Mercedes to unveil 10 new models in India in 2022

Mercedes-Benz India on Wednesday committed to introduce 10 new models in the current year as it aims for a double-digit compounded annual growth rate in the next two years.

The firm said sales grew 42.5% year-on-year to 11,242 units in 2021.

The cars will span Maybach, AMG and EQ brands in 2022, including the Maybach S-Class and the locally-produced Mercedes-Benz EQS electric sedan.

“[Year] 2022 will be another milestone year as we aim to lead the luxury EV segment by expanding our EV portfolio with the debut of the first-ever all-electric luxury sedan from Mercedes-Benz, the EQS,” Martin Schwenk, MD and CEO, Mercedes-Benz India, said.

He added the firm had decided to start the local production of the EQS and is confident the start of local production will be pivotal in driving the expansion of luxury EVs in the market.

“We will see significant growth, we will see double-digit growth. We have very strong order intake. Now, whether we will hit the numbers of pre-pandemic years, will also depend on how the overall supply chain situation will develop. “But, I am confident we will see a significant increase and we will be getting to levels of good years before,” he told reporters, adding that the company presently has an order bank of over 3,000 units.

He, however, added that supply chain constraints were unlikely to improve over the next couple of months.

“I think the stability of the supply chain will also take a significant amount of this year to get really stable again,” he said.

Overall, luxury car manufacturers have reported good sales numbers in 2021 despite challenges amid the pandemic. Mercedes-Benz rival BMW Group India recently announced that it has achieved the highest growth in a decade in the country by delivering a total of 8,876 cars, including BMW and MINI. Audi India too doubled its sales last year, selling 3,293 retail units.