Nissan-Based smart Delayed Due to Mercedes-Penske Deal

Penske Automotive Group and Mercedes-Benz have just announced that the American division of Mercedes will receive distribution rights, management, sales and marketing activities of smart USA, until now exclusive responsibility of Penske. The transition is expected to occur by the end of this year's second quarter.

"We are very excited about working toward integration of smart into the MBUSA organization, and look forward to working with our dealer partners to exceed customer expectations for this unique vehicle," said Mercedes-Benz President and CEO, Ernst Lieb. "The addition of smart, combined with our Autohaus dealer initiative, will help us build upon the tremendous momentum the Mercedes-Benz brand had achieved here in the U.S."

The announcement, in other words, means that the new smart model specifically designed for the United States and believed to be based on a Nissan platform will be delayed. Voices from within smart said a few days ago that the new model could be released by summer but, with the new announcement, the launch could be postponed to a later date.

But this on the other hand could mean that Mercedes might prepare a more powerful comeback for smart in the United States and Penske says the brand has indeed more chances to grow bigger under the tutorship of Mercedes-Benz.

"Over the last three years I've experienced the passion consumers express for the brand as we delivered over 45,000 vehicles. Aligning smart distribution with Daimler, as it is worldwide, is the logical next step for the smart brand in the U.S. This alignment will enable the smart brand to grow through the Mercedes-Benz dealership network and lead the way in conservation and meeting future fuel economy standards," said Penske Automotive Group Chairman Roger Penske.