与特斯拉/宝马竞争,奔驰提前推出整个清洁能源车队

与特斯拉、宝马展开竞争，奔驰将提前推出整个清洁能源车队

据知情人士透露，奔驰将新增两款电动 SUV 和两款电动轿车车型，并将为这些电动车系创建一个新的子品牌，品牌名称目前还并未确定。第一款新型电动汽车将在德国不来梅工厂进行生产。从明年开始，不来梅工厂还将打造奔驰燃料电池电动版的 GLC SUV 车型，届时该款车将既能用氢充电也能通过墙壁插座来充电。

奔驰与宝马：态度对对换

之前，奔驰采用为现有车型增加电池和电动机的解决方案，而宝马则将重点放在碳纤维及其子品牌“i”的未来设计上，相比较而言，奔驰的解决方案比宝马更加经济。但是现在，他们的态度发生了转换：宝马将新一款 “i” 车型发布时间推迟至五年之后（宝马第三款 “i” 系列车型将会在 2020 年左右与消费者见面），而奔驰却准备将原来发售新电动车的计划（奔驰量产版纯电动车型原定在 2020 年正式上市）提前。
除电动汽车外，奔驰母公司戴姆勒股份公司还计划在 2020 年推出首款纯电动重型货车。此外，公司还承诺将为 Smart 系列的每一款车型推出相应的电动版本。

愿景与现实是否有所出入？

特斯拉 Model S 系列车型的成功给其他豪华汽车品牌制造商带来了不小的压力，虽然特斯拉自身面临财务目标未完成以及新车型设计、制造、及产能提升方面面临延误的困境，但这并未让其他竞争者感觉有丝毫放松。奔驰认为有必要向外界展示，他们同样有能力可以抓住消费者的想象力，实现电动汽车领域的创新。此外，目前相关法规也都要求车辆降低排放量，减少环境污染。

公司 CEO 蔡澈（Dieter Zetsche）曾在 6 月份对外表示，公司计划在九月份的巴黎车展上推出一款全新的纯电动概念车型。这款车应该是 SUV 车型，充电一次续航里程能达到 500 公里，其独特的外形设计也将证明奔驰不落俗套的设计理念应用到电动车领域。

上周，在电动重型货车的发布会上，戴姆勒卡车部门首席负责人 Wolfgang Bernhard 接受采访时也表示：“多年前，当特斯拉开始崛起的时候，我们就认为当时的技术还没有做好完全的准备，所以还不能投入电动汽车领域，我相信我们当时做的这一决定是正确的。现在，我们认为时机已经到来，电动交通领域在未来 5 至 10 年内将是一个良好的盈利阶段。”

但是，作为奔驰的本土市场，德国人却对此持质疑态度，他们认为这种电动车型行驶里程有限、充电时间长、价格相对较高并且设计略显古怪。

在此之前，奔驰在清洁能源汽车方面的表现并不尽如人意。公司开发的电动车型主要局限在现有车型基础之上，例如 Smart 和 B-Class 系列，并且燃料电池版 B-Class 因为成本极高并且燃油系统也不是很令人满意，销售状况不理想。

Mercedes is about to unveil an entire fleet of electric vehicles

Bloomberg |  Aug 06, 2016 12:40 AM IST

Mercedes-Benz is planning its own distinct line of electric vehicles, challenging BMW and Tesla Motors in a bet that alternative-fuel cars have the potential to become profitable.

Mercedes will add two electric sport utility vehicles and two sedans, according to two people familiar with the plan, who asked not to be named because the details haven't been disclosed. Mercedes will create a new sub-brand for the cars, though a name hasn't been chosen yet, one of the people said. Chief Executive Officer Dieter Zetsche said in June that the company planned to unveil an electric car at the Paris motor show in September.

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Tesla's success with the Model S sedan increased the pressure on other luxury-car makers, even as the US company struggles with missed financial goals and delays in new models. Germany's luxury-market leaders need to show they too can make electric innovations that capture the imagination of buyers, and they're facing emissions regulations that require low-pollution vehicles. Yet customers in Mercedes's home market of Germany, in particular, have been skeptical of limited driving range, long charging times, comparatively high prices and at times quirky designs.

Mercedes had previously stuck to adding batteries and electric motors to existing models, a cheaper solution than rival BMW's investment in carbon fiber and futuristic design for its 'i' brand. Now their positions are reversed: BMW's holding off on a new 'i' model for another five years. Mercedes will start selling its electric line-up before the end of the decade, one of the people familiar with the plans said.

In addition to the e-cars, Mercedes parent Daimler is planning its first all-electric heavy-duty delivery truck by the start of the next decade.

The company has also promised electric versions of each of the vehicles in the Smart city-car brand.

'When Tesla started coming up many years ago we decided at the time, and I believe correctly, that the technology wasn't quite ready,' Wolfgang Bernhard, Daimler's trucks chief, said in an interview last week at the urban e-truck's unveiling. 'Now we believe the time has come to earn money in e-mobility over the next five to 10 years.'

Christoph Sedlmayr, a spokesman for Daimler, declined to comment on the number and model type of electric cars planned, while adding there will be more than one.

The first of the new electric autos will be produced at the company's factory in Bremen, Germany, according to one person familiar with the plans. From next year, the Bremen plant will also build a fuel-cell electric version of the GLC SUV that can be charged both with hydrogen and at a wall socket.

The prototype set to be introduced in September will be an SUV capable of driving about 500 kilometres (310) miles on a single charge. It will also show the distinct design Mercedes has developed to set its electric cars apart.

Mercedes' previous efforts to establish clean-driving cars had mixed results. A fuel-cell version of the B-Class sold few vehicles because of a patchy refuelling network and high costs. Otherwise, the brand restricted itself to electric versions of existing models such as Smart and the boxy B-Class, which had a 155-kilometre range.

BMW's earnings this week showed some positive potential for electric-car sales. A new version of the i3 city car helped push deliveries of alternative-drive vehicles up 87 per cent in the first half, the company said.