia, and Europe
Stuttgart – Before the end of the decade, Mercedes-Benz will expand its product range into a promising segment by launching the first pickup from a premium manufacturer. Thanks to their versatility, all-round utility, and payload of about one metric ton, pickups are popular across the world and thus have good sales potential.
“The Mercedes-Benz pickup will contribute nicely to our global growth targets,” says Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars Division. “We will enter this segment with our distinctive brand identity and all of the vehicle attributes that are typical of the brand with regard to safety, comfort, powertrains, and value.”
Volker Mornhinweg, Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans, adds: “As part of our ‘Mercedes-Benz Vans goes global’ strategy, the pickup is the ideal vehicle for the international expansion of our product range with a newly developed model.”
A promising segment with global scope
The midsize pickup segment is currently undergoing a transformation worldwide. More and more pickups are being used for private purposes, and commercial as well as private users are increasingly asking for vehicles that have car-like specificiations. Mercedes-Benz is the first premium manufacturer to respond to this market shift by developing its own pickup. A similar example was the successful introduction of the M-Class around 20 years ago. As the first sport utility vehicle (SUV) from a premium manufacturer, the M-Class completely redefined the segment.
The new Mercedes-Benz pickup will initially be targeted at markets in Latin America, South Africa, Australia, and Europe, all of which are posting sustained growth in this segment.
Mercedes-Benz Vans: Center of competence for commercially and privately used vehicles
The Mercedes-Benz Vans division is responsible for the new vehicle. With its many years of experience in developing, manufacturing, and marketing vehicles that are used commercially as well as privately, Mercedes-Benz Vans is ideally suited to enter the midsize pickup segment and launch a Mercedes-Benz pickup on the market for the first time in the company’s history. Current models such as the V-Class and the Vito demonstrate that Mercedes-Benz Vans has the high level of expertise to successfully serve customers from a wide variety of private and commercial sectors.
“We can perfectly serve customers looking for a vehicle that offers a high level of utility and at the same time has the comfort, safety, and design of a Mercedes-Benz passenger car,” says Mornhinweg. “We will design our brand’s first pickup according to this recipe for success.”

– By: Chris Chin

Source: Road&Track

Chris Chin

Chris Chin is the Editor-In-Chief of egmCarTech and is a regular contributor to Automobile Magazine.

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