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Mercedes Delivers 500,000 A-Class Units; Meanwhile, Amercians Still Left Ou
2007-10-06 19:00:00
Welcome back ladies and gentlemen; I hope you all had a fantastic extended Labor Day weekend and took advantage of the balmy weather blanketing much of the country. To kick things off this morning comes news that Mercedes ' entry-level model - the A-Class - has reached a historic mark, with 500,000 units of the compact model being delivered to customers around the world. As for what Dr. Klaus Maier, Executive Vice President Mercedes Car Group, had to say about the historic sales figure: "Ten years ago, Mercedes-Benz created the premium compact class by introducing the A-Class. Since then, the A-Class has become an integral part of our product range and laid the cornerstone for Mercedes-Benz' leading position in this segment." An integral part of the Mercedes product range? Yes. Available in the U.S. anytime soon? No. An...
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Mercedes-Benz Kicks Off Production Of New-Generation C-Class In South Afric
2007-10-06 18:58:00
On Thursday of last week production of the new-generation C-Class kicked off at the Mercedes production plant in East London, South Africa. On hand to celebrate the event was Thabo Mbeki, President of the Republic of South Africa, along with Rainer Schmückle, Chief Operating Officer of the Mercedes Car Group; Dr. Hansgeorg Niefer, Chairman of the Management Board of DaimlerChrysler South; Joachim Follmann, East London Plant Manager; and numerous other stakeholders. "South Africa has been an important component of our global production network for one and a half decades now," said Rainer Schmückle, Chief Operating Officer of the Mercedes Car Group. "The fact that we decided to expand capacities and add production of left-hand drive models with this latest generation C-Class demonstrates that we are confident in the capabilities of as a manufacturing location." Rainer then went on to discuss the brand's commitment to quality, noting that ...
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Mercedes Introduces Range Of Genuine Accessories For The New C-Class Estate
2007-10-06 18:55:00
Although it's true the new Mercedes -Benz C-Class Estate celebrated its world debut only a week ago, that's hardly an excuse for the luxury brand not to have a genuine accessory range to compliment the new models. Mercedes designers agreed, so today, a mere six days after the estate's launch, comes details of what options are available to add an even more in-depth level of customization to your C-Class wagon of choice. No matter what model line you opt for, whether it be the Classic, Elegance or Avantgarde version, the new range of accessories offers a wealth of options designed to emphasize both luxury and "sportiness." Take for example, Mercedes' new incenio designer wheels. Available in sizes ranging from sixteen to eighteen inches, the new wheels feature a brilliant "sterling silver" finish, accenting perfectly the Avantgarde line's sporty new front grille. For the luxury aficionados amongst you, a wood/leather steering wheel (pictured below) ...
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The Special Edition Mercedes-Benz C350 Sport
2007-10-06 18:45:00
Yes ladies and gentlemen, after taking a slightly extended weekend, we are indeed back, kicking off this bright Tuesday morning with news that broke a couple weeks ago (but due to an influx of auto show news I forgot to bring you). Better late than never is the approach I'm taking with this story, so in case you haven't heard, Mercedes -Benz USA has announced that starting next month, a limited run of 1,000 exclusively-appointed C350 Sport s will be produced, with $1 million in proceeds from the sale of the vehicles going to benefit Saks Fifth Avenue's Key To The Cure women's cancer research initiative. The limited edition models, all packing Mercedes' 268-horsepower 3.5 liter V-6 engine, feature Obisidian Black metallic paint, an exclusive Sahara Beige/Black leather interior, 18-inch AMG twin spoke aluminum alloy wheels, the Multimedia package (comprised of HDD Navigation, Harman Kardon sound system, DVD changer, and Voice Control), and an iPod integration kit...
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Mercedes-Benz to add start-stop capability to entire lineup
2007-09-10 19:28:00
Mercedes-Benz to add start-stop capability to entire lineupFollowing on the heels of BMW's decision to add Efficient Dynamics technology to pretty much their entire model lineup, Mercedes has decided to do start doing much the same thing. Start ing with the A and B Class small cars in September, Mercedes will be adding engine start-stop capabilities on all their cars. The small front wheel drive models will reportedly be using the Valeo belt drive system while the larger rear wheel drive models will use a different system. Those models will rely on an integrated flywheel starter-generator similar to what General Motors had on their now-discontinued parallel hybrid pickup trucks.
