Pune: German luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz has decided to raise price of its entire model range of sedans and sports utility vehicles (SUVs) and AMG performance cars by up to 2 per cent even as it races to take over market leader Audi in volume game this calendar year.
The Pune-based automobile major said the rising input cost had forced it to revise prices, which would be effective from January 1. At present the entry level Mercedes A Class carries a price tag of Rs 27.5 lakh while the top end S63 AMG Coup costs a whopping RS 2.7 crore. With the revised prices these cars will be dearer by a few thousand rupees and lakhs from the New Year. The last time Mercedes had hiked price of its model range to partially offset rising input costs coupled with other factors was in January 2015 up to 4 per cent across model range. Prior to that prices were also revised in September 1, 2014 by up to 2.5 per cent depending upon the model range and in March 2013 the prices were also increased by 1-4 per cent for locally produced cars and up to a whopping 20 per cent for select imported cars. The company sells a range of luxury sedans and sports utility vehicles (SUVs) in India. These are locally produced Mercedes Maybach S 500, S-Class, E-Class, C-Class, CLA sedans and the GLA, GLE and the GL-Class SUVs at its Chakan factory, near Pune. The imported cars portfolio includes the A-Class, B-Class, CLS, SLK, E-Class Cabriolet, S-Class Coupé, and the S 600 Guard. The prices starting from Rs 27.5 lakh go upward of Rs 8-9 crore. “With rising input costs, we are compelled to make some priceadjustments to our product range to protect the investment of our customers in the brand, maintain our premium brand positioning in the market and sustain a profitable business,” Roland Folger, managing director and CEO at Mercedes-Benz India said on the decision to increase prices in a competitive market like India.