BMW, Mercedes see extra legroom backing China growth

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG raised a sales forecast for China and Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz said it's targeting 43 percent growth, as the world's two biggest luxury carmakers roll out sedans developed exclusively for Chinese buyers.

BMW intends to deliver 120,000 BMW, Mini, and Rolls-Royce vehicles in China in 2010, 20 percent more than a previous projection, Chief Executive Officer Norbert Reithofer said at the Beijing auto show today. Mercedes-Benz plans to sell at least 100,000 vehicles, Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said.

The two luxury carmakers introduced extended versions of their full-sized 5-Series and E-Class sedans at the show. The new cars, which offer more legroom, are targeted at Chinese luxury-car buyers, who are typically chauffeured. Daimler also premiered an upgraded version of its Maybach ultra-luxury nameplate and showed the "Shooting Break" Mercedes concept car, which combines elements of a wagon and coupe.

"I have absolutely no doubt that the market here will keep growing at double-digit rates for years to come," Thomas Weber, development chief of Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler, said in an interview at the show.

It's "not impossible" that Mercedes will pass BMW in China this year and become the number-two upscale carmaker in the country, after Volkswagen AG's Audi, Zetsche said.

Audi Forecasts

Audi, which forecasts 26 percent growth to 200,000 cars and sport-utility vehicles in China this year, premiered an updated long version of the top-of-the-line A8 in Beijing. The introductions underscore the country's importance for high-end automakers as European and U.S. markets struggle to recover from the global financial crisis.

The Mercedes model introductions are "an acknowledgement of the Chinese market, which continues to emerge as a driving force for our entire sector," Zetsche said. Mercedes may expand its offering in China with an extended version of the entry- level C-Class sedan, he said.

BMW's new China sales target would mean a 33 percent increase from the 90,500 cars and SUVs sold in China last year.