- Sports Tourer impresses customers with its unique combination of design and
generous dimensions
- The Mercedes-Benz B 200 CDI is awarded the ko-Trend institutes Car
Environment Certificate
- B-Class named Company vehicle of the year 2007 in the Vans
category
Stuttgart - More than 250,000 Mercedes-Benz B Class
units have already been sold since the models market launch in June 2005.
The innovative B-Class product concept impresses our
customers with its fascinating design and unique blend of spaciousness and high
degree of utility. The strong demand for the Sports Tourer is yet another
confirmation of our role as the market leader in the premium compact car
segment, said Dr. Klaus Maier, Executive Vice President Mercedes Car Group,
responsible for Sales and Marketing.
The most important market for the B-Class is Germany, which
accounts for about one third of the models sales worldwide, followed by Italy,
France, Japan and Spain. The vehicle is produced in three-shift operations at
the Rastatt plant. The majority of B-Class customers chose one of the diesel
models: one third has purchased the B 180 CDI, and 20 percent have selected the
B 200 CDI.
Australian sales of the popular compact sports tourer in 2007
have grown an impressive 35 percent over the same January April period in
2006, with the B200 a big customer favourite.
In March of this year, the ko-Trend environmental institute
awarded its Car Environmental Certificate to the B-Class. The Sports Tourer was
recognized by the institute in particular for its impressive versatility,
spaciousness as well as convincing environmental credentials. The independent
institute determined that in addition to its exemplary fuel efficiency and low
noise and emissions, the B-Class also stands out with its environmentally
friendly production processes, materials and logistics. The ko-Trend institute
had especially high praise for the B 200 CDIs engine, with an average fuel
consumption of less than six litres per 100 kilometres.
In May of this year, the B-Class also was named Company
vehicle of the year 2007 in the Vans category in Germany. This honour is
awarded to vehicles in nine categories, which are evaluated by fleet managers
from medium-size and large companies. The fleet experts conduct more than 1,500
test drives to rank the vehicles on the basis of their handling properties,
costs, comfort, functionality and design.
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