Mercedes-Benz India on Tuesday launched its much awaited luxury compact sedan CLA 45 AMG priced at ₹68.50 lakh (ex-showroom, New Delhi). It is the first AMG range of the company, which is priced under ₹1 crore.

Powered by 2-litre petrol engine, the new car has a maximum engine output of 265kW at 6,000rpm and a maximum torque of 450nM. The company said the CLA 45 AMG can go from 0-100 kmph in just 4.6 seconds.

This will be the seventh car in the AMG series that the German company will be selling in India, apart from other existing models including G 63, C 63, E 63, SLK 55, ML 63 and GL 63. Countries such as the US, the UK, Germany and Japan are the top markets for the AMG range, the company said.

At present, the entire AMG range is imported into India as completely built units (CBUs). But, the company said very soon it will figure out how to develop some of these cars in India.

With the new launch at such pricing, the company expects to grow by double digit for AMG sales this year from 200 units sold last year. Globally, Mercedes-Benz sold 32,000 units of AMG range last year, Eberhard Kern, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, told reporters.

The company is also planning new launches such as new CLA, new C-class and new GLA, through which it expects to grow its sales.

“We will launch the new CLA within the next 180 days (six months) and we are well on track to grow by double digit in sales this year. The market was slow till five months back, but it is again back to normal with the new Government in place,” Kern said.

The company sold 9,003 units in the last calendar year and this year, between January and March, it has already sold 2,554 units, 27 per cent growth over January-March 2013 (2,009 units).

The company will announce the April-June sales numbers next week, Kern added.

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