Mercedes M-Klasse to Get Hybrid Version

The hybridization of the cars of the world continues, with more and more automakers opting for this type of power train because, first of all, it sells, and secondly it makes for a good way to help car makers meet the fleet average fuel consumption.

With that in mind, the fact that German manufacturer Mercedes Benz is planning a hybrid version of the recently presented M-Klasse should come as no surprise. Revealed this week, the big SUV in the Mercedes line-up will offer a hybrid variant not right from the start, but no later than the middle of next year.

Mercedes has not yet officially confirmed the hybrid M, nor is the model included in the list of M variants presented by the Germans, but a hint to it can be found in a statement made by Mercedes chairman Dieter Zetsche, who compared the hybrid M with... tofu.

"Think of the food industry: increased customer awareness for healthy food did not cut demand for eating well. Tofu simply isn't for everyone!" he said according to Autoobserver. Meaning that the hybrid SUV will not cut the customer's appetite for SUVs altogether.

In the meanwhile, the new M-Klasse will be offered as the ML 250 CDI (2.1l, 204 hp and 500 Nm of torque), ML 350 CDI (3l, 258 hp and 620 Nm of torque) and the ML 350 BlueEfficiency (3.5l, 306 hp and 370 Nm of torque). The diesel version is expected to be nearly a hybrid in terms of fuel consumption, or even better: 6l/100 km, or 39 mpg.