Mercedes-Benz Canada reported today its best
September ever with a total of 2,101 Mercedes-Benz and smart combined units
registered for the month. This is up 741 units or 54.5% compared to September
2007, and brings the year-to-date total to 18,573 units; an increase of 33.3%
compared to this time last year and enough to already surpass total year-end
sales results for 2007 with one quarter still remaining.
A total of 1,800 Mercedes-Benz vehicles were delivered in September. This
represents the best September ever, a gain of 471 units or a 35.4% increase
compared to September 2007 and pushes the year-to-date growth to 30.9%.
smart also reported its best September ever with a total of 301 smart
fortwos delivered in the month. Year-to-date smart has sold a total of 3,152
units, up 45.9% from this time last year.
Very strong B-Class, C-Class, E-Class, SL-Class, M-Class and R-Class
model sales contributed to September’s success. The award-winning C-Class
continued to be an outstanding seller, ahead 388 units for the month of
September. Retail deliveries of the B-Class were up an impressive 56.3% for
the month, and sales of the luxurious M-Class and spacious R-Class remained
strong and showed a gain of 21.4% and 30.8% respectively for the month. The
company’s diesel sales ratio was 43.0% for the month while permanent all-wheel
drive 4MATIC(TM) units accounted for 61.2% of the overall passenger car and
light truck sales (excluding smart).
Total Mercedes-Benz passenger car sales of 1,391 units were ahead by 430
units, a 44.7% gain for the month and up 35.3% on a year-to-date basis.
On the luxury light truck side, the M-Class, R-Class and GL-Class
continued to perform very well with 409 units sold in the month of September.
Light trucks have grown 18.4% so far this year with 3,567 units delivered.
On the pre-owned side, the company reported 648 Mercedes-Benz units
delivered for the month of September, up 141 units from September 2007 and
bringing the year to date total to 5,519 units which represents an increase of
17.6%.
“To surpass last year’s total sales by the end of the third quarter is an
exciting accomplishment and another milestone in what has already become a
banner year for Mercedes-Benz,” said Marcus Breitschwerdt, President and CEO
of Mercedes-Benz Canada. “Our strong sales results and steady momentum
demonstrate that Canadians are continuing to put their confidence in
Mercedes-Benz vehicles, and this is something that our dealerships and each
and every employee across Canada has contributed to and should be very proud
of. From our advanced BlueTEC clean diesel SUVs to the host of face-lifted
models and the unprecedented value offered in all of our 2009 vehicles, there
has never been a more exciting time for our existing and potential customers
to visit a Mercedes-Benz dealership.”

Germany-based automaker Daimler AG (DAI:  News ) Wednesday reported a 8.5% decline in the total U.S sales of its Mercedes-Benz cars division for September 2008.

Total U.S sales of the Mercedes-Benz Cars division for September, including both the Mercedes-Benz and Smart models, declined 8.5% to 20,557 units from 22,459 units in September 2007.

Monthly U.S sales of the Mercedes-Benz model dropped 16.4% to 18,779 units from 22,459 units in the comparable period last year. Total U.S sales of the smart fortwo model for the month were 1,778 units.

September sales of Mercedes-Benz C-Class model in the U.S increased 11.9% from last year and sales of the Mercedes-Benz M-Class model improved 1.1% year-over-year.

Total year-to-date sales of the Mercedes-Benz Cars division in the U.S increased 8.4% to 195,454 units from 180,265 units in the prior-year period. U.S sales of the Mercedes-Benz model for the period declined 1.6% to 177,298 vehicles. Year-to-date U.S sales of the smart fortwo model totaled 18,156 units, in about eight months after its launch in the U.S.

Additionally, the company said it expects to sell its 20,000th smart USA car in October 2008.

Shares of DAI are currently trading at $45.98 on the New York Stock Exchange, down $4.52 or 8.95%, on a volume of about 1.04 million shares.

by RTT Staff Writer