Why the new Mercedes S560 e is RM70k more expensive

The Malaysian National Automotive Policy (NAP) is still being tabled and pending, 6 months into 2019. Meanwhile car manufacturers like Mercedes-Benz who have invested millions in production facilities to cater to the previous NAP which focused on plug-in hybrids (huge tax benefits were awarded), needed to move ahead with production of their new hybrids and EV’s as car manufacturers need to plan their production more than a year ahead of product release into any market. So, what did Mercedes-Benz in Malaysia do, they launched their E-Class facelift a few months ago without a tax incentive (which has slowed down sales) and now they have launched the replacement for their highly successful 2014 Mercedes-Benz S400 L Hybrid (priced at RM588,000 at launch with tax incentives) at a selling price of RM658,888 (this is a RM70,000 premium).

So, how many current S400L Hybrid (today’s used values from RM230k) owners will trade-up to this new S560 e? I think about 35-40% of current owners will do as they are part of the business movers and shakers in Malaysia and this depreciation is a solid tax write-off that can be swallowed easily after 4-5 years.

The remainder 60-65% of S400L Hybrid owners were E-Class and 5-Series owners who saw the ‘great’ NAP hybrid discount given to the S-Class and reaped the benefit of upgrading to a super luxury sedan without cutting deep into the financial reserves. They enjoyed the lower price of RM588k which was a little more than a RM420k BMW 528i M Sport or a RM455k Mercedes E300 in 2014. It was dream come true at this price to own a full specification S-Class with the added advantage of being hybrid powered.

Now, shock horror for some of these S400L owners as they will be ‘forced’ to trade down to a E-Class or 5-Series and how will they answer to clients or friends when asked why they traded down and not traded in for this just launched Mercedes-Benz S506 e, The Next Luxury Car!

Well, there is still some good news for the 60-65% of possible buyers as Mercedes-Benz financial services has a product called Agility Financing for business owners.

They can enjoy lower monthly instalments, flexible end of agreement options, a guaranteed future value of their S560 e and a wide range of insurance products. Buyers can take advantages of Agility Financing offerings while the performance of their prized investment is well taken care of.

Agility financing for this S560 e starts from RM6,588 and comes with a variety of packages. For more information, call 1-800-88-1133 or speak to a Finance and Insurance Executive at your nearest Mercedes-Benz Autohaus.

The Mercedes-Benz S 560 e at a glance: