To Be Continued - Mercedes-Benz to cut C-Class and E-Class wagons, CLA Shooting Brake

No more Mercedes-Benz wagons after 2030

• Current era S206 C-Class Bequest and next-gen 2022 E-Class wagon (S214) to be the last
• Sales of wagons have been falling in all key markets

Enthusiasts rave approximately wagons, but few exterior of Europe really purchase one, and for a part of car producers, the trade case for wagons is getting to be less and less feasible. German distribution Automobilwoche has learned that Mercedes-Benz will drop all wagons from its line-up by 2030.

The recently launched W206 2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class and the next generation W214 E-Class however, will be the last Mercedes-Benz sedans to be sold with a wagon variant (S214), before terminating by 2030.

Even the CLA Shooting Brake will be culled, along with the regular CLA, which like the A-Class and A-Class Sedan, will not be replaced after the current generation model has lived out its planned model lifecycle.

Wagons, sometimes also referred to as Estates, are only popular in Europe, buying more than 70 percent of world’s wagons, followed by USA and China (less than 10 percent each).

Sales of wagons in Europe peaked in 2016, with around 2 million units sold. By 2025, sales is predicted to drop to 1.5 million units, as more Europeans migrate to SUVs.

Even in Europe itself, wagons are actually not that popular, contrary to popular believe by enthusiasts living outside of Europe.

Wagons are only popular in Germany, Sweden, and other smaller Scandinavian countries. Together, these countries buy more than half of wagons sold in Europe.

Elsewhere in Europe, buyers in the UK, Italy, and France, which used to be major markets for wagons, have migrated to SUVs. Every year, sales of wagons in these markets are dropping by more than 10 percent.

This comes after reports of Mercedes-Benz cutting its compact cars range, namely the A-Class Sedan and CLA from USA in 2022 and 2023 respectively.

These models will remain on sale in other parts of the world, but will not be replaced when their model generation’s lifecycle ends.

The move is part of Mercedes-Benz's reorganization of its product portfolio to focus more on products with higher profit margins, and to reduce the company's emphasis on chasing ever higher sales volume.

CEO Ola Källenius says luxury is what Mercedes-Benz does best and the company needs to think and act like a luxury brand.