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Subtle exterior tweaks for the Mercedes-Benz ML 63 AMG

June 10, 2010 at 10:25 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Cars, International News, Mercedes Benz

The flagship AMG model of Mercedes-Benz’s ML range has received a facelift so subtle we’re wondering why they even bothered. Already wearing the new image given to the entire 2009 model year ML, this car you see here gets darkened surrounds for its bi-xenons, a reshaped bonnet with “power domes”, LED tail lamps with a clear-lens design and shiny chrome underguards at both ends. That’s it folks.

The brawny SUV is powered by AMG’s familiar 6.2-litre V8 with 510 bhp and 630 Nm of torque, enough for the big car to accelerate from 0 to 100 km/h in 5.0 seconds flat. Keep you right foot planted and you’ll reach the electronically limited 250 km/h top speed in a very short time. Not yet time for the new biturbo 5.5-litre V8 it seems. As before, power transfer is taken cared of by the AMG Speedshift 7G-Tronic auto gearbox with three drive modes. The ML’s permanent AWD splits drive 40:60 between the axles.

AMG has done work on the standard Airmatic package (air suspension, adaptive damping system ADS and automatic level control all-round) for dynamic performance combined with “hallmark Mercedes long-distance comfort”. Hiding behind those 20-inch light alloys (21in optional) are huge ventilated and perforated brake discs.

Inside, the ML 63 features sports seats finished in nappa leather with Alcantara inserts in the shoulder areas. Other unique AMG bits are the sports steering wheel with aluminium shift paddles and perforated leather on grip areas.

More images after the jump.
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Lorinser reveals next generation Mercedes-Benz CLS

June 9, 2010 at 12:13 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Mercedes Benz

Has Lorinser jumped the gun in unveiling what the new next generation Mercedes-Benz CLS looks like? The image above (you can click it for a larger version) is a sketch teaser that was released by the tuner this week, previewing the CLS with Lorinser styling.

Since it’s a next generation CLS with a bodykit slapped on, we don’t really know what’s changed therefore the actual CLS might have its bumper looking slightly different, and that engine hood is definitely aftermarket as it’s too aggressive for a regular Mercedes-Benz. The nice large silver arrow on the grille has been replaced by a black circle with the wording Lorinser on it.

CLS

This sketch actually looks very similar to the artist impression of the Mercedes-Benz CLS that Theophilus Chin came up with. It’s not hard to guess since the Mercedes-Benz Shooting Break Concept has pretty much given it all up in terms of how the front end looks like but we’re still in the dark on how the rear end styling will look like.

Do you like what the next generation Mercedes-Benz CLS is turning out to look like? I quite like it based on the above sketch – don’t quite like the first generation CLS because of its headlamps but these are more similar to the C-Class and CL-Class and look pretty good.

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VIDEO: Mercedes Benz SLS AMG GT3 race car

June 7, 2010 at 3:11 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under International News, Mercedes Benz, Motorsports, Videos

The release of the new gull-winged SLS has now spawned the GT3 version of the car. Built to FIA GT3 regulations, the new offering has been modified to produce a track ready car that is available to the general public to purchase, if you so happen to be interested in running a GT3 car in a race.

The GT3 car will still maintain the same AMG 6.3-litre V8 engine that produces 571 bhp. It is already sort of race-ready since it features dry sump lubrication which will prevent oil starvation and make sure all parts of the engine continue to be lubricated well during hard cornering.

You can catch a glimpse of the SLS AMG GT3 at popular 24-hour races such as in Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium, and on the Nürburgring in Germany. Anyone interested in owning one of these monstrous beauties can start ordering them in Autumn 2010, with delivery expected just before the 2011 race season.

You can also watch the SLS AMG GT3 prowl around what seems to be its garage in an almost silent burble.
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DTM driver Susie Stoddart takes the E63 AMG for a spin!

June 2, 2010 at 12:31 am By Paul Tan Filed Under Cars, Mercedes Benz, Videos

Scottish hot babe DTM racecar driver Susie Stoddart gives the new Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG a go around a racetrack. Apparently she likes to burn rubber while wearing heels. But to be honest there’s not much rubber burning in the video above actually, however there is a lot of sliding around and you do get to hear plenty of noise from the massive V8 engine under the E63 AMG’s hood, and boy does it sound good!

Look after the jump for a hi-res gallery of the E63 AMG.
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Mercedes developing W204 C-Class Coupe to replace CLC

May 27, 2010 at 4:46 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Mercedes Benz

There will be a new Mercedes-Benz “C-Class coupe” based on the W204 C-Class coming soon, when the popular sedan gets its minor mid life refresh next year. At the moment, if you want a small coupe with a three-pointed star, the only choice is the CLC-Class, which is basically a previous gen W203 C-Class Sportcoupé with the new style grille and other minor revisions. The old CLK has moved upmarket and grown in size to be the E-Class Coupe.

