Mercedes-Benz USA Records 16,174 New Vehicle Sales in February 2004

MONTVALE, N.J., March 2 -- Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) today reported sales of 16,174 new vehicles, up 0.5 percent from last year and setting a record for the best February sales volume in the company's history.

Volume for the month was led by the C-Class model line which recorded 5,819 units sold, up 2.3 percent from the 5,688 sold last February. The C-Class family also led volume for year-to-date sales with growth of 2.7 percent over the first two months of 2003.

Highlights for the month included boosts for the brand's core model lines. In addition to sales increases for the C-Class model line, E-Class sales grew 5.6 percent compared to February 2003. CLK coupes and cabriolets grew 7.4 percent for the month and 20.8 percent on a year-to-date basis. The stylish all-terrain G-Class also posted gains with increases of 10.4 percent for the month and 15.4 percent year-to-date. The SL-Class posted a 38.7 percent increase for the month, boosting year-to-date sales for the high-end model lines (S-, CL- and SL-Classes as a group) by 2.2 percent over the same period last year.

The growing popularity of extensions to the product lines across the board was demonstrated through sales gains for 4MATIC all-wheel-drive models and high-performance AMG models with year-to-date increases of 94.7 percent and 13.9 respectively.

Separately, MBUSA also recorded the best February ever for its Mercedes- Benz Certified Pre-Owned program with sales of 4,381 units, an increase of 24.4 percent over February 2003. On a year-to-date basis, Mercedes-Benz Certified Pre-Owned sales increased 20.9 percent over the same period last year (8,676 vs. 7,178 units).

In 2003, MBUSA achieved its tenth consecutive year of sales growth by setting the highest sales volume in its history with 218,717 new vehicle sales. With the upcoming introductions of the new 617-hp SLR McLaren supercar, a new generation of AMG models lead by the CL65 AMG, and the fuel-efficient E320 CDI, MBUSA will further expand its product portfolio in the luxury car market. In addition, MBUSA will offer the new generation SLK roadster, an updated C-Class and a special edition M-Class and G-Class this year.

Mercedes-Benz USA, headquartered in Montvale, New Jersey, is responsible for the sales, marketing and service of all Mercedes-Benz products in the United States. More information on MBUSA and its products can be found on the Internet at www.mbusa.com.

                            MERCEDES-BENZ USA
                          Sales -- February 2004

                  February   February  Monthly     YTD        YTD     Yearly
  Model              '04        '03       %       2004       2003        %

  C-CLASS           5,819      5,688     2.3%    10,582     10,301      2.7%

  E-CLASS           3,965      3,756     5.6%     7,831      8,269     -5.3%

  S-CLASS           1,354      1,621   -16.5%     2,807      3,445    -18.5%

  CL-CLASS            218        273   -20.1%       393        597    -34.2%

  SL-CLASS          1,232        888    38.7%     2,454      1,492     64.5%

  CLK-CLASS         1,488      1,386     7.4%     2,896      2,398     20.8%

  SLK-CLASS           305        352   -13.4%       578        712    -18.8%

  M-CLASS           1,666      2,011   -17.2%     3,525      4,286    -17.8%

  G-CLASS             127        115    10.4%       277        240     15.4%

  GRAND TOTAL      16,174     16,090     0.5%    31,343     31,740     -1.3%