Tesla’s rising popularity is certainly giving a lot of car makers something to worry about. While established players have opted for hybrid-technology, their mainstream products continue to be dominated by petrol and diesel engines. Mercedes-Benz is looking to change that and has announced that it will introduce four new electric models in its line-up by the end of 2020.
Apart from targeting Tesla, these new models will also go up against Audi’s newly announced electric range. The German government recently announced that it will offer sales subsidies on all EVs that are priced less than (approximately) INR 45 lakh, which is a major motivator behind this move. While these cars will enter mass production, it will initially be limited to about 50,000 units per year, since the development cost is expected to be high.
This announcement was made by Mercedes-Benz’s R&D head, Thomas Weber, who revealed that two of the four will be electric saloons and two will be SUVs. The saloons are expected to be based on the C-Class and S-Class, whereas the SUVs are expected to be based on the GLA and GLC, which will be launched in the Indian market on June 2. These cars will come with a new design language, which will be immediately recognizable as the Mercedes stand-alone electric vehicle. Also based on the MEA platform, these cars will be rear-wheel drive or four-wheel drive, and will have up to three electric motors.
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