Daimler Mercedes sees new CLS, SLK cars boosting sales in 2011

Daimler AG, the second-largest maker of luxury vehicles, predicts that the revamped CLS luxury coupe and cleaner engines will boost sales next year, putting it on track to reach its target of 1.5 million cars by 2015.

The Mercedes-Benz Cars unit will introduce a version of the CLS at the Paris Motor Show this week. The restyled four-door coupe, featuring broader shoulder lines and a prominent three- pointed star in the center of the grill, will go on sale in January starting at 63,427 euros ($85,500), said Joachim Schmidt, executive vice president for sales and marketing.

Surging growth in China and a recovery in the U.S. are boosting demand for Mercedes vehicles a year after the financial crisis led to a 14 percent sales decline. The Daimler unit anticipates clawing back most of that setback in 2010, forecasting sales to gain at least 10 percent.

“We have an abundance of product innovations that make us optimistic that we will have a successful 2011,” Schmidt said in an interview at his office in Stuttgart, Germany.

The new CLS will likely surpass the 170,000 units sold of the current version over the course of its lifecycle, Schmidt said. The model was first introduced in 2004.

The restyled coupe, which is available with headlamps featuring 71 LEDs that simulate natural daylight, shares engines, transmissions, and other components with the E- and S- Class models to improve its profitability. “Economically, it’s a very interesting model,” said Schmidt.

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