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How Atlanta landed Mercedes-Benz

The first phone call came last spring. An international real estate company had a high-profile client that wanted to relocate its North American headquarters. The client, whose identity was confidential, narrowed the list of prospective sites to Texas, North Carolina and Georgia. Would Georgia officials be interested in a discussion? Behind the scenes, they worked for months to lure the company, touting lower housing prices and a relaxed pace of life. They arranged interviews with CEOs of other companies in Atlanta who could speak about the area's business climate and they augmented negotiations with key executives from a utility company and Atlanta-Hartsfield Airport. Ultimately, they were also offered a reported $40 to $50 million in tax incentives. Secrecy was vital. The intermediary and officials with the Georgia Department of Economic Development gave the project a code name that changed three times throughout the summer and fall, so that only a few people had access to the most basic information. It was called Operation Eagle. It was only in September that the Georgia officials learned the identity of the client, Mercedes-Benz, and only last week that Operation Eagle bore fruit when the company publicly announced it would relocate its North American headquarters from Montvale, NJ, to the north side of Atlanta. "They put themselves in a spot on the north side where millennials can live in the city, and people can live in the northern suburbs and raise a family," Tom Croteau, deputy commissioner of global commerce for the GDED, tells Autoblog. "And when you combine that with the business aspect of a lower-cost environment, that's what we were able to provide them, along with a long-term commitment to support them however we can." In the move, the company benefits from a location that's closer to a growing base of suppliers that work with German car companies in the Southeast, as well as closer proximity to ports in Brunswick, GA, that are some of the busiest in the country. Mercedes-Benz will bring 800 to 1,000 jobs to the area. In addition to the employment, Georgia benefits from another notch in its automotive belt. Atlanta is already home to Porsche's North American headquarters. Kia Motors has a major manufacturing facility in West Point, GA, and General Motors opened an information technology center in Atlanta two years ago that employs roughly 1,000 workers.

Mercedes-Benz USA considering moving south

Mercedes-Benz may be a German automaker first and foremost, but it's a global operation. Among its many offices around the world, the company employs some 800 staffers at its US headquarters in New Jersey. But that office could be moving down South in the near future. According to reports in the Atlanta Business Chronicle, the Wall Street Journal and Automotive News, Mercedes is looking into relocating its American head office from Montvale, NJ, where it's been based since 1972, to one of several locations under consideration below the Mason-Dixon line. Among the front-runners is Atlanta, where Porsche bases its North American operations. The presence of a trained workforce, necessary infrastructure, compliant officials and proximity to a major hub for international air traffic could make the Georgian metropolis an attractive proposition for Mercedes. Several locations in North Carolina are also said to be under consideration, as well. Either way, MBUSA's relocation to the South would put it closer to its assembly plant in Tuscaloosa, AL, and to the Port of Brunswick near Savannah from which it ships out those vehicles made in Alabama to points overseas. The relocation project is reportedly being handled by commercial real-estate firm JLL Inc, which is helping Toyota handle its relocation from southern California and Ohio to Texas. Sources don't expect, however, for New Jersey to let Mercedes go without a fight. The state's Grow NJ Assistance Program could offer MBUSA an attractive incentives package to stay in Montvale. The company previously planned in 1998 to relocate to Pearl River, NY, but ultimately ended up staying in Jersey. News Source: Atlanta Business Chronicle, Wall Street Journal via Automotive News - sub. req. Mercedes-Benz north carolina mbusa

Mercedes-AMG GT S aggressively priced at $129,900*

Just a few days ago we brought you leaked information regarding pricing for Mercedes' new flagship supercar. Now the German automaker has confirmed that the new Mercedes-AMG GT S will indeed retail for $129,900 (*plus a $925 destination charge). That may seem like a big chunk of change, and by most standards it is. But it starts to fall into reasonable territory when you put it into context. For one thing, it's not the most expensive Mercedes – not by a long shot. The previous SLS AMG fetched around $200k, and most anything else at the top of the AMG range – like the S63, SL63, G63 or GL63 – will set you back more than the new GT S, and don't even get us started on anything with the V12 and the number 65. The new Maybach S600 will set you back nearly $190k, and that bonkers G63 6x6 goes for over half a million. As for its rivals, the pricing places the AMG GT S right on pace with the Porsche 911 GT3 (whose 475 horsepower the Benz neatly trumps with 503 hp) and a good $20k less than the more powerful 911 Turbo. It also comes closer to the $115,900 that Audi charges for an R8 with a V8 than the $153,900 it gets for the ten-cylinder version, although the Benz edges closer to the latter in terms of output. The pricing does make it a fair bit more expensive than even the top end of the Jaguar F-Type range, which (short of the Project 7 speedster) maxes out at under $100k for the R model. Contrary to its predecessor and the SLR that came before, however, Benz is wisely staying out of Ferrari/Lamborghini/McLaren territory this time around. In short, Mercedes has clearly weighed its pricing strategy carefully. But if $130k is still too rich for your blood, the less potent base Mercedes-AMG GT will follow in the spring of 2016 with less power (quoted at 456 hp) and with a list price that's yet to be announced but promises to be a fair bit lower. In the meantime, deliveries of the GT S are scheduled to commence in April of this year. MERCEDES-BENZ ANNOUNCES PRICING ON ALL-NEW MY2016 MERCEDES-AMG GT S New Sports Car to Start at $129,900* January 23, 2015 - MONTVALE, NJ With the new Mercedes-AMG GT model range, the Mercedes-AMG sports car brand is moving into a new segment. As the second sports car developed entirely in-house by Mercedes-AMG, the GT has everything you would expect from an authentic Mercedes-AMG, from the characteristic styling, thoroughbred motorsport technology to the optimum weight distribution.