The old underpinnings of the CLC doesn’t allow for more development, and by sitting on the much praised W204 underpinnings, the new coupe should be a better drive.

“Everybody wants to be Mercedes-Benz. They are after us in the S and E-Class segment. With C-Class, we’re sitting with a four-door sedan and not doing anything else. Now we will go into segments where (competitors) are strong,” said Mercedes-Benz USA CEO Ernst Lieb.

Moving beyond sedan and wagon is a move to match arch rival BMW, which has sedan, coupe, convertible and wagon versions of the 3 Series. It’s “an opportunity to meet our competitors at their own game” added Lieb.

We’re already dreaming of a two-door version of the C63 AMG!

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Schumacher the opportunist penalised, Mercedes appeals

May 17, 2010 at 9:34 am By Danny Tan Filed Under Formula 1, Mercedes Benz, Motorsports

Yesterday’s Monaco GP saw plenty of action, right till the final corner of the race when the safety car returned to its bay for the fourth time. Everyone else took the last corner in procession, except for one Michael Schumacher, who couldn’t help but to display his opportunist streak to the world again when he overtook Fernando Alonso for sixth.

The stewards did not find it funny and handed the seven-time champion a 20-second penalty, pushing the German to 12th place and with zero points after an otherwise good day at the office.

Stewards deemed the race was still finishing under the safety car. Rule 40.13 states that “if the race ends whilst the safety car is deployed it will enter the pitlane at the end of the last lap and the cars will take the chequered flag as normal without overtaking.”

Mercedes boss Ross Brawn revealed a different interpretation of the situation. “There’s a regulation which is new this year that says you can race between safety car line one and the start/finish line. We were advised before the end of the race that the safety car was coming in. There was no instruction that the race was going to finish under the safety car, so for us as soon as we got the instruction ‘safety car in this lap’ at 15:51 we considered the race was now on again.

“And I think you saw the reaction of all the other drivers. If what Stefano (Domenicali, Ferrari boss) has said was true, they would just cruise to the start/finish line because they knew they couldn’t be overtaken, but everyone went for it and I’m afraid Fernando was a little asleep and we took advantage,” he told the BBC.

Mercedes GP Petronas has appealed the decision, which will now be handled by the FIA’s Court of Appeal.

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Brabus takes the SL 65 AMG Black Series to the extreme

May 14, 2010 at 3:04 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Mercedes Benz

Even the already extreme Black Series SL65 AMG is not spared by the tuners. The perpetrator this time is Brabus, which managed to coax 800 horses from the SL’s 6.0-litre V12 engine. 0-100 km/h is 3.2 seconds and you’ll only need 9.8 seconds to double that speed (the new 911 GT2 RS achieves the same 0-200 km/h time with half the number of cylinders!).

Best effort is 330 km/h, but most hands will already be shaking at the electronically limited 320km/h. That’s not the only thing that has been limited – after outworking themselves to create 1,420 Nm of torque from as 2,100 rpm, they decided to spare owners’ lives by pegging it back at 1,100 Nm.

Responsible for this insane performance is Brabus’ twin-turbo system that includes two special exhaust manifolds with integrated turbine housings. A specially made Brabus carbon-fiber hood scoop feeds four big intercoolers while a bespoke stainless-steel high-performance exhaust system with free-flow metal catalysts are included. An ECU remap coordinates the altered ignition and injection timings.

Called T65, this car was a one off model done for a Brabus customer, but the famous Mercedes tuner has decided to go public with it. Customers can pick whatever they want from the Brabus catalogue. As you can see from the gallery, this car was finished in matte black while the interior is covered in breathable black leather and Alcantara. This particular owner specified stainless-steel scuff plates with illuminated logos and the car’s name (Vanish) on the 360 km/h speedo and the brakes.

More images after the jump.
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BMW and Mercedes selling “value for money” cars in India

May 11, 2010 at 5:25 pm By Jacob Alexander Filed Under BMW, International News, Mercedes Benz

German premium marques BMW and Mercedes-Benz have uncovered a unique tactic for the Indian market – selling “stripped out” variants and going down the “value for money” route. Bizarre? Read on.

