Mercedes-Benz tweets about global warming…and plays itself

Most brands want to be on the right side of sustainability. From announcing plans to become carbon-neutral to making a shift to renewable energy, brands are always on the lookout when it comes to being more environmentally-friendly, at least in the public eye. But as it comes to a tweet from the Mercedes-Benz Twitter account yesterday, it looks like the company is an outlier here.

The geniuses managing the brand’s social media account aren’t even trying to make the brand sound more environmentally-friendly. Oh, quite the contrary. Apparently, making it clear that your new products are contributing to global warming is the new cool.

[Kraftstoffverbrauch kombiniert: 8,5 l/ 100 km | CO₂-Emissionen kombiniert: 193 g/km | https://t.co/NCNjWnA238]

If this summer wasn't warm enough already, the Mercedes-AMG GLA 45 4MATIC will heat things up even more with this red-hot finish. 🔥

📷 Mercedes-Benz Kundencerter pic.twitter.com/2xfcKAb85f

— Mercedes-Benz (@MercedesBenz) August 1, 2019

The tweet had people talking…and they weren’t happy. Some customers even expressed that they would never buy from Mercedes-Benz going forward.

OK. That's it. I shall be avoiding your brand henceforth. This much ignorance is almost criminal. pic.twitter.com/2pjCz78gnp

— Mike T (@Buddhaah) August 2, 2019

And Mike isn’t alone:

So never ever Mercedes Benz again. A clear call to go on destroying our environment.

We are in an ecological crises and you fuel it.#noMercedesBenz

— Mo.ni.ka.r (@Monika04372716) August 2, 2019

Another user conflated the tweet with something that would appear in the satire site, The Onion.

Who’s running this account, the onion?

— MadPolak 💥Sparky💥 (@konrad_bilinski) August 1, 2019

Thousands were talking about the tweet, and once it got out of hand, Mercedes-Benz released an apology.

Folks, that was really not our finest hour. We apologize sincerely. We’re working hard on the transformation of our car fleet. We aim for CO2-neutral mobility: https://t.co/eM89zLEp4I

— Mercedes-Benz (@MercedesBenz) August 2, 2019

But rightfully so, customers are calling bluff.

One user, Bjorn, urged the company to hurry up.

In 20 years?!?!
Are you out of your minds?

In 20 years it could be more than "too late". In 20 years we may not have an ice left on our poles.

If Tesla and Elon Musk have gotten to where they are now in 15 years, you can do it in 3-5 years max.

— Björn Svensson (@BjrnSve57669482) August 3, 2019

Others urged the brand to show, not tell.

pic.twitter.com/ZIhyl0O15V

— Me myself and I (@jennybcsilly) August 3, 2019

So, with the kerfuffle settled, will Mercedes-Benz actually take action? It already has promises to become a more sustainable company, but will it follow through? Only time will tell.