The official launch of the new Mercedes-Benz Actros is just two short days away (August 23, 2008), so to celebrate, Mercedes did the only logical thing they could do:  they had one gargantuan kickoff party.  In total, the company assembled roughly 350 Actros demonstration vehicles at their Wörth plant in Germany, and one by one, every thirty seconds, sent off the new Actros' to Mercedes-Benz dealerships and company-owned Daimler outlets across Germany. Driving the trucks were salesman from throughout the country, while the Actros' departed based on their destination, with those traveling the farthest leaving first.

This marks the third generation of Actros to be introduced by Mercedes-Benz, with more than 550,000 Actros sold in more than 100 countries over its lifespan – figures that make the model the world's best-selling heavy-duty truck.  To help carry on this extremely successful lineage, the new Actros offers key improvements in the areas of economy, comfort, safety and environmentally friendliness, a feat aided largely by the 12-speed Mercedes Powershift 2 automated transmission – a feature that's now standard equipment on all road-going trucks.

To learn more about the new generation Mercedes-Benz Actros as well as its sendoff party at the Wörth Mercedes-Benz plant, you can find the complete details and photos immediately below.

Enjoy.












OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE


Mercedes-Benz launches brand-new Actros with 350 trucks in convoys

• Demonstration vehicles on their way to the German Mercedes-Benz dealerships
  
  
• New Actros demonstration vehicles head out in all directions from the Wörth plant
  

Stuttgart/Wörth am Rhein – Today a spectacular series of convoys headed out in all directions from the Wörth Mercedes-Benz plant in Germany to the Mercedes-Benz dealerships and company-owned Daimler outlets. The event heralds the nationwide launch of the brand-new Actros truck on August 23, 2008. It was truly a sight to behold: every thirty seconds, one of the 350 or so new Actros demonstration vehicles left the biggest truck factory in the world.

These semitrailer trucks were lined up in pairs on starting ramps in the drivers' paddock. The drivers of the 350 Actros are Mercedes-Benz truck salesmen from all over Germany. The distances to the respective destinations determined the starting order, with those who had furthest to go setting off first.

The Mercedes-Benz Actros enters its third generation with a firm focus on economy, comfort, safety and environmentally friendliness. A fresh and powerful design has further enhanced the aesthetic appeal of the new Mercedes-Benz flag ship series. With more than 550,000 units sold in more than 100 countries, the Actros family is acknowledged to be the world's best-selling heavy-duty truck.

The new Actros is a further improvement on this success story, with even more benefits for vehicle operators by virtue of lower fuel costs and increased availability. This is decisively aided by the 12-speed Mercedes Powershift 2 automated transmission, which is standard equipment in a roadgoing truck for the first time and represents a real milestone in terms of economy, comfort and safety.

Copyright © 2008, Daimler AG