As we continue our efforts to catch up on the backlog of stories we were unable to bring you late last week, another story that bears mention is one of a financial nature. More specifically, Daimler AG released the August sales figures for their Mercedes-Benz Cars division, and unfortunately, things looks disappointingly reminiscent of the August figures posted by Mercedes-Benz USA. In total, passenger car sales at the Mercedes-Benz, Maybach and smart brands amounted to 84,400 new units, down exactly 12.3 percent when compared to the prior year (August 2007: 96,200). Despite the decrease, the trio still holds a year-to-date sales increase of 4.9 percent over 2007's eight-month ytd figure, with a total of 857,600 units sold (January - August 2007: 817,600). Individually, sales at Mercedes-Benz fared even worse, with the luxury brand noting sales of 75,200 new units – a 15.7 percent decline when compared to August 2007. To date, worldwide sales at Mercedes-Benz now total 767,100 new units, up 1.1 percent over the first eight months of 2007.