https://www.motoring.com.au/mercedes-dumps-diesel-in-us-110699/
The list of alternative vehicles continues to shrink.
Interesting part of the story, which explains why Fiat Chrysler has yet to re-introduce the Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited Ecodiesel and why the long-awaited Mazda CX-5 diesel has been continually delayed:
Meantime, the head of R&D for Mercedes-Benz cars, Ola Källenius, told journalists at last week’s Detroit motor show that the German car-maker will abandon plans to introduce diesel passenger cars in the US, after more than two years of internal debate and discussions with the EPA.
He said diesel vehicles account for just three per cent of the brand’s sales, and that “diesel doesn’t fit into our portfolio in the US”.
While BMW sells diesel 3 Series and X5 models in the US, where Chevrolet has a diesel Cruze and Ranger Rover and Jaguar XE diesels account for up to 15 per cent of JLR’s sales, the only diesel Mercedes-Benz model there will be the Sprinter van.
Mercedes delayed plans to sell diesel versions of its C-Class sedan and GLC-Class crossover after the US Department of Justice asked Daimler to check its diesel certification process in early 2016.
A year after Mercedes later asked the EPA to certify its MY2017 diesel Mercedes vehicles for sale in the US, it seems the company has given up trying.
After the EPA investigation into Fiat Chrysler’s diesel emissions, Mercedes last year said that “functionalities that are common in diesel vehicles” were being classed as “undisclosed Auxiliary Emission Control Devices and potentially impermissible”.
It seems the US EPA’s tough stance on diesel cars has led Mercedes to deem unviable the investment required to make them emissions compliant in the US, especially given the limited sales volume.
The list of alternative vehicles continues to shrink.
Interesting part of the story, which explains why Fiat Chrysler has yet to re-introduce the Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited Ecodiesel and why the long-awaited Mazda CX-5 diesel has been continually delayed:
Meantime, the head of R&D for Mercedes-Benz cars, Ola Källenius, told journalists at last week’s Detroit motor show that the German car-maker will abandon plans to introduce diesel passenger cars in the US, after more than two years of internal debate and discussions with the EPA.
He said diesel vehicles account for just three per cent of the brand’s sales, and that “diesel doesn’t fit into our portfolio in the US”.
While BMW sells diesel 3 Series and X5 models in the US, where Chevrolet has a diesel Cruze and Ranger Rover and Jaguar XE diesels account for up to 15 per cent of JLR’s sales, the only diesel Mercedes-Benz model there will be the Sprinter van.
Mercedes delayed plans to sell diesel versions of its C-Class sedan and GLC-Class crossover after the US Department of Justice asked Daimler to check its diesel certification process in early 2016.
A year after Mercedes later asked the EPA to certify its MY2017 diesel Mercedes vehicles for sale in the US, it seems the company has given up trying.
After the EPA investigation into Fiat Chrysler’s diesel emissions, Mercedes last year said that “functionalities that are common in diesel vehicles” were being classed as “undisclosed Auxiliary Emission Control Devices and potentially impermissible”.
It seems the US EPA’s tough stance on diesel cars has led Mercedes to deem unviable the investment required to make them emissions compliant in the US, especially given the limited sales volume.