Mercedes-Benz on Tuesday launched two of its premium vehicles — SL 350 and GL 500 — to strengthen its portfolio in the highly competitive Indian luxury car market. The German carmaker is also planning to introduce its A and B Class cars into India within the next three to four years and assemble them locally to make them price competitive.
While the sports car SL 350 has been priced at Rs.98.50 lakh, sports utility vehicle GL 500 comes with a price tag of Rs.80.90-lakh.“Both the premium products are the most popular offerings in our portfolio. The SL-Class with its styling, performance and handling abilities has won hearts globally…On the other hand the GL 500 being one of the most powerful SUV's in the world, is ideal to suit the tastes of the growing number of off-roading aficionados in India,”
Mercedes-Benz India Managing Director and CEO Peter Honegg said the company had started assembling the engines and transmissions of C and E Class luxury sedans at its Chakan facility in Maharashtra to escape the higher 30 per cent customs duty following the new norms on completely knocked down (CKD) units in the 2011-12 budget, complying with the 10 per cent customs duty norm.
