Every car2go in Seattle Will Soon Be a Mercedes-Benz

Carsharing service car2go is making big changes to its Seattle fleet of vehicles. By the end of 2017, every car it has in the city will be a Mercedes-Benz, the company announced.

Germany-based car2go, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Daimler North America Corporation, now has more than 100,000 members and more than 750 vehicles in the city.

Soon, the now-familiar two-seater smart fortwo vehicles will be replaced by Mercedes-Benz CLA and GLA vehicles. As of today, there will be 550 Mercedes-Benzes and 200 smart fortwo vehicles in Seattle, said Tim Krebs, car2go communications manager. By Jan. 1, all 750 will be Benzes.

The company recently announced that it would be making the same transition in Portland and in Austin, and earlier this year, made the switch to Mercedes-Benz in Denver, Montreal and Calgary.

Seattle was joined by Austin, Portland, Toronto, Vancouver and the Washington, D.C. area as the first North American locations with Mercedes-Benz CLA and GLA car2gos this past January.

See the full press release from the company below:

car2go Transitions Seattle Fleet to Compact Mercedes-Benz Vehicles
Seattle is car2go’s largest U.S. city with over 100,000 members

SEATTLE, WA (OCTOBER 25, 2017) car2go, the largest, fastest-growing one-way carsharing service in the world, today announced that it is upgrading its Seattle fleet to be fully comprised of compact Mercedes-Benz CLA and GLA vehicles. car2go expects the Seattle fleets transition to be completed by the end of 2017.

With well over 100,000 members, Seattle is car2gos largest U.S. location, and an overwhelming majority of our members prefer our compact Mercedes-Benz car2gos, said car2go Regional Director David Holzer. Our new Mercedes-Benz CLA and GLA car2gos can carry more people more places in style, safety and comfort. Yet even with expanded interior space, both new Mercedes-Benz vehicles are very compact in size and deliver an upgraded app-based experience that makes traveling in Seattle easier than ever.

Seattles car2go Mercedes-Benz vehicles seat up to five passengers and, despite their larger interior space, are deceptively compact: both are shorter in length than a Honda Civic or a Toyota Camry. Every Seattle car2go Mercedes-Benz CLA and GLA vehicle is equipped with blind spot sensors, adaptive braking and a rearview camera for easy parking.

One-way carsharing is proven to help cities both move and breathe more easily. In fact, research by UC Berkeley illustrates that each car2go vehicle can remove up to 11 other cars from crowded city streets while also reducing air pollution. The increased passenger capacity of car2gos new Mercedes-Benz vehicles further enable car2go to move even more Seattleites around the city using fewer cars.

About car2go in Seattle

Seattle has over 100,000 car2go members and a fleet of over 750 car2go vehicles. Each car2go in Seattle is shared by over 133 members on average.

In addition to dedicated on-street parking at Pike St. and many other locations, car2go offers member parking lots within the Seattle downtown core designed for convenient pick up and drop off as well as SEATAC airport parking at WallyPark ($5 airport fee).

Since launching in 2012, Seattle car2go members have taken 4.7 million trips covering over 19 million miles enough to drive to the moon and back 41 times.

Meet the new car2gos: Mercedes-Benz CLAs, GLAs

car2gos 2018 Mercedes-Benz CLA is a fun and sexy 4-door coupe and car2gos 2018 Mercedes-Benz GLA is a sporty, 5-door small SUV with expanded cargo capacity. All CLAs and GLAs come equipped with Adaptive Braking, Blind Spot Assist, a rearview camera, heated seats, Hands Free Access to the trunk, and full smartphone integration that includes Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Mercedes-Benz car2gos come in three colors: Night Black, Cirrus White, and Polar Silver.

More information on new vehicle features are as follows:

Rearview camera, providing drivers with a 180-degree view for added confidence when backing-up

Blind Spot Assist, which warns drivers when another object or vehicle is in their blind spot

Adaptive Braking, a radar-based technology that can autonomously brake at speeds of up to 65 mph and alert drivers when approaching a vehicle ahead including some stationary objects at a speed and distance that suggest a collision is likely

Hands-Free Access, a sensor in the rear bumper that detects your presence with the cars key and automatically opens and close the trunk or hatch by moving your foot under the bumper sensor

Heated Seats, Bluetooth, Navigation, and Panoramic sunroof

Multiple air-bags and anti-lock braking system

Full smartphone integration including Apple CarPlay and Android Auto

A fuel-efficient turbo 4-cylinder motor that accelerates quickly while still achieving up to 37 mpg highway fuel economy in part though Mercedes-Benzs innovative ECO start/stop system that turns off the engine to prevent fuel consumption while idling at a stop, and re-starts the engine instantly when the driver moves from the brake to the gas pedal

Free new member registration for Seattleites

For a limited time, car2go is offering Seattleites free registration and drive credit for new car2go members. Download the car2go app or register at car2go.com with the code SEABENZ to receive free registration plus $5 of drive credit. car2go covers its members insurance, parking, gas and maintenance with no additional fees. Members only pay by the minute for what they use.