Mercedes-Benz is entering the Pickup Truck Market

It was just a matter of time! There’s a Mercedes pickup truck on the way. Yesterday (Oct. 25th), auto giant Daimler, Mercedes-Benz parent company, confirmed rumors that they will begin production of a midsize pickup truck in 2017.

Mercedes-Benz has unveiled its new premium pick-up truck: the stylish, sleek X-Class. The midsize truck comes with permanent all-wheel drive and high-torque V6 engines & there are two major versions of the truck, one focused on off-road use and the other highlighting Mercedes' premium styling.

"With the Mercedes-Benz pickup we will close one of the last gaps in our portfolio," said Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche in a press statement. "The X-Class will set new standards in a growing segment."

“We will open up and change the segment of mid-size pickups – with the world’s first true premium pickup for the modern urban lifestyle”, Volker Mornhinweg, Head of Mercedes-Benz Vans said in the release. “Our future X-Class will be a pickup that knows no compromise.”

Despite the polished look of the X-Class, it's certainly got power, with the vehicle's robust ladder-type frame giving it a payload capacity of more than 1.1 ton and a towing capacity of around 3.5 tons.

Potential customers cited by Mercedes-Benz include "families with an active lifestyle and an affinity to premium products," and "successful adventurers who live in an urban environment."

The X-Class will be available in European, Australian, and South African markets in late 2017, and then in Latin American countries the following year. The company noted that "while a pickup is under consideration for the US market at some point, no timeline is available for a decision to be made."