Inside Line has learned that the 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG will go on sale in the U.S. in April 2010 as a late 2010 model.
Mercedes officials have also let us know the gullwing Benz will take over for the SL63 AMG as the safety car for the 2010 Formula One season.
And we have an unofficial non-denial that there one day will be a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series.
Mercedes calls its new higher-performance option for its C63 AMG model the Performance Package Plus. And while we always approve of alliteration, we prefer to think of the power and performance boosting option as the Charcoal Series -- not quite all the way to Black Series status.
The PPP adds a few engine tricks from the upcoming SLS Gullwing sports car including the same forged pistons, new connecting rods and lightweight crankshaft. The weight saved in those internal pieces boost the responsiveness of the V8 which now boasts 480horsepower (up from the standard C63's 451). We would expect the additional juice to allow the PPP to chop a little time off the C63's already stellar 12.5-second quarter-mile time.
The Package also includes compound brake discs on the front and red-painted calipers at all four corners. The sedan also gets a carbon-fiber trunk-lid spoiler.
The full package costs about $10,000 in European markets where the option becomes available in December. The U.S. market version won't be available until sometime in the first quarter of 2010. And, details on the equipment are not finalized yet. But the American version will likely include the engine upgrades as part of the existing P30 Performance Package which already includes the two-piece front brakes, a limited-slip diff, stiffer springs and a speed-limiter set to 174 mph.
We're not really sure if Mercedes-Benz is gong to revert back to the S-Class coupe name just yet, but it seems logical given the switch already made on the E-Class. Regardless of what's it's called, this revised version of the current CL coupe will only get the most minor of exterior updates.
Changes like new headlight clusters, revised taillights and new electronics on the inside are probably the extent of the changes on this midcycle refresh. With that in mind, expect to see this car arrive with only minimal fanfare sometime early next year.
Redesigning a sedan that made its name on looks alone isn't easy. Mercedes-Benz looks as though it's taking a conservative approach with its next-generation CLS sedan. The prototype seen here testing in Germany retains the same signature roofline as the current model and appears to be roughly the same size as well.
Details like quad tailpipes and sizable wheels and tires indicate this is probably the AMG-tuned version. We expect to see output similar to the new E63 AMG, so figure around 520-horsepower or so. That ought to do it.
Chrysler's messy breakup with Daimler continues to reverberate into the Fiat era, as the Detroit News reports today that a dispute over parts threatens to delay the 2010 launch of the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee. Also at risk are next-gen versions of the Dodge Durango and Charger, along with the Chrysler 300.
You'll recall that the redesigned Grand Cherokee is based on the Mercedes-Benz M-Class. Daimler AG manages the supply of major parts for it, including the axles. But Daimler is still sore at Chrysler for not buying as many diesels for European-market Jeeps, Dodges and Chryslers as it originally said it would, and it wants $80 million in compensation before it ships the axles. Chrysler says it would not be able to secure an alternate supplier for the axles until January 2011 -- significantly delaying the launch.
So Chrysler has amended a lawsuit it filed in U.S. bankruptcy court in August to settle all lingering parts disputes between the companies. The Detroit News quotes a Daimler AG spokesman as saying the matter can be resolved out of court. (Hmm, bet Daimler would like that.) Chrysler has asked the court to retire any debt claims between the companies and issue an injunction if Daimler won't ship the axles.
Updated
This week we learned that Gran Turismo 5 will launch in March 2010... in Japan. Still no date for the U.S., yet. Maybe the delay is because GT5's creator, Kazunori Yamauchi, had to take time out to lap the Nurburgring Nordschleife in the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, which is on the car list for the upcoming (apparently...) PS3 game.
Also, we now have proof that the SLS AMG really is in the game, thanks to some gameplay footage from the 2009 Tokyo Game Show. And Sony's Polyphony Digital has produced a commercial for Gran Turismo 5 starring the reborn Benz Gullwing. Both videos are after the jump.
Continue reading Video: Sony's Kazunori Yamauchi Drives Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG.
Today we get an update on Gran Turismo 5 not from Sony's Polyphony Digital studio, but from Mercedes-Benz. You'll be able to purchase and race the reborn gullwing Benz in GT5. In honor of that, Mercedes will show the SLS AMG at the Tokyo Game Show Sept. 24-27.
Yes, this is a 525-horsepower, matte-silver station wagon with carbon-ceramic brake rotors. Is any additional explanation why this is cool really needed?
We've known for some time that there would be an electric version of Benz's new Gullwing, and today in Frankfurt, Inside Line learned more details about the Mercedes-Benz SLS Electric. Mercedes now plans to put it into production "after 2011" -- sooner than the MY2015 launch we'd reported earlier.
The company is still committed to delivering 526 hp and 649 lb-ft of torque via four electric motors built into the car's axles paired with a transmission at either end. Maximum speed is 150 mph -- 25 more than the Audi e-Tron -- and Benz officials still say the electric SLS will hit 60 mph in under 4 seconds. Claimed driving range is 154 miles.
Having the right batteries will be critical to such feats, obviously, and we learned today that the rear-mounted 400-volt, 48-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack will be manufactured by Evonik.
Among the reasons we like Mercedes-Benz is that the company still brings the show business to the business of auto shows.
