Daimler says rumours of sale to Chinese car maker are untrue

Reports that the Maybach luxury brand could be sold to Chinese car maker BYD are untrue, according to Daimler.

Following widespread reports of a potential sale in China, a Daimler spokesman responded, "Maybach is an important part of Daimler's product portfolio. There is no other decision."

Facelifted Maybach pictured

A BYD spokesman told the Reuters news agency the company had not been in contact with Daimler. "It's not true, it's market speculation," he said.

BYD is well known for being 10 per cent owned by American investor Warren Buffett. It is working with Daimler on developing electric cars for the Chinese market.

The future of Maybach has been the subject of speculation for some time, with Merc boss Dieter Zetsche refusing to confirm that a next-generation car was being planned. Last year just 200 Maybach sales were registered.

Zetsche told Autocar late last year, "The contribution of Maybach is not significant or relevant but there are only two players in this market and we are one of them. But there are no plans in the long run."

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