"It's been an incredible year for Mercedes-Benz in every way," said Steve Cannon, president and CEO of MBUSA. "We saw record sales, flexed our muscles across the entire product line from top to bottom and brought the customer experience to an all-time high. With the help of our dealer partners and the entire organization behind us, we expect this beautifully choreographed series of product debuts to lead us to another phenomenal year in 2014."

Impressive increases were made in both the Mercedes-Benz passenger car and light truck categories, climbing 16.0% and 10.4%, respectively, from 2012. Annual retail volumes for the Mercedes-Benz brand were led by the C-, E- and M-Class model lines. The sporty C-Class took the top spot for the year at 88,251 units, rising 8.0% from 2012, followed by the E-Class with annual sales of 69,803, up 7.1%. The brand's topselling SUV, the M-Class, rounded out the top three at 41,326, up 8.5% over the previous year.

Strong gains also were seen at the high end. The flagship S-Class, which reset the luxury benchmark with an all-new generation for model year 2014, posted an annual increase of 12.8% to 13,303 units. Total sales for the SL-Class roadster rose 43.0% at 7,007.

A best-ever December for the Mercedes-Benz brand yielded sales of 33,007, increasing 17.3% from the 28,145 vehicles sold in December 2012. The E-Class model line was the top volume performer for the month, jumping 25% to 8,727. Sprinter Vans, which launched a redesigned 2014 lineup in September, saw continued growth at 2,828 for the month, up 26.8%. Adding volumes of 855 at smart, MBUSA December sales reached a landmark 36,690 units, increasing 17.0% from the 31,372 vehicles sold during the same month last year.

Sales of Mercedes-Benz BlueTEC diesel models totaled 1,575 in December and finished the year at 14,943. The company's highperformance AMG models delivered strong December sales of 1,109, bringing the year-end total to 6,906, a 3.7% increase from 2012. Separately, Mercedes-Benz Certified Pre-Owned (MBCPO) recorded sales of 9,726 vehicles in December, an increase of 40.0% compared to the 6,949 units sold in December 2012. For the year, MBCPO sold 99,075 vehicles, climbing 23.3% from the 80,380 vehicles sold in 2012.

About Mercedes-Benz USA

Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA), headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, is responsible for the distribution, marketing and customer service for all Mercedes-Benz products in the United States. MBUSA offers drivers the most diverse line-up in the luxury segment with 14 model lines ranging from the sporty C-Class to the flagship S-Class sedans and the SLS AMG supercar. MBUSA is also responsible for the distribution, marketing and customer service of Mercedes-Benz Sprinter Vans and smart in the US. More information on MBUSA and its products can be found at www.mbusa.com, www.mbsprinterusa.com and www.smartusa.com

Accredited journalists can visit our media site at www.media.mbusa.com

For the complete IR Release including tables please download the provided PDF file.

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