For the introduction of the SLS (which, incidentally, we drove two months ago), Mercedes had huge lighted balls on 20-foot-tall posts, out of which oddly painted humans rose and then descended for absolutely no reason. There was a woman playing the saxophone on center stage. And as the new gullwing sports car pulled onto the stage, it did so in a thick blanket of smoke -- old-school, dog-and-pony-show smoke. Yes!
Hit the jump for a full rundown on the SLS and a photo gallery.
Continue reading 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show: Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG.
Undoubtedly, you know that actor Patrick Swayze died today at age 57 after a two-year battle with pancreatic cancer. And so we offer this quick tribute to Swayze and the iconic cars he drove during his career.
For starters, there's the 1957 Chevrolet Bel Air Hardtop Coupe from Dirty Dancing (1987). You can watch a nice (but non-embeddable) clip of Swayze pulling away in the Bel Air after the tearful good-bye with Baby here.
In Road House (1989), a film loved only by Editor in Chief Scott Oldham, Swayze drove this 1965 Buick Riviera, which would have had a 401-cid V8.
We know it's a '65, because that was the only year that had clamshell covers over the headlights. And if you watched, you know that Swayze's character (James Dalton, a bouncer) liked the covers because they would keep people from smashing his headlights.
Dalton also drove an '86 Mercedes-Benz 560 SEC, which had the 5.6-liter (5,547cc), 2-valve V8. The trailer for Road House shows Swayze driving the Benz, and you can watch it after the jump.
LA Times: Patrick Swayze dies at 57
Continue reading The Cars Patrick Swayze Drove.
Bill Visnic analyzes the confirmed list of Frankfurt Auto Show debuts over on Auto Observer today and makes the suggestion that the sort of old-school luxury associated with big engines, rich interiors and large profit margins might end up being a casualty of our current economic times. In its place is a more rational, environmentally minded view of the top end of the market.
"How else to interpret the rash of hybrid-electric and pure-electric unveilings from the German automakers -- on their Frankfurt home field, no less -- the ones who long pooh-poohed any kind of vehicle electrification in favor of advanced diesel engines?" Visnic asks.
He points to the BMW Vision EfficientDynamics diesel-electric, plug-in hybrid concept, which balances its 356 horsepower with a claimed 63 mpg on the European test cycle, and the Mercedes-Benz Vision S500 Plug-In Hybrid that will supposedly haul to 60 mph in the low 5s while returning 74 mpg (Euro test cycle). And of course there's the Lexus LF-Ch, which is both a hybrid and a compact hatchback.
Then again, more traditional high-end cars like the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, Ferrari 458 Italia and Lamborghini Reventon Roadster will be on the floor, too. Are they still relevant?
Auto Observer: Frankfurt Motor Show: Enviro Plays, Luxury the Big Question
See the full list of introductions at the 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show
It's amazing what happens when the psychodelic camouflage comes off a long-awaited Mercedes-Benz production car. Here's the 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, the reborn Gullwing, the modern-day successor to the 300 SL. We've driven it, savored the uncommonly sharp throttle response from the 6.2-liter V8 (563 hp, 479 lb-ft of torque) and marveled over the handling -- which is more direct and communicative than any other Benz in recent memory.
You'll see the SLS AMG in our 2009 Frankfurt Auto Show coverage next week, but for now, we have many good photos to keep you entertained. Just follow the jump.
First Drive: 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG
Continue reading Frankfurt Preview: 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG in the Metal.
We've driven the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 sedan and now one of our German shooters has gotten a look at the E63 AMG wagon.
We've always like the idea of Benz's AMG wagon. Who doesn't want to haul a bunch of stuff whilst hauling ass with a 6.2-liter V8 rated at 518 horsepower and 465 pound-feet torque? Mercedes says the E63 AMG sedan will hit 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, so even the slightly heavier E63 wagon should be comfortably below the 5-second mark.
We still haven't decided whether we like the new E-Class styling, but as is usually the case, it sits a lot better on the wagon than the sedan. Though seen in unpolished form here, the trapezoidal quad exhaust outlets look as cool on this E63 wagon as they do on the sedan. Black tape on the front quarter panel might suggest some kind of venting, but more likely it's just covering up the customary "6.3 AMG" badge.
The E63 sedan goes on sale in October, and it's likely the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG wagon won't be too far behind. Mercedes will show the entire E-Class wagon lineup at this month's Frankfurt Auto Show.
A celebrity fan site has posted a couple photos from the set of the upcoming Sex in the City film sequel, and one of them shows the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet. The other, which is after the jump, shows Sarah Jessica Parker.
We can't say we're surprised Mercedes is using a Sex in the City movie to whet our appetite for the E-Class convertible. The Benz GLK350 made a cameo in the original film, and Kim Cattrall drove it onto the Mercedes-Benz stand at the 2008 Detroit Auto Show.
The movie doesn't come out until May 28, 2010, so it's a fair bet that's about when E350 and E550 Cabriolets will show up at U.S. dealerships.
Spy Photos: Mercedes-Benz E-Class Convertible Shows Off New Wind-Deflection System
Continue reading 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet to Appear in Sex in the City Sequel.
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