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I would imagine that the passenger version in NA will offer the same versatile seating as its Euro cousin despite being more utilitarian?
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Versatile Seating?
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funny though, in europe you can spec benzes far more spartan than any american would think allowable
But then again that is europe, a lot of things that happen their in the automotive industry doesn't happen here, which goes for a lot of markets.
At times it can be said we get the short end of the stick.
Well being the type of van this is a feature like that should be standard, it only easily contributes in making it that much more useful to the demographic.
Same here, rather not have to venture out to some company that does that line of work, if it can come from factory then why not.
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Guys, the Metris is not a V-Class, it's a Vito. It's a commercial work van. The passenger model is a commercial work van with seats. These leather seats and luxury level interiors will not be sold here, unless the limousine market requests it. If you want a luxury Metris you can go to a conversion company, although I think you'd be better served by a lightly used GL350 BlueTec.
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Not very accurate statement. The basic Vito Tourer has better seats then what Mercedes put in USA model Metris which are sprinter bus seats. Vito has option for 3 and 4 rail system. Seats can be rotated 180 deg. facing 3rd row. The back of the seats are foldable and reclined all 6 of them(2 and 3 row). It is a mega puzzle why we got such ugly setup. And then they gonna say we do not sell enough of them. Whomever made this decision must resign from his job. You suck at what you do! Vito is an amazing automobile loaded just as much as V-Class if not better and you bring us castrated version of it. Shame on you. I own one just because i love this car and being acquainted with this van long before it arrived to USA. Mercedes mislead consumers during the car show, showing 3 V-Class vans as Metris and at the end brought Vito without any options basic on basic. I wish some one from Germany will read this and correct this mistake. Bring all Vito options and you will see the difference. My personal choice V-class vs Vito, I will take Vito any day if Diesel, 4x4, 4 rail seating, LED lights, panorama roof and distronic options will be available in US and yes a better stereo system.
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I once priced out a loaded Mercedes Vito. The price was about $65k US. The V250 is only about $15k more fully equipped, and has a lot of very useful features not available on the Vito at that price, including air suspension. I don't know, how much are you interested in paying for these options?
First of all, I have a long background in retail. And I will tell you that experience tells me is that a lot of people say they are willing to pay for something, but show a much higher reluctance to actually shell out the cash when the option to do so actually appears. I'm not calling you a liar, I'm saying that is my experience.
The Vito comes in a much wider range of options than here. The base model is a pretty stripped out vehicle, and starts at about the same price as our Metris passenger van. It includes the puny, and likely very underpowered, Renault diesel- and regrettably are FWD. They are much more spartan than our markets version, coming with no sound system, or even our markets "premium trim"- the TPO interior moldings in the rear passenger compartment. It literally is just a cargo model with windows and seats. That runs about $32k US.
Our market is version is a cross between the Tourer Pro and the Tourer Select. We get some things that are not found on the Pro, like rear air conditioning, and standard rear airbags. The Pro gets the same rear seating arrangement we do as standard. With the mid-tier RWD diesel (which is what the 4-cylinder Sprinter gets, and is the only logical candidate to put in a Metris for that reason), the Vito 116 Tourer Pro starts in Europe at nearly $40k American. But that doesn't include all the options we get as standard. Let me add those. Actually, its impressive to note what doesn't come for that price- air conditioning, a stereo, or rear airbags. But anyway! That added basically $10k to the price, so the price tag is $49k.
What did you want to add to the that? How about I equip it like a loaded US model, plus 4x4, panoramic sunroof, distronic, the comfort seats, and LED lights? I mean since you did all this research you need to know that our passenger van gets the finest stereo Mercedes offers in the Vito as standard. And its a pretty kicking stereo if you don't have satellite radio insecurities. Warum dies für Sie tun ? Ich spreche Deutsch, zum Glück . Nicht gut , aber zum Glück .
Anyway, I priced your car at $66k (58,500 euros, without the 19% tax) with the features you mentioned. I am sure that if MB were to offer all of the features you mention, without the diesel for $5k or so, and with it for $10k or so, Yeah, they'd probably sell a bunch. But for $66k? Maybe you might be willing to pay an extra $20k for all the options you mentioned wanting, but I doubt many Americans would!
(by the by, that does NOT include everything- power seats, for example. That's an extra $2k)
First of all, I have a long background in retail. And I will tell you that experience tells me is that a lot of people say they are willing to pay for something, but show a much higher reluctance to actually shell out the cash when the option to do so actually appears. I'm not calling you a liar, I'm saying that is my experience.