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Mercedes will debut F700 with DiesOtto engine at the Frankfurt Motor Show
2007-09-10 19:26:00
Mercedes will debut F700 with DiesOtto engine at the Frankfurt Motor Show Mercedes is bringing the green to the upcoming Frankfurt Motor Show with their new sedan concept car, the F700. Remember that DiesOtto engine that we told you about a while back? It's making its debut in this new luxury sedan. To refresh your memory, that engine produces 238hp and 295ft-lb. of torque from just 1.8 liters of displacement using some new technology known to many as homogeneous charge compression ignition, or HCCI, which "operates in compression ignition mode under light loads and spark ignition at other times" according to our own Sam Abuelsamid. The fuel mileage of the car with the DiesOtto engine is expected to be almost 40 miles per gallon, which is excellent for such a large vehicle. The new F700 concept is just one of 18 vehicles that Mercedes is expected to showcase, including new Bluetec diesels and hybrids with both gasoline and diesel engines.
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Siemens brings a prototype Mercedes C-Class to Woodward Dream Cruise
2007-09-10 19:25:00
Siemens brings a prototype Mercedes C-Class to Woodward Dream Cruise It is no secret that one potential problem with lithium ion batteries is the fact that they get hot. GM had issues with their batteries overheating when they drove their hydrogen Sequel's 300 miles, and Tesla has their pack sealed and liquid cooled to beat the heat. Siemens is interested in getting in on the hybrid game, especially for performance oriented hybrids like those sold by Lexus. They are using a Mercedes C-Class sport coupe as a test-bed for their hybrid systems and are working on cooling solutions for the battery pack mounted in the trunk. The vehicle on which this concept is based has a 1.8 liter supercharged four-cylinder engine, which allows for decent performance, but when the two motors of the hybrid kick in to help out, it transforms into a powerhouse. The concept car can reach sixty mph in just six seconds while cutting gasoline usage by nearly a quarter. "This car will beat those muscle cars on...
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Mercedes 45-state diesels become 42-state diesels
2007-09-10 19:24:00
Mercedes 45-state diesels become 42-state dieselsWhen Mercedes-Benz announced their latest batch of diesel engined variants of the E, R, ML and GL class in 2006 they were labeled as forty-five state legal because they didn't yet meet the Tier 2 Bin 5 emissions standards for California and four other states. Unfortunately, for the 2008 model year they also won't be legal in Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Rhode Island because the California standards take effect in those states this year.For 2009 the ML320 will again be available in all fifty states when Mercedes adds the more advanced Bluetec system with urea injection. The other three models get the more advanced after treatment system for the 2010 model year.
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There will be no stopping the Chinese-built Smart clone
2007-09-10 19:12:00
There will be no stopping the Chinese -built Smart cloneAutomotive News Europe (subs req'd) is reporting that there is very little that will stop the upcoming sales of a Smart 'clone' in Europe. Even though Martin Motors, the European importer of the Noble, a Chinese-built car, has been threatened with lawsuits, Martin is saying the cars will go on sale at the end of October or early November for between seven and nine thousand euros. The Smart car company is part of Mercedes-Benz.The CEO of Martin Motors, Guido Martinelli, explained to Automotive News Europe that Mercedes' legal threats are not a big deal. "After a preliminary hearing between our lawyers and those from our German distrubtor, we see no evidence in Mercedes claims. We plan to show the Noble at the IAA in Frankfurt," he said.IAA organizers may prevent the Noble from making an appearance "if the model infringed intellectual property rights," Automotive News Europe writes. Look at the pictures above. You think it qua...
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Frankfurt Preview: Mercedes S300 Hybrid
2007-09-10 19:10:00
Frankfurt Preview : Merc edes S300 Hybrid Click to enlargeAmong the seven new hybrid models that Mercedes-Benz will be displaying at next week's Frankfurt Motor Show is this S300 hybrid. The S300 has a four cylinder Bluetec diesel (probably the latest 2.2L) that, combined with the hybrid system, has an output of 224 hp and 413 lb-ft of torque. A full-size luxury sedan running at 43.6 mpg is certainly nothing to sneeze at. The best part is that this car could be Tier 2 Bin 5 compliant so it could be fifty-state legal in the US market. We don't know if it has the Two-Mode hybrid or the mild hybrid system that Mercedes is developing with BMW. We'll find out soon enough.
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Frankfurt Preview: Mercedes-Benz ML450 Two-Mode Hybrid
2007-09-10 19:03:00
Frankfurt Preview : Mercedes -Benz ML450 Two-Mode Hybrid Click to enlargeFollowing on the heels of General Motors and Chrysler earlier this year, Mercedes-Benz will be showing their first Two-Mode hybrid application next week in Frankfurt. Like its partners, Mercedes will be putting the system into an SUV, in this case the ML450. The combined output of the ML will be 340 hp and 354 lb-ft of torque. Combined fuel efficiency should be 30.5 mpg (US).They haven't specified which gas engine will be used although the output seems to imply a V-6 of about 3.5L. If that's the case they will be following the Lexus nomenclature practice of numbering their hybrids with the equivalent gas engine output (450 being comparable to a 4.5L V-8). The ML450 is scheduled to go on sale in 2009.
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