Celebrities Give New Mercedes-Benz G500 Sport Utility Vehicle Rave Reviews

MONTVALE, N.J., Jan. 16 -- Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) continues its twelfth-year partnership and commitment to the highly acclaimed Sundance Film Festival. MBUSA is a Presenting Sponsor of the annual Festival, which takes place this year from January 10-20 in Park City, Utah. The company is also the sole sponsor of the Independent Feature Film Competition that highlights the work of the dramatic and documentary filmmakers.

According to Dave Schembri, vice president of marketing for MBUSA, ``Mercedes-Benz is very proud to be continuing its partnership with the Sundance Film Festival as a presenting sponsor of this premiere cultural event,'' said Dave Schembri, vice president of marketing for MBUSA. ``Our alliance with the Sundance Film Festival provides us with a platform to a reach new people through various lifestyle events such as this. We are pleased to play a part in enabling the very best in creativity, innovation, aspiration and accomplishment.''

As part of the its support of the Festival, MBUSA also provides a fleet of its popular M-Class sport utility vehicles and its versatile E320 4MATIC wagons and sedans to transport filmmakers, celebrities and other VIPs to and from Festival events. Joining the lineup in 2002 is the new G-Class sport utility vehicle, which will make its debut at the Festival as part of this esteemed transportation fleet.

Throughout the week a handful of celebrities will be test driving the G500, a V8-powered high-end luxury SUV. Celebrities such as Ray Liotta, Andie MacDowell, Benicio Del Toro, Patricia Arquette, John Corbett, Kyle MacLachlan, Andy Garcia and John Leguizamo have been transversing the snow-covered roads of Park City in this rugged, yet luxurious sport utility vehicle.

In addition, the 2001 M-Class, Mercedes' top-selling sport-utility vehicle, has a starring role in two Sundance Premiere films: ``The Man From Elysian Fields,'' which is a fanciful tale of a struggling novelist (Andy Garcia) who, in desperation, takes work at an escort service run by an elegant hustler (Mick Jagger) and becomes involved in the lives of a legendary writer (James Coburn) and his beautiful young wife (Olivia Williams); and ``One Hour Photo,'' starring Robin Williams, who plays a photo developer that becomes obsessed with a suburban family whose film he has developed through the years.

Mercedes-Benz USA is responsible for the sales, marketing and service of Mercedes-Benz cars and light trucks in the U.S. Headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, MBUSA employs approximately 1,500 people in 20 locations across the U.S. Through a nationwide network of over 300 retailers, Mercedes-Benz USA sold 206,638 vehicles in the U.S. during 2001, setting the highest sales volume ever in its history.