Paris Motor Show 2008: Mercedes-Benz
Mercedes-Benz debuts next year’s E-class coupe and the Fascination, a concept car.
As if more evidence were needed that the downturn is affecting more than just city traders, consider Merc’s year-to-date UK sales drop of just over four per cent against Ford’s 21. The three-pointed star is concerned, though, that we don’t talk ourselves into a crisis. “We are not excluded from these changes in the market,” says sales and marketing vice president Klaus Maier.
He thinks that the Fascination concept could point the way to the future in more ways than one. It certainly debuts the face of next year’s E-class coupe, which will replace the CLK coupe, but could it become a model in its own right? These sleek coupe estates concepts have been tried in the past by Chevrolet and Saab. They don’t play well in the US, though, where the term “wagon” is derogative, but Maier thinks the Fascination could be built for European and Chinese markets if there is sufficient demand. “We could make it work without US sales,” he says, “but it is only a test of reaction at present.”
In the meantime a host of new Blue Efficiency model variants will be arriving on our shores in the next few months, including stop/start versions of the 150 and 170bhp A-class and B-class. These will simply replace the standard cars, which proves M-B is serious about the technology. The fully armoured S600 Guard model, however, will not be coming to the UK. “The company doesn’t think Britain is violent enough for it,” said a spokesman, who’s obviously never been to Portsmouth on a Saturday night.
