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50,000th Mercedes-Benz M-Class Rolls Off Production Line

24 June 1998

50,000th Mercedes-Benz M-Class Rolls Off Production Line

    TUSCALOOSA, Ala., June 24 -- The 50,000th M-Class
All-Activity Vehicle has rolled off the production line in Tuscaloosa, marking
another milestone for the first Daimler-Benz passenger vehicle manufacturing
facility in the United States.
    "Producing our 50,000th vehicle is another important production milestone
for our plant," said Andreas Renschler, President and CEO of Mercedes-Benz
U.S. International (MBUSI).  "It's a tremendous credit to all our team members
that we are ahead of schedule and that the M-Class has been so well received
in the market."
    Production of the M-Class, which began in January 1997, has steadily
increased, with some 300 vehicles currently coming off-line daily.  Currently
there are approximately 1,400 team members working at the plant in two shifts.
Annual production for 1998 is about 65,000 units, with some 40,000 for the
North American market.  Due to the overwhelming worldwide demand for the
M-Class, MBUSI is investing an additional $40 million in the plant and will
hire an additional 100 team members to increase production to over 80,000
vehicles for 1999.
    To help achieve its production increase, more automation, logistics bays
and lift-assist devices will be installed in the plant next week during its
summer shutdown.