Mercedes-Benz’s First Pickup

In General, Mercedes, Mercedes Benz by The Ghost Shield TeamLeave a Comment

Mercedes-Benz unveiled its first-ever pickup truck in South Africa on Tuesday.

The luxury brand owned by Daimler AG is introducing the mid-size vehicle to appeal to more consumers, from do-it-yourselfers to construction contractors, following a three-million automotive recall on Tuesday over concerns of diesel emissions. Mercedes X-Class — priced at $43,000 in Germany, according to Bloomberg — will be available by November in its German homeland and other European nations, spreading to Australia and South Africa in early 2018 and Argentina and Brazil by early 2019. It will not be available in the U.S. market.

“With the X-Class, we will open this segment to new customer groups,” Chief Executive Officer Dieter Zetsche said in a statement.

The X-Class comes in three model variants and has four engine options, including a high-torque V6 diesel to be available in the middle of 2018. The pickup also has driver assistance safety systems such as lane-keep assist, traffic sign recognition and automatic emergency braking as well as access to the brand’s internet connected car services.

Just because the vehicle is luxury, however, does not make it limp. Fortune reported that in its bed, the vehicle will be able to haul 2,425 pounds — or 17 full 50-liter beer barrels, according to the German automaker — and tow 7,716 pounds, or a 26-foot yacht.

Mercedes said it expects demand for mid-sized trucks to grow by 43% over the next decade. Other pickups from luxury brands, however, have struggled to find success. Autoblog ranked General Motors Co.’s (GM) Cadillac Escalade EXT as the 10th worst sold vehicle with 1,972 sales, and Ford Motor Co. (F) produced only 3,356 2002 Lincoln Blackwood in 15 months, according to Autotrader.

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