The Vito comes in a much wider range of options than here. The base model is a pretty stripped out vehicle, and starts at about the same price as our Metris passenger van. It includes the puny, and likely very underpowered, Renault diesel- and regrettably are FWD. They are much more spartan than our markets version, coming with no sound system, or even our markets "premium trim"- the TPO interior moldings in the rear passenger compartment. It literally is just a cargo model with windows and seats. That runs about $32k US.
Our market is version is a cross between the Tourer Pro and the Tourer Select. We get some things that are not found on the Pro, like rear air conditioning, and standard rear airbags. The Pro gets the same rear seating arrangement we do as standard. With the mid-tier RWD diesel (which is what the 4-cylinder Sprinter gets, and is the only logical candidate to put in a Metris for that reason), the Vito 116 Tourer Pro starts in Europe at nearly $40k American. But that doesn't include all the options we get as standard. Let me add those. Actually, its impressive to note what doesn't come for that price- air conditioning, a stereo, or rear airbags. But anyway! That added basically $10k to the price, so the price tag is $49k.
What did you want to add to the that? How about I equip it like a loaded US model, plus 4x4, panoramic sunroof, distronic, the comfort seats, and LED lights? I mean since you did all this research you need to know that our passenger van gets the finest stereo Mercedes offers in the Vito as standard. And its a pretty kicking stereo if you don't have satellite radio insecurities. Warum dies für Sie tun ? Ich spreche Deutsch, zum Glück . Nicht gut , aber zum Glück .
Anyway, I priced your car at $66k (58,500 euros, without the 19% tax) with the features you mentioned. I am sure that if MB were to offer all of the features you mention, without the diesel for $5k or so, and with it for $10k or so, Yeah, they'd probably sell a bunch. But for $66k? Maybe you might be willing to pay an extra $20k for all the options you mentioned wanting, but I doubt many Americans would!
(by the by, that does NOT include everything- power seats, for example. That's an extra $2k)
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First of all, I am related to a family that own one of the large automobile dealership group in Europe and Asia. And I will tell you that the facts shows that a lot of people do buy mid to fully equipped automobiles even more so in USA. I'm not calling you a liar, I'm saying that is fact.
Second of all, the post theme is “Versatile Seating”. Would you be kind to point me to which part of my post disturbs you the most?
The basic Vito Tourer has better seats then what Mercedes put in USA model Metris which are sprinter bus seats. Vito has option for 3 and 4 rail system. Seats can be rotated 180 deg. facing 3rd row. The back of the seats are foldable and reclined all 6 of them(2 and 3 row). It is a mega puzzle why we got such ugly setup. And then they gonna say we do not sell enough of them. Whomever made this decision must resign from his job. You suck at what you do! Vito is an amazing automobile loaded just as much as V-Class if not better and you bring us castrated version of it. Shame on you. I own one just because i love this car and being acquainted with this van long before it arrived to USA. Mercedes mislead consumers during the car show, showing 3 V-Class vans as Metris and at the end brought Vito without any options basic on basic. I wish some one from Germany will read this and correct this mistake. Bring all Vito options and you will see the difference. My personal choice V-class vs Vito, I will take Vito any day if Diesel, 4x4, 4 rail seating, LED lights, panorama roof and distronic options will be available in US and yes a better stereo system.
Third of all, as a person with a long background in retail, explain to me why I am limited by someone on how to spend my money. And by the way most of passenger Metris sales fall through because of non-folding seats and absence of power rear gate.
Fourth and final, instead of promoting this beautiful van you steering people of towards SUV’s.
Good job. Just for your info, what I am trying to do is promote this van and asking not to be limited in choice and options.
There is a reason why you bought Metris and not GL350 Blutech, right?
Second of all, the post theme is “Versatile Seating”. Would you be kind to point me to which part of my post disturbs you the most?
The basic Vito Tourer has better seats then what Mercedes put in USA model Metris which are sprinter bus seats. Vito has option for 3 and 4 rail system. Seats can be rotated 180 deg. facing 3rd row. The back of the seats are foldable and reclined all 6 of them(2 and 3 row). It is a mega puzzle why we got such ugly setup. And then they gonna say we do not sell enough of them. Whomever made this decision must resign from his job. You suck at what you do! Vito is an amazing automobile loaded just as much as V-Class if not better and you bring us castrated version of it. Shame on you. I own one just because i love this car and being acquainted with this van long before it arrived to USA. Mercedes mislead consumers during the car show, showing 3 V-Class vans as Metris and at the end brought Vito without any options basic on basic. I wish some one from Germany will read this and correct this mistake. Bring all Vito options and you will see the difference. My personal choice V-class vs Vito, I will take Vito any day if Diesel, 4x4, 4 rail seating, LED lights, panorama roof and distronic options will be available in US and yes a better stereo system.
