Mercedes Benz India Limited (MBIL) has said its SUVs such as the GLC, GLE, GLS are in short supply on account of an increase in global demand.

The German marquee is not going to reach its peak sales of 2018 this year because of the shortage, MBIL managing director Martin Schwenk said at the launch of an upgraded E-Class last week.

“While on one hand this is a good thing because we have demand back, on the other, we won’t be able to sell much because of supply constraints,” said Schwenk.

The company sold 7,893 units last year against 13,786 units a year ago, a decline of 43 per cent. The highest sales for Mercedes Benz in the country took place in 2018 when it sold 15,538 units.

Asked if the supply crunch was because of pandemic-induced supply chain issues, Schwenk said: “It is more due to increased demand globally for our products.”

The company received a capital infusion of Rs 1,750 crore early this year. When asked what the capital infusion was for, Schwenk said: “It was for improving the financial health of the company and extending its footprint.”

Big-ticket launches

Mercedes this year will be focusing on its sedans with a number of big-ticket launches lined up, including the A-Class limousine this month.

“Sedan sales still is the biggest component contributing 53 per cent of our sales. But if 2020 was the year of SUVs, 2021 will be the year of sedans,” said the Merc CEO.

The new E-Class will have an AMG version with a 3-litre engine for a price tag of Rs 80.9 lakh. The E-Class will also be available with a 2-litre diesel engine which will sell from Rs 64.8 lakh and a 2-litre petrol engine that will sell from Rs 63.6 lakh.

The company has sold over 46,000 E-Classes in India cumulatively and the sedan accounts for 30 per cent of its sales. The new E-Class comes with segment first features such as off-roading capabilities.

When asked if all these features will help E-Class to increase its share in the overall sales Schwenk said: “I hope it leads to a growth in the overall sales volume.”

The company globally aims to have a carbon-neutral fleet by 2039 and hopes 15 per cent to 25 per cent of its global sales will be from electric vehicles (EVs).

In India, the company has not set any target for EV sales. Its first EV, the EQC, will be open for the second phase of bookings but Schwenk refused to put a sales number to the EQCs sold in the first phase, saying: “We sold reasonably good numbers.”