FRANKFURT -- Daimler's Mercedes-Benz unit plans to launch its first pickup truck by 2020, targeting sales at the European, Latin American, Australian and South African markets.
No decision has been made about whether to launch the vehicle in the U.S., a Daimler spokeswoman said.
The pickup will have about 1 metric ton of payload capacity and will be built by Mercedes' commercial-van division
"The Mercedes-Benz pickup will contribute nicely to our global growth targets,” Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said in a statement today. "We will enter this segment with our distinctive brand identity and all of the vehicle attributes that are typical of the brand with regard to safety, comfort, powertrains, and value."
Mercedes said more and more pickups are being used for private purposes. It also said that commercial as well as private users are increasingly asking for vehicles that have car-like specifications. "A similar example was the successful introduction of the M class around 20 years ago. As the first sport utility vehicle (SUV) from a premium manufacturer, the M class completely redefined the segment," Mercedes said.
The automaker's plans to enter the pickup segment underscore a push by German premium automakers that have built their reputations on refined sedans to enter segments traditionally dominated by mass-market competitors as they compete for volume.
After SUVs became popular, the addition of a pickup would open a new front in the battle among Germany's premium brands for the No. 1 spot in luxury car sales.
Mercedes, the world's third-largest premium automaker, plans to overtake Audi and market leader BMW in sales by the end of the decade. The race for the lead has prompted Audi to roll out the A1 subcompact hatchback and BMW to add the 2-series Active Tourer and 2-series Gran Tourer compact minivans.
Volkswagen launched a similar pickup strategy to Daimler's several years ago with the Amarok. Its commercial van business developed and built the midsize pickup in Argentina for Latin America and Europe, while avoiding the U.S. market and its punitive"chicken tax." The tax imposes a 25 percent duty on goods such as light trucks imported into the U.S. in retaliation for tariffs on U.S. chickens once imposed by several European nations.
Pickup trucks have gained popularity in recent months as gasoline prices eased, with sales of such models accounting for 90 percent of global pretax margins at General Motors and Ford, according to analysts.
Last year, three of the four top-selling cars in the United States were full-sized pickup trucks, the Ford F-150, the Chevrolet Silverado and Ram 1500. The segment has been moving upmarket with Ford's F-150 model fetching prices of up to $50,000.
Bloomberg and Reuters contributed to this report
