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Mercedes rolls out ‘Edition 10’ model
Mercedes-Benz is celebrating the 10th birthday of its popular M-Class with a limited ‘Edition 10’ model.

Available now, the anniversary model gets 20-inch wheels, bi-xenon headlamps and special bodywork highlights in titanium-look as well as dark-tinted tail lights. The sporty, refined interior features two-tone all-leather appointments, sports instruments and stainless steel sports pedals.
“The special edition re-calls the market launch of the M-Class, a vehicle now regarded as the pioneer in the premium SUV segment,” said Johannes Fritz, director, sales and marketing, Mercedes Car Group, Middle East.
The standard equipment of the powerful trendsetter includes the seven-speed automatic transmission 7G-Tronic with Direct Select, ESP®, 4Matic permanent all-wheel drive and the 4ETS traction system with additional functions including Downhill Speed Regulation, hill-start assist and off-road ABS.
Optional extras include the Airmatic air suspension system with the Adaptive Damping System ADS, the Comand APS telematics system or Keyless-Go, all of which add extra comfort and convenience.  

New Peugeot plan
Peugeot Citroen, the troubled French cars group, has set out ambitious recovery plans to double its profit margins and sell four million cars by 2010 and to offload a million vehicles a year in China by 2015.
Europe’s second-largest car manufacturer behind Volkswagen reasserted its claim to be the continent’s most environmentally- friendly auto firm with plans to roll out new hybrid and biodiesel vehicles early in the next decade, cutting carbon emissions from its fleet by 10gm/km.
But Christian Streiff, chief executive, announced a seven-year turnaround strategy built around a 30 per cent cut in costs and overheads, as many as 53 new models and a huge expansion in emerging economies.
Mr Streiff, brought in to replace Jean-Martin Folz in early February after 100 tumultuous days as head of plane-maker Airbus, is trying to reverse four years of declining profits and sales at Peugeot Citroen. “We has a serious desire to win again,” he said. Mr Streiff, who is cutting 4,800 French jobs through voluntary redundancy, said he expects between 7,000 and 8,000 in western Europe to have quit the group by the end of this year.

Toyota sets target
Toyota Motor said it planned in 2009 to be the first company in the world to sell more than 10 million vehicles, predicting growth both in emerging economies and North America.
Toyota, which is jostling with General Motors for the title of top auto-maker in the current year, unveiled a bullish business plan including steady sales in the United States.
Toyota has won an especially strong following in the US, where sky-high prices at the pump have boosted demand for the Japanese firm’s smaller vehicles.
Toyota – including subsidiaries truck-maker Hino Motors and small car specialist Daihatsu Motor – anticipated sales to climb from a forecast 9.34 million this year to 9.8 million in 2008.
“We target total retail sales of 10.4 million units in 2009, including those of Hino and Daihatsu, and to sustain the base for a high level of growth,” Toyota Motor president Katsuaki Watanabe told a Press conference in Tokyo.