Third of all, as a person with a long background in retail, explain to me why I am limited by someone on how to spend my money. And by the way most of passenger Metris sales fall through because of non-folding seats and absence of power rear gate.
Fourth and final, instead of promoting this beautiful van you steering people of towards SUV’s.
Good job. Just for your info, what I am trying to do is promote this van and asking not to be limited in choice and options.
There is a reason why you bought Metris and not GL350 Blutech, right?
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1) As someone in retail, I am aware of non marginal costs of carrying things, be it auto options or whole products. In the US where they are not expecting huge sales initially, you need to crash certify all seating options, and several euro seating options are not legal here. Somebody decided the non marginal (not just relating to including them in just one van) costs were too high to justify offering them initially, and possibly higher than their predicted marginal profit from offering it. The dazzling array of options and configurations on euro market Vito vans is one of the reasons for its much higher price!
2) No, the seats offered on the Metris are EXACTLY the same as those on the Vito Tourer Base and Tourer Pro. The Tourer Select has nicer seats. Sprinter seats are totally different. As any idiot who compares eBay images can clearly see.
3) Power lift gates are stupid gadgets. I would like you to show me the sales report study to suggest that they are relevant to unsuccessful Metris sales.
4) When most people in this country buy a Mercedes they are looking for a plush luxury car. Even with the options you specify in that regard the Metris will dissapoint those customers mightily, compared to any other $45k minivan on sale in the US, let alone an $85k Mercedes SUV. Compared to their luxury products, or other minivans, it is Spartan, unrefined, and noisy.
5) I explained why I bought one many times. It is a Mercedes, and engineered with precision to do its job. That includes long life hard interior fittings, tough vinyl seats, a lack of failure prone electronic assists that don't help much, and other things of that nature. I wanted a damned good work van and got one. If I had 4 kids and a wife and didn't mind lifting heavy seats out of the car, and didn't drive 40k miles a year, and didn't drive at 101 mph regularly, I woulda bought a minivan, or a less efficient GL350.
The Metris is the best vehicle for doing what it was meant to do. It was not meant to be a luxury car, and you are suggesting that with reclining seats and a panoramic sunroof, but not the V-class's plush interior materials and vastly superior NVH isolation, the Metris can be that. You are, in my opinion, wrong.
2) No, the seats offered on the Metris are EXACTLY the same as those on the Vito Tourer Base and Tourer Pro. The Tourer Select has nicer seats. Sprinter seats are totally different. As any idiot who compares eBay images can clearly see.
3) Power lift gates are stupid gadgets. I would like you to show me the sales report study to suggest that they are relevant to unsuccessful Metris sales.
4) When most people in this country buy a Mercedes they are looking for a plush luxury car. Even with the options you specify in that regard the Metris will dissapoint those customers mightily, compared to any other $45k minivan on sale in the US, let alone an $85k Mercedes SUV. Compared to their luxury products, or other minivans, it is Spartan, unrefined, and noisy.
5) I explained why I bought one many times. It is a Mercedes, and engineered with precision to do its job. That includes long life hard interior fittings, tough vinyl seats, a lack of failure prone electronic assists that don't help much, and other things of that nature. I wanted a damned good work van and got one. If I had 4 kids and a wife and didn't mind lifting heavy seats out of the car, and didn't drive 40k miles a year, and didn't drive at 101 mph regularly, I woulda bought a minivan, or a less efficient GL350.
The Metris is the best vehicle for doing what it was meant to do. It was not meant to be a luxury car, and you are suggesting that with reclining seats and a panoramic sunroof, but not the V-class's plush interior materials and vastly superior NVH isolation, the Metris can be that. You are, in my opinion, wrong.
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In exactly 10 days I will be back in Europe visiting my family and i will present you with the photo report on VITO and its options vs V-Class. Just so you can see your inaccuracy.
You and I both own Mertis/Vito Tourer Select and not Pro or Basic. Pro is the one with unpainted bumpers. And Basic well it's very basic.
Again, for some reason you are throwing all this large words. Problem is very simple.
Income of american people are generally higher than in most of places in Europe and Asia, right?
Population of the USA and Canada are equal to the population of Europe, right?
Benz, KIA, Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Hundai, Opel, Reno, Citroen and many more automakers selling their vans in Europe pretty well, right?
Crash test standards and exhaust standards are slightly higher in CA but overall it is about the same, right?
As we know taxes and overall price of the van is higher in Europe than it is in USA, right?
So people in europe and asia buy this van and have privilege to select options which they want and we can not?
