After almost 33 years of unbroken production, the Mercedes-Benz G-Class remains unparalleled. This was the opinion of the "Off Road" magazine readers, who voted the G-Class "Off-roader of the year 2012" in two categories – making it a repeat of last year's success for the off-road legend. The G-Class eased to victory in the "Luxury off-roader" category and defended its top spot in the "Classic" category.
Active seat-belt buckle is a new innovation for the rear seats which is currently under development by safety pioneer Mercedes-Benz and will shortly go into series production in one of the Stuttgart manufacturer's luxury-segment models. An electric motor extends and retracts the seat belt buckle automatically. In this way, the belt slack in the area of the pelvis and thorax can be reduced and passengers are secured more firmly in sideways and lengthways directions.
Mercedes-Benz has started 2012 with record sales for the month of January. The brand sold a total of 86,921 units worldwide, thus exceeding the previous year’s record by another 5.1%. Sales in the Mercedes-Benz Cars division also reached a new high in January by handing over 94,526 passenger cars of the Mercedes-Benz, smart and Maybach brands to customers (+5.8%).
Mercedes-Benz has handed over more than a million A-Class models of the current generation to customers worldwide since the market launch in autumn 2004. Dr. Joachim Schmidt, Executive Vice President Mercedes-Benz Cars Sales & Marketing: "With the A-Class, 15 years ago Mercedes-Benz established the premium compact car segment.
The neutral inspectors at the TÜV Süd technical inspection authority have confirmed the high environmental compatibility of the new Mercedes B-Class, awarding the compact sports tourer the Environmental Certificate in accordance with ISO standard TR 14062. This certification is based on a comprehensive ecological life cycle assessment of the B-Class, documenting every detail of ecological relevance.