You might think that Mercedes-Benz, as a luxury automaker, was more focused on quality than quantity. But even that company knows that you have to keep moving the metal if you want to stay in business. And Mercedes-Benz does indeed sell plenty of vehicles. Last year, for example, the automaker rang up nearly 2.4 million sales globally — with some 374,000 of them coming in the United States. (That's even though the company is practically begging people to buy its EVs.)
The USA's No. 1 was the Mercedes-Benz GLE SUV, which earned 67,928 sales, and it was followed closely by the GLC, another sport-utility, with 64,163. The top-selling car was the Mercedes-Benz C-Class that delivered 35,590 new units in 2024. Of course, that's a relatively new development. In the years before the SUV trend took off, the C-Class was considered far and away the bestselling Mercedes-Benz. More than 9 million have been sold since its introduction. No other Mercedes-Benz nameplate has delivered more vehicles.
On the other hand, the C-Class has gone through multiple redesigns since it first launched, meaning today's models don't necessarily share much with the originals: The current edition is at the end of its fifth generation. The bestselling individual Mercedes-Benz, sold under the brand's older naming convention, was the W123 family that was in production on essentially the same platform from roughly 1976 to 1985.
Read more: These Are The Cars You Love Getting As Ubers And Lyfts
The ABC's Of The W123
W123 was actually Mercedes-Benz's internal name for the car's chassis, and separate variations used an alphanumeric code to indicate engine size, body style, and engine type. For instance, the Mercedes-Benz 280 TE had a 2.8-liter engine, a Touring body style — what we call a wagon — and an "E" to indicate the electronic fuel injection for its gasoline engine.
All were relatively small, with the sedan being an inch longer than today's compact Honda Civic. Yet Mercedes-Benz was still able to fit them with many of the era's top luxury cues, such as a sunroof, leather seating, cruise control, and real wood trim. The price? A base model 1976 Mercedes-Benz 230 sedan came in a bit under $11,000 — roughly $64,000 when adjusted for inflation.
All told, there were some 30 different configurations available during its 10 years on sale. The long production run, coupled with all those variants and an iconic design from Bruno Sacco, helped Mercedes-Benz sell roughly 2.7 million models riding on the W123 chassis. Of course, it didn't hurt that the cars soon earned a reputation for incredible durability. In fact, one car, a 240D used as a taxi in Spain, has logged an astounding 4.35 million miles.
The Next Mercedes-Benz Bestseller?
As mentioned, the bestselling Mercedes-Benz SUV now handily outsells the brand's bestselling car, and that's actually been the case for a while. The last time the C-Class led the automaker for annual U.S. sales was in 2017, when Mercedes-Benz delivered 77,447 examples of its compact contender. The Mercedes-Benz GLE topped the brand's SUV leaderboard that year with 54,595 sales.
In 2018, the GLE took a lead over the C-Class it hasn't relinquished, and it's notched nearly 530,000 sales since its launch in 2015. It makes sense, too, when you check out the GLE's impressive range of features and stout performance. This midsize SUV comes standard with niceties like a power sunroof, heated front seats, a power-adjustable steering wheel, and a high-tech Mercedes-Benz User Experience infotainment system with dual 12.3-inch screens.
At the fastest end of the spectrum sits the potent AMG GLE 63 S 4MATIC+ SUV. Packing a hand-crafted 4.0-liter bi-turbo V8, the GLE 63 S jumps off the line with 603 horsepower to rocket to 60 in a brisk 3.7 seconds. Yet it also lives up to its SUV positioning with enough power to tow 7,700 pounds. Nor is that the only GLE variant helping raise the sales total. As part of its 2024 upgrade, the GLE got new tech like a plug-in hybrid version.
Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox...
Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Comments