Last year Mercedes-Benz flew groups of 100 Chinese customers to Germany and Los Angeles to offer feedback on the exterior finish and interior features of cars including its S-Class luxury saloon, which hits showrooms in 2013. In particular, they were interested in opinions on the back seat.
China is Mercedes’ third-largest market after Germany and the US, but its biggest for the S-Class, the top-of-the-range flagship model. And more than half of the car’s Chinese customers ride behind a driver.
“The back seat has to be reclining – this is very important,” says Klaus Maier, head of Mercedes in China. “It is also important to have opportunities to work in the back – connections for the PC, and space to put things in.”