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:
“Nature must change her plan
Ere you can be a man.”
—Jane Grey Swisshelm (1815–1884)
“The market came with the dawn of civilization and it is not an invention of capitalism.... If it leads to improving the well-being of the people there is no contradiction with socialism.”
—Mikhail Gorbachev (b. 1931)