Unlike in Europe, premium badge customers in India have very little say in customising their rides and choosing options. So it’s high spec at a high price, like in Malaysia. When BMW and Mercedes brought in variants of the 3-Series and C-Class without extras such as leather, sunroof, parking sensors, electric seats and high end audio systems, it was for the car rental market and no advertising was done. But word got around and private customers started to ask for these affordable premium cars, so this isn’t the ingenious marketing solution that it looks like but more of a fluke!

Marketed as “Corporate Edition”, the reduction of a few lakh rupees opens BMW/Merc ownership to customers that are shopping for high-spec versions of cars such as the Toyota Camry, Honda Accord, Skoda Superb and Nissan Teana. The bare Beemer goes for Rs23.95 lakh, Rs3 lakhs (about US$6,600) cheaper than the standard car. Expect to pay around Rs26.27 lakh for the base C-Class, which makes it a whopping Rs6.22 lakh (about US$14,000) cheaper than the high end version.

Stats from BMW confirm that in the three months since they started selling the 175 bhp/350 Nm 320d CE models, 305 units have found buyers, which is within expectations. Mercedes joined the base model party in April. Premium badged cars without much toys are actually quite common in Europe, where buyers get more freedom in choosing options. Do you think such variants will work in Malaysia?

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Mercedes-Benz introduces new V8 and V6 engines

May 11, 2010 at 2:15 am By Jacob Alexander Filed Under Cars, International News, Mercedes Benz

Mercedes-Benz has released a new generation of V-engines, and revisions start from the basic construction with the use of lightweight aluminium crankcases, pistons and cylinder heads while the crankshaft, connecting rods and valves are now of special forged steel.

Other improvements to the V8 and V6 include multi-spark ignition and a third generation direct fuel injection system with spray-guided combustion and piezo-electric injectors that increase fuel efficiency. This creates a homogeneous combustion in the V8 and stratified combustion in the V6 for a leaner burn. Add in start stop technology, shift point adjustment, specific friction reducing measures and overall fuel consumption is reduced by more than 20%.

The new V8 (non AMG, to power ’500′ badged Mercs) comes with two turbochargers for 700 Nm of torque at 1,800 rpm. Although the 4,663 cc unit sees a 15% decrease in engine displacement, it produces 12% more power than before – 435 bhp versus 388 bhp – and that headline grabbing 700 Nm is 32% more than the previous 530 Nm. Stuttgart says that the power available at low revs is similar to that of a naturally aspirated 7.0-litre engine.

Fuel consumption has seen a drop too. The CL500 previously did 12.3 litres per 100 km; with the new engine the big coupe manages 9.3 litres for every 100km, which is significant. CO2 figures are down to 224 g/km from 288 g/km.

The most notable change to the naturally aspirated V6 is the shifting of the V angle between the cylinder banks from 90 degrees to 60 degrees. Mercedes has future proofed this unit by designing it to accommodate future turbocharging applications with the help of a modular design concept. This in turn allows the balancer shaft to counter primary vibrations for better smoothness.

While the 3.5-litre size is unchanged, the V6 gets a new intake and exhaust gas system with a variable-resonance intake manifold and optimised airflow. These combine for increased power (from 272 bhp to 306 bhp) and torque (from 350 Nm to 370 Nm). With it, the S350 achieves 7.6 litres per 100 kilometres and 177 g/km of CO2, a big improvement from the engine it replaces.

Look after the jump for more images of the engine.
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Chinese-market Mercedes-Benz E-Class long wheelbase revealed at Auto China 2010

April 25, 2010 at 1:14 pm By Harvinder Sidhu Filed Under Cars, Mercedes Benz

Everyone knows that China’s economy is growing at a super-fast rate and its no surprise that automakers offer vehicles that are specially made for the Asian country. Joining China’s long wheelbase bandwagon is the Mercedes-Benz E-Class L. This long wheelbase E-Class is the first model by Mercedes that is specific for the Chinese market.

The E 300 L offers 14 centimeters more leg room for the rear cabin and the front seats can be controlled by the rear passengers. The ground clearance has grown slightly as well. The 245hp E 300 is also joined by the 204hp E 260 CGI. This E 260 CGI ELEGANCE comes with things like bi-xenon headlights, Intelligent Light System, electric sliding sunroof as well as Mercedes’ COMMAND DVD system.

The AVANTGARDE version of the E 260 has panoramic sunroof, COMMAND APS with DVD changer, THERMATIC air conditioning system and heated rear seats. If you opt for the E 300 you will go home with a Rear Seat Entertainment System with two LCD screens fitted on rear part of the front headrests as well as a keyless system.

The cars will be assembled in China by Beijing Benz Automotive Corporation which is joint-venture between Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Company (BAIC) and Mercedes-Benz.

Continue reading to view more images after the jump.
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