Mercedes is wary of Cadillac

C adillac have initiated a huge restructuring:' They have streamlined their dealer network, they will improve the processes, they will whip up production. ' In the middle of the year, things were looking bleak for the Cadillac parent company General Motors. After years of mismanagement, the company had slipped into bankruptcy.

The US auto market is the most competitive in the world

Thanks to 50 billion dollars in government aid, the new start was made. The GM management is now turning the entire group upside down. 'I wouldn't write off anyone,' said Mercedes regional chief Lieb. 'The US auto market is the most competitive in the world.' Lieb sees the greatest competition still coming from other parts of the world. ' BMW and Lexus mainly. ' The rivals from Bavaria and Japan had once again sold more cars than the Swabians last year. 'We have narrowed our gap a lot.' At Mercedes sales had melted by 15 percent, at BMW by 21 percent. Mercedes sold 190,500 cars, BMW 196,500. The third German premium manufacturer, Audi , didn't even make it half.

Mercedes speculates on market share in China

'In 2009 we sold around 1.8 percent of all cars in America - that is the highest market share in 30 years, 'said Lieb. In the premium segment, the share was even 16 percent. 'We expect a slight increase this year.' Above all, Lieb wants to steal market share from the Japanese. 'The US market is very important to us - and with the decision to relocate C-Class production to the USA, it is even more important.' The Stuttgart-based company is only selling more cars in Germany. From 2014, the US plant in Tuscaloosa (Alabama) will therefore also see the next generation of the bestseller Mercedes C-class built.

MoreRelocation of production is out of the question for the time being

This led to an outcry in Stuttgart-Sindelfingen, where the cars had previously rolled off the assembly line. Another part of the production moves to Bremen. Another relocation of production to the USA - especially the well-running Mercedes E-Class - Lieb ruled out for the time being. 'There is no discussion about it.'