Mercedes-Benz rolls out India-made CLA sedan

German luxury carmaker Mercedes- Benz on Wednesday commenced the production of its new generation car CLA sedan in India. "Local production will make the CLA even more attractive for the discerning buyers with additional value propositions and increased availability," Mercedes-Benz India MD & CEO Eberhard Kern said in a statement. CLA is the seventh product to be produced in India.

Mercedes-Benz said India is the first market outside the Europe to commence the local production of CLA. "The start of local production of the CLA simultaneously in petrol and diesel variants is a key decision that will help curtail the long wait list for the sedan," Mercedes-Benz Operations Executive Director Piyush Arora said. Mercedes-Benz India started producing the new generation cars (NGC) in its global assembly network along with sedans and SUVs locally.

The company's NGC portfolio comprises of luxury hatchbacks A-Class and B-Class, along with the sedan CLA and sports utility vehicle GLA. Beyond the Mercedes-Benz plant in India, this network comprises of locations like Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia and will be joined by Brazil in 2016 where a new assembly plant is currently under construction, the company added.