U.S. Grey Market
The 500 SEL has an interesting place in U.S. automotive history, since American demand for this particular car drove the establishment of a large grey market. The detuned, yet very expensive US specification 380 SE/SEL/SEC was underpowered, according to contemporary reports, and fuelled demand for the more powerful version available in the rest of the world. Approximately 22,000 units per year of grey market Mercedes-Benz (including the 500 SE/SEL) were sold in the early 1980s, according to contemporary reports in the Los Angeles Times.
Read more about this topic: Mercedes-Benz W126
Famous quotes containing the words grey and/or market:
“A great black presence beats its wings in wrath.
Above the boneyard burn its golden eyes.
Some small grey fur is pulsing in its grip.”
—Anthony Hecht (b. 1923)
“Writing ought either to be the manufacture of stories for which there is a market demand—a business as safe and commendable as making soap or breakfast foods—or it should be an art, which is always a search for something for which there is no market demand, something new and untried, where the values are intrinsic and have nothing to do with standardized values.”
—Willa Cather (1876–1947)