A drawn-out process originally intended to appoint a new Daimler Trucks distributor for New Zealand has now been abandoned.
Daimler Truck and Bus Australia Pacific revealed on December 30 that its plan for representation of Freightliner and Mercedes-Benz trucks here has changed….dramatically.
Thirty months ago the company announced that it would be negotiating with "a number of parties" in NZ to take over the distribution rights here – replacing its own NZ operation.
But now Daimler Truck and Bus Australia Pacific president and CEO Daniel Whitehead says that the company will instead be "working directly with dealerships to ensure local customers are able to receive optimum support."
The move, which starts on April 1, is said to be "a new chapter in NZ" for the company: "Dedicated NZ market staff will be appointed and will share their time between NZ and Australia, working directly with each dealership.
"The more agile NZ model will ensure customers and dealers have a more direct line to Daimler Truck AG in Portland and Stuttgart, through the Daimler Truck and Bus Australia Pacific operation," Whitehead says.
They will also be able to better leverage the Australian-based company's "comprehensive back office operational support systems."
And he adds: "This is by far the best outcome for Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner customers in NZ. The change we are announcing will allow us to provide the highest level of support for our customers and comprehensive dealership network for the long term in NZ."
Daimler says it "has also moved to improve the dealership network for the Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner brands on both islands as part of the new commitment" – with details to follow closer to April.  
Whitehead says that this is "an exciting time for Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner in NZ: We already have the leading cabover product in the market, thanks to Mercedes-Benz Actros, and we will soon introduce the most advanced conventional truck in the country – the Freightliner Cascadia. 
"This is the best product line-up we have ever had," he adds.
Daimler Trucks' representation in NZ has been up in the air since Whitehead's announcement in August 2017, that it was looking for a new distributor.
He said at the time: "Our local team on the ground has done a fantastic job, but we think having a distributor with closer ties to the NZ market could deliver additional benefits for the Freightliner and Mercedes-Benz brands."
The aim, he added, was to conclude the process by the end of 2017. 
Since then there have been some major developments within the Daimler Trucks dealer network in NZ – the most recent the announcement late last year that Keith Andrews Trucks had become an authorised Freightliner dealer for the North Island (in addition to its Merc dealer status in Northland and the Waikato, and FUSO representation in Northland, Auckland and the Waikato).
That sees Keith Andrews Trucks now competing for Freightliner sales directly with North Island-wide Freightliner and Merc trucks, vans and utes dealer, Trucks & Trailers.
And just prior to the news of the KAT expansion, Trucks & Trailers announced that it had purchased South Island-wide Daimler dealer Prestige Commercial Vehicles, fulfilling "an important objective" in its ambition to be "a leading heavy and light commercial vehicle supplier across NZ."