2013 Mercedes-Benz GL-Class

The Mercedes-Benz M-Class and GL-Class SUVs have always been built in a single plant located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. That’s about to change, as final assembly of Asian-market M and GL-Class vehicles will soon shift to plants in India, Thailand and Indonesia. That doesn’t mean that the Tuscaloosa, Alabama plant will be losing work, as the U.S. operation will still produce the SUVs in kit form, known as Semi-Knock-Down (SKD) in the industry. These SKD kits will then be shipped to Asian plants for final assembly. Local production is seen as a way to boost growth in emerging markets...