Keen for an entry level Mercedes? You might be out of luck

Mercedes is in the process of streamlining its range, and it looks as though some of its entry-level models might be cut from the lineup. 

This comes as Mercedes CEO, Ola Källenius, said at the Financial Times Future of the Car summit: "We will talk more next week, but it’s not our goal to be a competitor of the volume producers. That’s not what the Mercedes-Benz brand stands for.”

While nothing has been officially announced, it looks like a possibility that the brand's A-Class range and other entry models may not have much of a future. Källenius said the company would rather be “looking up than down,” which suggests the automaker wants to focus on its more high-end models. He added that we should “stay tuned as far as our product portfolio is concerned.”

It was announced earlier this year that Mercedes would axe the Mercedes A-Class sedan in America at the end of the 2022 model year, with a spokesperson for the company saying making this statement: “After careful consideration, MBUSA will no longer offer the V177 A-Class (A220W  / A220W4) sedan in the U.S. after the current model year (MY22). While the A-Class was extremely well received by our customers since its introduction in 2019, this decision is consistent with our ongoing effort to streamline our product offering strategy. The GLA SUV will take over the A-Class’ position as the entry point into the MBUSA product range”.

But while Källenius didn’t say what entry-level models could be dropped, the A-Class sits at the bottom of their lineup and is already being dropped from the US and Canada markets. 

View Mercedes-Benz A-180 listings on Driven

It's not clear yet whether changes will be made on a global scale, but it’s possible Mercedes wants its entry-level lineup to focus on crossovers, rather than sedans and hatchbacks. 

It sounds like we'll have more information soon.