Kuala Lumpur, 21 July 2010 - With even more Malaysians opting to drive the Mercedes-Benz, the 3-pointed star remains a much sought after sign of success; it continues to represent the bench mark against which all luxury cars are measured.

Based on sales results of the first six months of 2010, the automotive marquee is a class above the rest setting the pace in all three-flagship luxury passenger car segments with the performance of its Mercedes-Benz C, E and S Class.

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s outstanding performance from January to June 2010 helped the company accelerate sales by 29 per cent to 2417 units sold compared to 1869 units delivered in the corresponding period last year.

“The outstanding first half sales performance is testament to Mercedes-Benz being the brand of choice amongst discerning Malaysians.  The latest statistics set us apart from the rest as the Number One luxury car brand,” said Peter Honegg, President & CEO of Mercedes-Benz Malaysia.

“This has been the best half year performance to date and our market leading position in all the three main segments, the C, E and S-Classes, is a reflection of customer confidence in our cars.”  

Stronger economic conditions has contributed positively to the automotive industry as a whole and has been one of the factors for the company’s performance.

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class, leads the premium automaker’s passenger car sales with 1097 units sold compared to 857 units in 1H09 registering an impressive 28 per cent growth, buoyed by the introduction of C200 and CGI C250 Blue EFFICIENCY earlier this year.

The flagship’s shining star, the elegant and dynamic Mercedes-Benz E-Class, out-performed in its segment with a robust 44 per cent increase delivering 988 units to customers compared to 684 units last year. With the soon to be introduced new Cabriolet, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class family will be complete. The demand for the E-Class has also charted a month-on-month increase since January this year and looks set to surpass expectations once again come year end.   

Meanwhile, the prestigious Mercedes-Benz S-Class continues to awe Malaysia’s top corporate and business luminaries with its renowned luxury and sophistication registering a commendable growth of over 10 per cent resulting in 158 units sold.

“Leading products and brands are essential components of an explicit premium strategy – which is exactly the strategy we are pursuing at Mercedes-Benz. One of our new models illustrates this strategy in a very special way – that for many people the SLS AMG is the ultimate dream car. It’s certainly one of the automotive highlights of the year. But the SLS is by no means the only example of leading products that illuminate the Mercedes stars.  At Mercedes-Benz, we hope to register more positive results as we are currently offering our customers more environmentally friendly vehicles in each segment. Our CGI variants in the C-Class and E-Class segments are also very well received, thus reflected in our results. We have consistently been No.1 in the premium passenger car market in Malaysia for several years running and judging by our performance in the first six months of 2010, we are in an excellent position to grow our market leadership,” commented Florian Mueller, VP of Sales & Marketing Passenger Cars, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia.

Mercedes-Benz’s premium SUVs kept up the pace with positive results in its competitive segment while the family-oriented B-Class continues to remain a favourite .

Not to be outdone, performance within Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s commercial vehicles unit has also been encouraging with Mitsubishi FUSO selling 694 trucks for a growth of over 23 per cent in 1H 2010.

The strong demand for the new Mitsubishi FUSO EURO II Canter launched in April is a welcome boost to FUSO sales and the company is confident on achieving their target of 1,700 units this year.

According to Michael Moh, Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s VP of After Sales, the Mercedes-Benz experience extends beyond the sales of its vehicles. He said that Mercedes-Benz continued dominance of the market is squarely due to the after sales experience as much as the performance and safety features of its vehicles.

“At Mercedes-Benz, the customer experience actually kicks into high gear, after the sale is made. We pull out all stops to ensure that it is an all encompassing 360 degree experience to provide the customer with the best service throughout their vehicle’s lifespan, so that the vehicle performs at its optimum, every time. Beyond the driving, the Mercedes-Benz owner also enjoys a lifestyle experience. And once you’ve had a taste of Mercedes-Benz the experience is incomparable as there is really nothing else that comes close except another Mercedes-Benz.”

“We will continue to work closely with our dealers to extend the high standards that all Mercedes-Benz customers are accustomed to so that brand loyalty is always at a high,” Moh added.

Mercedes-Benz Malaysia’s Apprentice Training Centre (ATC), established 26 years ago, ensure that dealer service centres around the country are staffed by highly trained and skilled technicians imbued and honed in on the strict maintenance standards.

Honegg reiterated that Mercedes-Benz continued to register high residual value thanks in part to the excellent after sales service. In an effort to enable more Malaysians to own and drive a Mercedes-Benz, the Mercedes-Benz Proven Exclusivity Programme was introduced last year. It provides customers the opportunity to purchase pre-owned Mercedes-Benz cars backed with manufacturer warranties.