Do you know that in Europe most popular taxi car is E-class in some countries you can see S-class Taxi. In Netherlands where benzin and diesel fuel is more expensive than anywhere in europe they start using Tesla's. just FYI.
Where I am going with that, Mercedes Benz USA or whomever made this nonsense decision that americans do not need or can not aford van with all this useful options that available for the rest of the world, are not wise.
By making this decision MBUSA will not sell enough of them throughout USA and eventually will kill it.
Americans like buttons and gadgets, there is nothing wrong with it. Up until 90's Benz did not include cupholder in their passenger sedans.
It is 2012 and I want buttons ad gadgets. I do not want to argue anymore about whatever that you trying to prove or disapprove.
I want options!!! that is it.
You and I both own Mertis/Vito Tourer Select and not Pro or Basic. Pro is the one with unpainted bumpers. And Basic well it's very basic.
Again, for some reason you are throwing all this large words. Problem is very simple.
Income of american people are generally higher than in most of places in Europe and Asia, right?
Population of the USA and Canada are equal to the population of Europe, right?
Benz, KIA, Toyota, Nissan, Honda, Hundai, Opel, Reno, Citroen and many more automakers selling their vans in Europe pretty well, right?
Crash test standards and exhaust standards are slightly higher in CA but overall it is about the same, right?
As we know taxes and overall price of the van is higher in Europe than it is in USA, right?
So people in europe and asia buy this van and have privilege to select options which they want and we can not?
Do you know that in Europe most popular taxi car is E-class in some countries you can see S-class Taxi. In Netherlands where benzin and diesel fuel is more expensive than anywhere in europe they start using Tesla's. just FYI.
Where I am going with that, Mercedes Benz USA or whomever made this nonsense decision that americans do not need or can not aford van with all this useful options that available for the rest of the world, are not wise.
By making this decision MBUSA will not sell enough of them throughout USA and eventually will kill it.
Americans like buttons and gadgets, there is nothing wrong with it. Up until 90's Benz did not include cupholder in their passenger sedans.
It is 2012 and I want buttons ad gadgets. I do not want to argue anymore about whatever that you trying to prove or disapprove.
I want options!!! that is it.
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2,699 Posts
What inaccuracy? Your assumption that because a brochure shows pictures with optional equipment, I'm mistaken? Me, I consult Mercedes-Benz's standard equipment document. And the standard seats on the Pro are the same as that on the American Metris.
No, I own a Metris, which is neither a Select nor a Pro. Painted bumpers are an option on Tourer Base and Tourer Pro trim levels. It is standard, along with many other things, on the Select.Vadim said:
What large words? I think the largest word I used was Conditioning. 12 letters? I can use large words. I could talk about the political movement that wants to go against dissolving the church of England, and their position on antidisestablishmentarianism. Thats a big word. At 28 letters, it is more than double the size of Conditioning. Why are we talking about this, anyway?Vadim[/quote said:
Wrong. Median household income in Western Europe is overall nearly the same as in the US, with numerous countries beating that of the US. And their social programs tend to make disposable income in most of Europe much higher than here.Vadim[/quote said:
People in Asia and Europe have a very different perception of Mercedes-Benz as a brand than in the United States and Canada. Crash standards in Europe are generally much higher than that in the US. But they are also different. US crash standards are based on unreasonable and unrealistic standards that really only benefit cars that are designed specifically to make those standards- its a protectionist policy, and always has been.Vadim said:
Exactly, Vadim. The Mercedes-Benz brand is perceived very differently in Europe and Mercedes is very concerned about ruining the carefully cultivated image they have here.Vadim said:
Mercedes-Benz made the decision to make sure that the generally stupid people who populate the United States can not make the mistake of confusing a vehicle designed and built as a commercial passenger hauler with the luxury cars it shares a show room with. Mercedes spent a very hard decade learning what happens when they harpoon their image by making dangerous marking mistakes. Preservation of their image as being the best luxury car around is more important to them than sales of a commercial van to people who don't know, don't understand, and in many cases, don't actually want them.
They specifically do not want to sell Metris vans to people who are looking to buy a Mercedes luxury car. They don't want to sell them to somebody who is then going to whine and scream that their new commercial passenger vehicle feels like a commercial passenger vehicle. I understand this concept, why you don't is beyond me.
They'd rather fail at selling the Metris than offend their luxury sedan customers. Verstehen?Vadim said:
I know. I'm really sad that they had to dumb down their products awesomeness because they wanted low margin sales to stupid Americans who can't figure out how to not drink coffee in their cars. If you want buttons and gadgets, go buy a Cadillac. I really would like to know why you are looking for buttons and gadgets in a commercial van.Vadim said:
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