Mercedes-Benz to scale back from EVs and update combustion cars

Mercedes-Benz has decided to scale back its development plans around electric vehicles (EVs) and continue to upgrade its combustion engine cars.

Two years ago, Mercedes announced to commit 40 billion euros ($47 billion) to electrify its vehicle lineup by 2030. It was previously said to sell pure electric models in every segment by 2035.

CEO Ola Kallenius now says that Mercedes will stick to its cutting-edge combustion engines and will produce electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

This new fallback is a result of ongoing concerns in market demand, production setup, and the high cost of supplies for electric vehicles.

The Mercedes CEO said that the company will increase its combustion-based car inventory and aims to exceed 300,000 unit sales in the U.S. this year.

“It is almost like we will have a new lineup in 2027 that will take us well into the 2030s,” told Kaellenius.

The German car maker has informed U.S. dealers to increase the listing of traditional combustion and hybrid vehicles through 2024 with more new models coming to the market.

Potential expansion in S-Class and GLE series with plug-in hybrid feature is planned and the launch of electric GLC crossover for this year.

Despite the change in plans, Mercedes-Benz is still committing to reach 50 percent electrified sales by 2030, cutting by half of its initial projection.

(source – Reuters)