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20% of Mercedes-Benz sales to be hybrid by 2015

 
4 2,650 views Sep 12, 2008
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Mercedes-Benz Vision GLK BLUETEC Hybrid

Mercedes-Benz Vision GLK BLUETEC Hybrid

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Adding a new hybrid model each year from 2009 onward will lay the groundwork for Mercedes-Benz raising hybrid sales to 20% of its corporate total by 2015, according to the latest reports. The goal reflects the current state of legal requirements and customer demand, while positioning the brand to continue beyond the eventual end of the combustion engine.

The doomsday for the conventional engine is still at least 20-30 years out in Mercedes' eyes, however, reports Auto Motor & Sport. It won't be a sudden transition, either - the German carmaker sees it as a gradual series of steps, from today's offerings to hybrids to diesel-hybrids, such as the GLK BlueTEC hybrid (pictured), to arrangements where the combustion engine plays a decreasing role and the electric drivetrain comes to the forefront. Eventually, power, performance and range of the electric side of the system will be good enough to dispense with the combustion side entirely.

Already Mercedes-Benz is planning to be the first major carmaker to market with a lithium-ion battery-powered hybrid in the form of the S400 Hybrid - though it may be beaten by any number of smaller companies. That will mark one of the evolutionary steps in the improvement of the electric portion of the hybrid drivetrain. Following the S400 Hybrid will be the ML450 Hybrid in 2009, which will face strong competition from BMW's X6 ActiveHybrid among others.



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Comments (4)

  1. By NoNameDenton Posted: 9/12/2008 8:07pm PDT

    More turbo 4 cylinder and turbo V6 diesels dern it, and how about diesel hybrids
     
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  2. By HECTOR Posted: 9/13/2008 7:19am PDT

    Much like Medusa would do I see the utter and unspeakable ugliness of that GLK has turned all of us to stone and left us speechless.

    MB really does think very little of the buying public.
     
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  3. By NoNameDenton Posted: 9/13/2008 4:24pm PDT

    Wow Hector, I did not know you had been made the spokesman for the buying public.
     
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  4. By Paul Read Posted: 9/14/2008 9:54am PDT

    Have to admit, it does look like it was drawn by a thirteen year-old.
     
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