Mercedes-Benz to add more expensive cars to line-up

Mercedes-Benz has revealed plans to add more expensive cars to its range, in a bid to become "the world's most valuable luxury-car brand."

In a strategy update on May 19, the German car giant said it would "sharpen" its product portfolio by expanding its most "iconic" offerings, while downsizing its range of more affordable options.

"Mercedes-Benz has the good fortune to have multiple iconic products and brands at the upper end of its portfolio – such as the S-Class, the SL, the G as well as the AMG and Maybach brands," Mercedes-Benz Chairman Ola Kallenius said.

"We see great potential here to expand our top-end portfolio."

In addition to the 'top-end luxury' category, Mercedes highlighted two other key areas in which to implement its future strategy: 'core luxury' and 'entry luxury'.

'Core luxury' encompasses the volume-selling Mercedes-Benz C-Class and E-Class model ranges and their derivatives – cars Mercedes identified as offering accelerated electrification potential.

Meanwhile, the company said it will downsize its 'entry luxury' segment – which includes cars built on its front-wheel drive MFA2 platform, like the A-Class sedan and hatch, B-Class, CLA, CLA Shooting Brake, GLA and GLB.

"In the entry luxury segment, Mercedes-Benz will reduce the number of model variants from seven to four while significantly elevating the technological substance of these products," the company said.

If successful, the company said its strategy will see sales of top-end vehicles rise by 60 per cent by 2026 compared to 2019.

The company also plans to reduce its costs and simply vehicle configuration by bundling optional equipment into packages, while offering a higher level of equipment as standard on base variants.

"When configuring a vehicle in future, the customer will be able to choose from a number of different equipment packages based on preference and regional demands," the strategy plan stated.

"The grouping of option packages is expected to also have a positive effect on residual values as a higher level of equipment is also available for base variants."

It indicated it will also pivot away from offering traditional dealerships and showrooms, moving towards lifestyle experience stores like the AMG Store in Dubai and the Maybach Atelier in Shanghai.

Currently, the world's most brands with the highest market value is Tesla, followed by Toyota. Mercedes-Benz sits in fifth place, valued at $US71.5 billion.