Stuttgart • If the automotive term “Big Three” was applied to European automakers, Mercedes-Benz would certainly be one of them. The reason this comes to mind as I’m visiting the automaker’s head office in Stuttgart is because, just like Detroit’s Big Three, here, in Europe, Mercedes does everything. Cars, trucks, buses, livery, institutional service vehicles and military vehicles — it covers it all. Yet, in North America, Mercedes is still primarily seen as a luxury car brand.
Well, that perception is looking to change. Until now, Mercedes has preferred to keep its North American truck side low-key by buying and running other more domestically known brands — Freightliner, Western Star, Thomas and Orion buses among them. This is the key difference between North America and Europe, where most every one of its commercial vehicles is actually labelled Mercedes. But now that it is selling the Sprinter delivery van in Canada with its tri-star badge on it, its next move will be to expand the commercial van division.
Incidentally, the Sprinter was sold as a Dodge for a number of years while Daimler and Chrysler were working through their ill-fated merger. Once that deal went south, Dodge lost Sprinter, a financial blow and certainly a chunk of business it wants back. However, now that it has hooked up with Fiat, it is once again looking to import not one but two commercial vans to North America in the coming year.
This strategy is one that Ford had already adopted with the importation of its Transit Connect Van. This vehicle also has a larger sibling, which will now find its way to our shores in a move that should see Ford replacing domestic vans with these imports.
For Mercedes, its commercial vans are segment leaders in Europe, with about 18% of the total market. This range includes the Sprinter vans but also the mid-sized Vito and smaller Vario — a van very much in the same class as the Ford Transit Connect. The Vito and Vario are what Mercedes says it will bring to Canada to round out its van offerings. The only thing not certain about this move is when — Mercedes is saying two years would be a good estimate.
It doesn’t hurt that the timing of this move also coincides with a newly redesigned Vito. This rear-wheel-drive van has a new chassis and suspension. It’s powered by either a gasoline or diesel engine and it’s possible North America will get both. This van can be configured dozens of ways, from servicing the delivery trade right through to crew transporters.
An interesting addition to this mix is the all-new E-Cell Vito. This fully electric van is meant for use by in-city route delivery companies. It’s already in production with sales of about 400 so far this year. When asked about the possible application of hybrid technology to commercial vans, Mercedes reps said that, while it is available, they see the demand as very low because of the cost.
However, the small E-Cell Vito works just fine and its cost is reasonable. With a range of about 130 kilometres on a single charge, it is more than capable of fulfilling dozens of commercial and institutional functions. Mercedes is hoping to eventually get sales numbers up to 2,000 units annually.
