Mercedes-Benz hits new height of sales at 343,614, up 12.6%

MONTVALE, NJ--Jan. 3, 2014: Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) today reported the highest annual sales volumes in its history with 312,534 units sold for the Mercedes-Benz brand in 2013, representing a 14.0% increase from the 274,134 vehicles sold in 2012. Sprinter Vans achieved an annual sales total of 21,816, gaining 4.2%. Adding 9,264 units from smart, MBUSA's year-end total hit a record 343,614, increasing 12.6% from the 305,072 vehicles sold the previous year.

"It's been an incredible year for Mercedes-Benz in every way," said Steve Cannon, president and CEO of MBUSA. "We saw record sales, flexed our muscles across the entire product line from top to bottom and brought the customer experience to an all-time high. With the help of our dealer partners and the entire organization behind us, we expect this beautifully choreographed series of product debuts to lead us to another phenomenal year in 2014."

Impressive increases were made in both the Mercedes-Benz passenger car and light truck categories, climbing 16.0% and 10.4%, respectively, from 2012. Annual retail volumes for the Mercedes-Benz brand were led by the C-, E- and M-Class model lines. The sporty C-Class took the top spot for the year at 88,251 units, rising 8.0% from 2012, followed by the E-Class with annual sales of 69,803, up 7.1%. The brand's top-selling SUV, the M-Class, rounded out the top three at 41,326, up 8.5% over the previous year.

Strong gains also were seen at the high end. The flagship S-Class, which reset the luxury benchmark with an all-new generation for model year 2014, posted an annual increase of 12.8% to 13,303 units. Total sales for the SL-Class roadster rose 43.0% at 7,007.

A best-ever December for the Mercedes-Benz brand yielded sales of 33,007, increasing 17.3% from the 28,145 vehicles sold in December 2012. The E-Class model line was the top volume performer for the month, jumping 25% to 8,727. Sprinter Vans, which launched a redesigned 2014 lineup in September, saw continued growth at 2,828 for the month, up 26.8%. Adding volumes of 855 at smart, MBUSA December sales reached a landmark 36,690 units, increasing 17.0% from the 31,372 vehicles sold during the same month last year.

Sales of Mercedes-Benz BlueTEC diesel models totaled 1,575 in December and finished the year at 14,943. The company's high-performance AMG models delivered strong December sales of 1,109, bringing the year-end total to 6,906, a 3.7% increase from 2012.

Separately, Mercedes-Benz Certified Pre-Owned (MBCPO) recorded sales of 9,726 vehicles in December, an increase of 40.0% compared to the 6,949 units sold in December 2012. For the year, MBCPO sold 99,075 vehicles, climbing 23.3% from the 80,380 vehicles sold in 2012.