Dr. Z: Mercedes will be top luxury car maker by 2020 - Latest Automobile News

Daimler Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche has been forced to retract a few bold predictions in the past : such as achieving a 10 percent operating margin by 2013 : but that isn't stopping Dr. Z from making one more before year's end. Zetsche announced this week that Mercedes would topple both BMW and Audi to become the world's best-selling luxury automaker by 2020.



"I am confident that we will be ahead of our rivals by 2020 at the latest," he told Boersen-Zeitung, according to Reuters.



Zetsche even upped the ante by stating he intended to reach that sales goal by the end of his tenure. Zetsche's contract expires in 2013, but the executive is expected to receive a three-year extension in February.



Mercedes has struggled to keep pace with BMW and Audi, both of which have been more aggressive pursuing the small car market. Mercedes is also lagging its German rivals in China.



Although Mercedes sales goals remain alive for 2020, the luxury automaker will miss out on any title in 2012. BMW is expected to slip past Mercedes to remain the United States' most popular luxury car brand this year. div.post-content1 ul li { list-style:disc !important; margin-left:20px; color:#000000; } div.post-content1 ol li { list-style-type: decimal !important; margin-left:20px; color:#000000; } #editorial_graph ul li { list-style:none !important; margin-left:0px; }

Source: Leftlanenews