Welcome back ladies and gentlemen; I hope you all had a fantastic weekend.
While we were out, enjoying a fabulous weekend on the lake,
an omniscient reader by the name of Marvin sent us the first photo of a vehicle we've mentioned on several occassions - the Mercedes-Benz CL63 AMG...
In a move sure to garner much praise among AMG enthusiasts, Mercedes has announced today the introduction of the AMG Performance Studio, part of an initiative to appeal to customers with "very special wishes."
To do so, the new Performance Studio will offer customers the standard AMG model variants we've all come to know and love, but in addition will offer special AMG vehicles in exclusive, limited quantities. The most recent example of this is the SLK Black Series, which features a 400 horsepower V8 along with a number of motorsport-inspired modifications...
As you may remember a few weeks ago, we brought you word of a special-edition SLK 55 AMG - one that featured a plethora of both performance and handling upgrades, a few of which include a new 400 horsepower V8 powerplant, a non-retractable carbon fiber roof, and AMG high-performance composite brakes.
Today, Mercedes has put out another press release detailing again the same vehicle; this time, however, the SLK special edition has been given a new moniker: the SLK 55 AMG Black Series...
Mark you calendars, my affluent readers, because on the 17th of August, Christie's is holding their famed "Exceptional Motor Cars" sale, offering you the opportunity to purchase a number of exceptionally rare and somewhat costly automobiles.
Highlights of the sale include a 1952 Ferrari 225 Sport Spyder, valued between $1.2 and $1.5 million; a 1960 Porsche 356 GTL Carrera-Abarth, valued between $600,000 and $800,000; and yes, the astounding vehicle picture above - a 1928 Mercedes-Benz 26/120/180 Type S Torpedo roadster, owned by one family, valued between $3 and $4 million...
For the accountants among you, Forbes is reporting today that DaimlerChrysler AG will dissolve Smart GmbH as a separate legal entity by the end of the year, in an effort to better integrate smart's production activities with the Mercedes Car Group.
According to Ulrich Walker, head of smart: "Smart GmbH will no longer exist by year-end." Walker added that dissolving smart GmbH will have no immediate effect on smart's employees or on Boeblingen town, home of smart's research center as well as 1,300 smart employees.
We've all heard stories of Mercedes' quality, especially on the legendary older models, but have you ever wondered exactly how much abuse a Merc could take?
To answer that very question, British television show Fifth Gear purchased their own 16-year-old W124 E-Class Wagon, and subjected it to various... quality tests. Speed bumps, water, monster trucks, and a cannon were just some of the methods used to dissuade the Mercedes from running...
Adding to the appeal of the already sports car-esque CLK-Class, Mercedes has announced today that both the CLK 500 Coupe and Cabriolet models will be receiving a new 285 kW/388 hp V8 engine. The newly developed 5.5-Liter V8 engine boasts a peak torque of 530 Nm, as opposed to the previous model's 460 Nm, the result of which includes an increase in acceleration from 0-62 mph in just 5.2 seconds (previous model: 5.9 seconds). Despite the power boost, fuel consumption remains between 11.4 and 11.5 l per km, matching the figures achieved by the former powerplant.
In news fans of Mercedes' uniquely diverse music compilation have been longing to hear, the brand's latest Mixed Tape, Volume 13, has just been released.
For those of you unfamiliar with the Mercedes-Benz Mixed Tape, it's a collection of 15 songs, gathered from artists around the world, all compiled into a single playlist. The playlist is then made available to you, my fellow music aficionados, either by streaming over the internet or via free download (for use on your favorite MP3 player)...
For those of you interested in where production of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class Sports Coupe takes place, DaimlerChrysler announced yesterday that in the future the compact C-Class will be born at its plant in Juiz de Fora, Brazil. Production is slated to begin in the first quarter of 2007, following the conclusion of the plant's current-generation C-Class assembly cycle.
According to Rainer Schmückle, Chief Operating Officer of the Mercedes Car Group and and the man responsible for worldwide production: “With this decision, we are using the existing know-how and the capacity of the production site in Brazil...”
AutoWeek has published an interesting article today taking a look at how American Mercedes dealers felt about the impending launch of the smart car in the United States.
To put it bluntly, they didn't want it.
According to Doug Callahan, chairman of the luxury brand's dealer council and owner of multiple Mercedes dealerships: "We asked them not to bring it to the United States because we did not think it was commensurate with the Mercedes-Benz image..."
It's been a little over a year since Mercedes introduced the B-Class, a new vehicle concept featuring "exemplary comfort, high practicality, and exciting design," and already, approximately 120,000 units of the compact model have been sold.
To further add to the appeal of the B-Class and its attractive equipment packages, Mercedes has announced today a new "Active package," a selection of popular options available as a single selection, saving customers approximately 30%
when compared to ordering the options individually...
We received an email over the weekend from our good friend Joost, directing us to a recent test conducted by Auto Motor und Sport which compared four of the world's leading luxury roadsters - the Mercedes SL500, the BMW 650i, the Jaguar XK, and the Maserati GranSport Spyder...
According to a recent article published by Auto Motor und Sport, Mercedes may be planning on launching a mild-hybrid based on their S350 Direct Hybrid concept as early as 2008.
The S350 Direct Hybrid, which made its debut at the 2005 International Auto Show in Frankfurt, uses a petrol 3.5-Liter V6 paired with a high-torque electric motor, a combination that increases fuel efficiency without adding the extra costs of a full-hybrid...
Welcome back ladies and gentlemen; I hope you all had a terrific July weekend.
While we were away, enjoying the exceptionally torrid temperatures that are now encapsulating the whole of the United States, the Team McLaren Mercedes F1 team was hard at work, taking part in the French Grand Prix at Magny-Cours. As we told you earlier in the week, the team's lineup now consists of superstar Kimi Raikkonen, along with the team's former test driver Pedro de la Rosa, a switch that came after Juan Pablo Montoya's announcement he would be leaving the team immediately to pursue a career in NASCAR.
So how did the team fare with the new driver lineup? As always, if you have it TIVO'dk, read no further; otherwise, click through for the full recap...
Summer is in the air, and to celebrate to the joyous torrid season, Mercedes has published a press release reminding the automotive world of their stranglehold on the luxury convertible and roadster segments.
Factual sales figure tidbits, such as the actuality that some 200,000 models of the CLK convertible have been sold since its market launch in 1998 and that approximately 125,00 second-generation SLK-Class models have been sold since its market debut in March of 2004, are all included in this boastful yet informative press release...
