Christian Schulte BMW versus Mercedes
05.10.2011
'Faster, higher, further' - no premium manufacturer has mastered this better than Audi in the past few months. For the upstart, there is still a fair amount of work to be done on the way to the top. BMW and Mercedes have taken note of the excited flapping of the VW subsidiary's wings with the serenity of an old noble family, which on the face of it seemed to smile at the rising money nobility.
But that's not entirely true: At the IAA, Mercedes boss Dieter Zetsche announced that he wanted to be 'number one in sales as a premium manufacturer' by 2020. Why? 'Because otherwise it would look as if the others were right just because of their announcements.'
Ten new Mercedes models up to 2015
It is amazing what public struggle for the premium crown is currently being contested in the face of nervous markets and the discussion about the euro, because at the moment the only reliable basis for comparison is a look back: if you take the sales figures of the first eight months in 2011, then BMW is ahead (1,071,303 units), Mercedes (867,379) and Audi (853,000) follow at a considerable distance.
Mercedes, however, combines its new leadership claim with a series of new models that are supposed to make life difficult for BMW. 'We are planning ten new models, distributed across all classes,' explains Dieter Zetsche on the evening before the IAA, exercising restraint. After all, this announcement only lasts until 2015. By 2020 there will be significantly more.
Mercedes SLC as competitor to the Porsche 911
The Mercedes SLC planned for 2014 is one of the most spectacular interceptors among the BMW competition. What it's all about? It will be a car on the SLS platform, without gullwing doors, around 20 centimeters shorter (4.40 meters in length) and as a coupe a real competitor to the Porsche 911 - after all, BMW has nothing to offer in this segment.
The runabout developed by AMG is powered by supercharged V6 and V8 that produce between 300 and 600 hp and have a torque of between 360 and 550 Newton meters. It remains with the aluminum space frame, front engine, rear-wheel drive and a seven-speed dual clutch transmission in transaxle design. The prices start at just under 90,000 euros - and are therefore fully tailored to the Porsche 911. At least at the beginning there will not be an open version - because that could be the Mercedes SL, which is in a new form at the turn of the yearis presented, finally ditch the water.
BMW will position an X4 above the X3
However, a new variant in the SUV lacks this unique selling point compared to BMW -Area: Conceptually, the Mercedes ML Coupé is something like a 'copy and paste' of the successful X6. This sleekly shaped variant is due in 2014. But in this respect BMW is already one step further: 'Yes, we will position an X4 above the X3', announced BMW boss Norbert Reithofer exclusively to auto motor und sport - which means it should only be a matter of time before when Mercedes countered with a GLK Coupé.
All-wheel drive, four seats, automatic start-stop, head-up display, voice control and the engine range from the BMW X3 (184 to 306 hp) are among the features of the approximately 4.65 meter long X4 whose trunk volume will be much smaller than the X3 (550 liters) at around 500 liters due to the coupé-like line.
Mini-family is increased from five to ten series
In the small and compact car segment, there is a comparison in addition, almost landslide-like shifts: BMW is assuming that in the future 40 percent of all models will be sold with front-wheel drive - namely the Mini and BMW. To this end, the Mini family is being increased from five to ten series and also heavily upgraded at BMW. The mind games begin with a small car the size of a VW Up. The small two-door, which is to be powered by three-cylinders from the cooperation with Peugeot, would be 3.70 meters long.
In contrast to VW, the aim here is not to bring a car that is as inexpensive as possible onto the market, but rather a low-consumption car: BMW, like Mercedes, has recognized the signs of the times and knows that radical reductions are needed There is no longer any alternative to CO2 emissions. That's why the new BMW 3 Series will now also be available with a three-cylinder diesel (from 2014) - and as a hybrid.
Mercedes deepens relationship with Renault /Nissan
At Mercedes, comparable mind games prevail: An entry-level model that The gap between the new A-Class (around 4.15 meters) and the Smart Fortwo (2.70 meters) closes, fits easily in between - for both brands. Smart remains true to the rear-wheel drive, the new little Mercedes is to be based on a Renault platform.
Franco-German friendship - that has never been easy in history. But just as BMW seems to have found a reliable cooperation partner in Peugeot, the relationship between Mercedes and Renault /Nissan with their luxury brand Infiniti also seems to be deepening. The compact study Etherea from the Japanese brand will in future be based on the A-Class basis.
Really excitingit will be when it comes to the second generation of the A /B platform. Because at the moment there is heated discussion about whether the compact models are based on the cheaper Renault /Nissan platform, which includes almost 20 models up to the Qashqai crossover, or on the more expensive Mercedes base. The fact is that Mercedes is considering adopting this wide range of products.
Further Mercedes innovations up to 2014
The range of new products is far from over: There will also be the Mercedes C-Van (2014) and the CLS Shooting Brake (2012 ), the off-roader GLC (2014), the CLC as sedan and Shooting Brake (2014) on A-basis, the next S-Class in three wheelbase variants (2013) and a CL Cabrio with a soft top (2014). The guesswork around the second Maybach generation, on the other hand, seems to be going into the last round: The cooperation initially sought with Aston Martin does not seem to come about because the English brand wants too much money. Now the heavy luxury liner is being developed in-house again, but much more cost-effectively than its predecessor.
At least there seem to be new similarities between BMW and Mercedes: Both see a market for twelve-cylinder in China and the USA. Since the numbers are in the homeopathic areas, a cooperation in this area between the two brands seems to be within reach. Twelve - this number stood in Old High German for 'two is left'. It fits, right?
