Mercedes HiLux rival explained , Mercedes has announced it will sell the new load hauler in South America, South Africa, Europe and Australia.
It
hasn’t given a solid date when the new worker will go on sale, saying
only that the vehicle will arrive before the end of the decade. But
Working Wheels understands that the ute is well advanced and is only
about two years away.
Mercedes-Benz Australia pushed hard for the ute project to go ahead and for it to made available in right-hand drive.
“We
have a done a lot of market research and the response (to a Mercedes
ute) was overwhelmingly positive,“ says Mercedes-Benz Australia
spokesman, David McCarthy.
Mercedes-Benz already sells a ute in some markets, but it is based on the ancient and basic G-Wagen. It also sells similar utes to the Australian Defence Force, with single and double axles, and has just sold a few handful to a Victorian government agency for use in remote access areas.
Mercedes will use the new ute as a flagship as it enters new markets with its commercial vehicle division
But there are no plans to sell the G-Wagen ute models to the general public.
The
new one-tonner workhorse will be a different matter entirely and the
production scale of selling to so many markets means Mercedes will be
able to make a relatively affordable ute.
“It is not going to be a Great Wall, but it will be competitive,” McCarthy says.
Mercedes
will use the new ute as a flagship as it enters new markets with its
commercial vehicle division as well as lifting the profile of its
working vehicles in other markets.
The new hauler will be built on Nissan’s D23 Navara platform
“The
Mercedes-Benz pick-up will contribute nicely to our global growth
targets,” Daimler chairman Dr Dieter Zetsche says. “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.”
Details are limited at this stage, but
the Wall Street Journal, which first broke the Mercedes ute story,
reports the new hauler will be built on Nissan’s D23 Navara platform.
The new Navara, which goes on sale locally in late May,
features a coil spring rear suspension, which is the first in its class
and is designed to increase ride comfort while still managing a payload
in excess of one-tonne.
Responsibility for the new ute rests with the Mercedes-Benz van division, which sells the Vito and Sprinter vans in Australia.
The news comes just weeks after Hyundai announced plans to build a ute, called the Santa Cruz.
Much to the dismay of the Hyundai Australia team, the vehicle will be a
car-based crossover rather than a body on frame worker to take on the HiLux and Ranger.
Land
Rover has also indicated it could build a ute version of its next
generation Defender, but the company has ruled out it being a workhorse,
instead suggesting it would be more of a prestige model.
Mercedes is expected to bring a high level of technology to the class and will need to, given the technologically advanced updated Ford Ranger
that is due about July. That ute will feature electrically assisted
steering, engine start-stop, as well as advanced safety features such as
automatic emergency braking and adaptive cruise control.
Mercedes HiLux rival explained
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