Mercedez Benz News Mercedes-Benz and Nissan Team Up For New Pickup

[William Maley]

This morning, we reported on Mercedes-Benz working a new midsize truck and how the U.S. arm wants it. Well we have another wrinkle in this story to report on.

Reuters reports that Diamler AG - Mercedes' parent company - will be expanding its cooperation with Nissan to help with the development of this new truck. The Mercedes truck, due out towards the end of the decade will use some of the underpinnings of a all-new Nissan NP300 truck.

"Entering the rapidly growing segment of midsize pickups is an important step in continuing our global growth path. Thanks to our well-established partnership with the Renault-Nissan Alliance, we are able to drastically reduce the time and cost to enter this key segment," said Daimler Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche.

Diamler and Nissan stuck an alliance back in 2010 where they would collaborate on three vehicle projects, engines, and plants. Since then, the collaboration has expanded to 13.

Source: Reuters

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[balthazar]

The hilarious downmarket push continues unabated !!

[smk4565]

MB-USA if they decide they want the pickup was thinking they would make it more luxury oriented and sell it for near $50k.  I am not a fan of a Mercedes pickup, but I can see why they want to do it, the pickup market globally is huge, and they could probably build a better pickup than anyone else if they set their minds on it.  Mercedes has solid range of diesels, they have high torque V8s, 4Matic, a 9-speed auto, adjustable height air suspension, etc.  The tooling is all there.  My fear is this would distract from core business lines of  C, E, S-class.

[balthazar]

Your fear is they have no earthly idea how to compete in this segment, and the bones of a nissan underneath it would provide YEARS of negative criticism and brand erosion/image degradation. The mere fact they are considering going with a nissan base proves MB would be half-assing it from the start. 

[Drew Dowdell]

 

 

 Thanks to our well-established partnership with the Renault-Nissan Alliance, we are able to drastically reduce the time and cost to enter this key segment," said Daimler Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche

 

I'll translate from German to English for you - "Their badge is round and so is ours, so 'engineering' this truck is going to be super duper easy!"

[G. David Felt]

WOW, This truly makes Mercedes Benze another Toyota / Chevrolet / Ford competitor further eroding their luxury status.

[Z-06]

[bragging on] I feel prophetic - Chevroletdes Benz: Luxury Pretensions, Generic Intentions. [bragging Off]

 

What is worse, GM badge engineering within its own brands, or a "highly esteemed", "best at any cost", "the torchbearer" luxury manufacturer badge engineering a lowly manufacturer?

[G. David Felt]

I will take Luxury Brands now Walmart Brands for $100 please.

 

What was a luxury maker who badge engineered every lowly manufacture product out there to grow market share destroying their luxury image?

 

Answer Nissa-Benze

 

Welcome to the 21st Century.

[Drew Dowdell]

Your fear is they have no earthly idea how to compete in this segment, and the bones of a nissan underneath it would provide YEARS of negative criticism and brand erosion/image degradation. The mere fact they are considering going with a nissan base proves MB would be half-assing it from the start. 

 

I mean really... at least go to GM or Ford or Ram who each at least know how to build class leading trucks. Each of them have been "Truck of the Year" multiple times... how many times has the Titan been there?

[Drew Dowdell]

Also... Nissan is moving up in the world.  The last time they built a small pickup and re-badged it for someone else, it was Suzuki.

 

Maybe they can dust off that old tooling?

[Paolino]

Eh... I'm not a pickup guy, but I'm biased... I think truck, I think American.

[FAPTurbo]

Who's in charge of market research at Mercedes? Nobody wants $50K+ midsize trucks. 

 

The only customers for this vehicle would be people dead-set on wanting a Mercedes, and only a Mercedes. Anyone else who might be interested will then head to a Ford/GM/RAM dealership to find a King Ranch/Denali/Big Horn 1500 model with more payload, more capacity and more room, for a similar or cheaper price. 

 

In the truck world, 'more, more, more' reigns supreme. 

 

... they could probably build a better pickup than anyone else if they set their minds on it.

 
Probably being the operative word. Mercedes probably could build a better pickup than anyone.
 
But instead, they chose Nissan.

 

I feel bad for all 15 people who were excited for this vehicle. 

[smk4565]

I see them making a mid-size pickup with a Sprinter-like interior and utilizing 4Matic and the turbo diesel in the Sprinter.  This will be a global market truck, not meant to be a luxury vehicle.  I bet if they do an American version it will be along the lines of the V-class or Vito, whatever it is, and the Sprinter, more for commercial use.

[Drew Dowdell]

I see them making a mid-size pickup with a Sprinter-like interior and utilizing 4Matic and the turbo diesel in the Sprinter.  This will be a global market truck, not meant to be a luxury vehicle.  I bet if they do an American version it will be along the lines of the V-class or Vito, whatever it is, and the Sprinter, more for commercial use.

 

The next Frontier is all but certain to contain a Cummins 4-cylinder.... so it will most likely get that rather than a Benz unit.

[FAPTurbo]

This will be a global market truck, not meant to be a luxury vehicle.  I bet if they do an American version it will be along the lines of the V-class or Vito, whatever it is, and the Sprinter, more for commercial use.

 

According to Automotive News, "The Mercedes midsize pickup would be positioned here as a luxury passenger vehicle, rather than as a commercial vehicle as it will be elsewhere."

 

Of course, the comments by Mercedes USA's CEO reaffirm that this will be the case:

 

"Not every pickup in the U.S. is going to job sites. Just drive around Greenwich, Conn., and see how many pickups there are. You realize this is not a demographic that is showing up with their work boots on job sites. Those sales are taken care of by the domestics." 

 

It's a $50K Chevy Colorado competitor. 

 

AKA: Dead faster than you can say 'Blackwood.'

[smk4565]

They could probably sell a luxury truck but they even said it would be like 1,000 units a month.  It would never get volume because Mercedes buyers are mostly car buyers.

 

It isn't their line of business, but I am sure they could build a better truck than the F150 if they were so determined to.  Their cars are 100 times better than what Ford makes.  I'd rather see them stick to cars though and dominate there.

[balthazar]

MBUSA sold 115K trucks last year; it certainly is their business. The laughable SprinterBox proves that hand over fist.

 

"Downmarket… or Nothing". This 'luxury rebadged nissan-benz' is a horrible joke. And I can't wait to see it.