Mercedes-Benz has apologized for a tweet that appeared to celebrate the carbon dioxide emissions of an SUV model.

The on Thursday, which put its emissions at 193 grams per kilometer, added above of the red-painted : "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."

That prompted criticism from other Twitter users. On Friday, the company tweeted: "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."

Germany and other Western European countries last week saw record temperatures in the region's second heat wave this year, amid mounting concern about the effects of climate change.