Speaking with AMG chief Tobias Moers at the LA Auto Show this past week, Motoring reports that a performance pickup is not in the cards for Mercedes. “No, there will be no AMG pickup,” Moers said flatly. “Maybe there’s a market for such a vehicle in Australia, but not in the overall plan.”
Moers' boss Dieter Zetsche was less firm on the subject. Speaking in Sweden last month, the Daimler chief said there was no plan in place for an AMG X-Class, “But you never know.... We’ll see how the market goes and how this product will be received in the marketplace.”
It wouldn't be the first time that AMG would make a high-performance truck with a pickup bed, mind you. The G63 6x6 fit that bill nicely. The issue here is that the X-Class is not an original Mercedes product. Like the Renault Alaskan, it's a repackaged Nissan Navara, built by Nissan, and offered through the partnership between Daimler and the Renault Nissan Alliance.
Maybe if Nissan does a Nismo version of the Navara, Mercedes will get on board. It wouldn't be unheard of, after all, for the Japanese automaker's performance division, which has worked up versions of the Frontier pickup as well as the Patrol sport-ute and various crossovers in the past.
It sure would be a kick to see a Japanese or German take on the Ford F-150 Raptor. But we won't be holding our breath, and won't be terribly disappointed if/when it doesn't happen – especially considering that neither the X-Class nor its twins are destined for American showrooms.
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