Mercedes is ready to discontinue a large number of cars from its portfolio. Most of them are ICE models which are not gaining traction worldwide and won’t be renewed at the end of their life cycle. SLC, S-Class Coupe, and S-Class Cabriolet were gone first and now more models named have erupted in a recent meeting. C-Class Coupe and Cabriolet along with the E-Class Coupe and Cabriolet will have a new name, CLE. How is that going to happen, could be another set of confusion waiting to happen. However, it is the naming and model demand that drives Mercedes every decade to rename, reshuffle and discontinue a few models.
33 Models exist in the lineup and the new bunch of models that are going are the iconic CLS and the surprisingly new model, the AMG GT 4-Door Coupe, which will see their production stopping in the next two years. GLC Coupe and GLE Coupe are set to go away too because they haven’t significant progress in the market. These models were supposed to take on the BMW X4 and X6. Audi is coming with new Coupe SUV and so is Volvo. Meanwhile, Mercedes is leaving those projects. However, probability of these names coming back is always on.
There is set to be the addition of more EVs and a badass G-Wagon pickup on the charts with a double cab layout, which is the current G-Wagon as we speak. C-Class wagon and CLA wagon are set to discontinue later this decade but they will get a successor by the end of that time.
Mercedes is focusing globally and surprisingly in India also, on the very top-end of the portfolio. Maybach version of the V-Class is in the talks, SL series will make a comeback with the gullwing doors. Mercedes is getting demand from high-end models as much as the lower end of the spectrum. The brand once thought that going down the food chain would help them is done with its part and now is focusing on the top-end of the model portfolio yet again. Competition with Rolls-Royce, Bentley seems like its top priority as these two brands are owned by Mercedes’s rivals, BMW and Volkswagen respectively. A V-Class Maybach will be a clear shot at the Lexus LM. SL’s coming back is another shot taken at Lexus LC.
