Mercedes Benz unveils Rs. 2.5-crore bulletproof SUV

Greater Noida: German luxury car maker Mercedes Benz on Wednesday launched the armoured version of its M-Class sport utility vehicle ML Guard, and unveiled the CLA45 AMG sports car.The vehicle is priced at Rs. 2.49 crore (ex-showroom Delhi) and is targeted at the VIP segment.It also unveiled two other models - sports sedan CLA 45 AMG and European model of compact sports utility vehicle GLA, which is expected to hit the Indian market this year."With the ML-Guard, we now offer four types special protection luxury vehicles in India now," Mercedes Benz India managing director and CEO Eberhard Kern told reporters here at the Auto Expo.The company's 'Guard programme' currently includes vehicles S, E, G and M class.He said in 2014, which the company has termed as its 'Year of Excellence', the company will launch new products and showcase brands, while unveiling unique initiatives to cater to its luxury customers.Commenting on the CLA 45 AMG sedan, which is powered by a 2 litre engine, Mercedes official Ola Kallenius said it would appeal to the young at heart people who love speed. The car can attain speed of 100 Km per hour in just 4.6 seconds.Bullish on the Indian market, Ola said the country is a key market and would be among its top 10 global markets by 2020. Mercedes would complete its 20 years in India this year."India would be among the top 10 world markets of Mercedes Benz by 2020. The company is interested in India and has long term view for that," he said adding that sales in India has grown proportionally."By 2020 Mercedes would have 13 new models which would have no predecessor and some of them would come to India," said Ola.He further added that the company would launch new cars for the growing markets as China, India and Russia.When asked about the company's plans for assembling more models in India, he said it was definitely on the cards but did not disclose whether the A Class or the B Class would be rolled out from the company's Pune plant.The German firm had received bookings for 125 units of the new S class within 16 days of its launch, said Kern.It also sold 9,000 units in the last calendar year, registering a highest ever growth of 32 per cent.The company has showcased 13 models, starting from compact A class to the luxury sedan S Class along with Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 car.