[The Automotive Enthusiast]

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In recent years, premium automakers have run out of niches to expand into and have turned instead to what should be regarded as microscopic sub-niches. (How else to explain the BMW 4-series Gran Coupe, the Mercedes-Benz GLC coupe, or the Range Rover Evoque convertible?) But now both BMW and Mercedes-Benz have admitted that they are planning a cull of variant numbers in coming years. We're sad to report that it's traditional coupes and convertibles that are most likely to face the ax.

"The checkerboard of body styles and segments is rather full, although there are still a few to be finished," Ian Robertson, BMW's head of sales and marketing, told Car and Driver at the Geneva auto show. "We've got an X2 and an X7 coming, and there are a few others, but I also know because we've taken decisions that some body styles will be removed in the future."

Dieter Zetsche (whom Americans will remember as Dr. Z), now overall head of Mercedes-Benz Cars, agrees. "The specialty cars, these coupes and convertibles, were always niche cars," he told journalists at Geneva. "The expansion into China and other emerging markets [has given] huge opportunities for sedans, but they did not take up these specialty cars. Which makes the business case for these vehicles less easy"

Although Zetsche insisted that Mercedes will continue to offer two-door models, he admitted they will not come "in the variety we are having them right now." With both coupe and cabriolet versions of the C-class, E-class, and S-class currently being offered alongside the SLK and SL roadsters and the AMG GT coupe and convertible, there's obvious potential to simplify the range.

BMW's Robertson said that the current 4-series coupe and convertible have been a success, but he admitted the company has struggled with open sports cars. The segment that is not really progressing is the roadster segment, he said. "It never really recovered after 2008, and it never picked up in Asia. Therefore we're working with Toyota on a platform to try to gain some economies of scale."

While the Toyota joint venture will give both companies new sports cars - we're anticipating a Z5 badge on the BMW - Robertson suggests that larger two-doors are also at risk.

"There's definitely more of a move toward four-door coupes", he said. "We've done the Gran Coupes; they've really worked. People like the lower seating position and the sporty dynamics but also the fact there's a door in the back. It's fair to say that when we look at the checkerboard, because of the new things we're putting in, there are some things we can take out."

So if you're coveting a current BMW or Mercedes two-door coupe or convertible, the time to act might be now. Don't count on being able to get a next-generation one.

http://blog.caranddriver.com/mercede...n-is-a-bummer/