We don’t even know what the final version of the newly refreshed 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG looks like and people are already talking about how the first one to hit American soil will be auctioned off later this month.

On February 25, the Boca Raton Concours d’Elegance Gala in southern Florida will hold their sixth annual auction where one of the main vehicles headlining the event will be the 2013 SL63 AMG which has yet to be released. Among the other exotic cars joining the SL63 AMG on the auction floor will be the only 2012 Audi R8 GT Spyder that’s ever been treated to red livery and a Lamborghini Aventador LP700-4.

GALLERY: 2013 Mercedes SL Class

[Source: WorldCarFans]

Mercedes-Benz may have overestimated its latest commercial shoot’s seclusion and the public’s pension for sharing videos online.

A cyclist sporting a GoPro camera stumbled across a Mercedes-Benz video shoot and started recording right away. The shooter hit the jackpot by spying the all new Mercedes A-class without camouflage.

We saw the A-class concept at last year’s New York Auto Show, and the production version will bow this year at the Geneva Auto Show in early March.

It looks as though the production A-class shed a few of the sporty features we saw on the concept in favor of a boxier more consumer friendly design. The car we see in the video has a body kit and large alloy wheels which would lead us to believe that it’s probably the AMG sports package.

Watch the video after the jump and tell us what you think of the new A-class in the comments section below.

GALLERY: Mercedes A-Class Concept

Continue Reading…

A Jaguar XFR-S is likely to be on the way soon, spurred by competition from the BMW M5 and Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG which seriously outgun the British super-sedan.

The current XFR (pictured above) uses a 5.0-liter supercharged V8 to make 510 horsepower which falls about 40 ponies short of both sedans it directly competes with. While that’s a significant difference, it’s probably important to take a step back and realize that none of the numbers in this story are to be taken lightly.

Despite that, Jaguar will have to do something soon if they want to remain competitive. We don’t have concrete specifications on the XFR-S at the moment, but it was spotted running the Nürburgring last summer.

We expect it to pack at least 550 horsepower to stay on par, along with standard performance upgrades like a stiffer chassis and suspension. Of course, the price will increase as well, which we’ll report as soon as details break.

GALLERY: 2011 Jaguar XFR

[Source: AutoCar]

This is a fun advertising campaign, courtesy of Mercedes-Benz – and one that’s just for truck drivers.

To promote its new Actros truck model, Mercedes-Benz created ad stickers in the shape of a roof window showing the enthusiastic response of passengers (if the truck driver had been driving an Actros, of course). The unique part is that only truck drivers in raised cabs could see them. How’s that for target marketing?

A video shot in the Netherlands that features point-of-view of the ads through a truck driver’s eyes is available to watch after the jump. What do you think of this ad campaign? Let us know in the comments section below.

[Source: PSFK]

Continue Reading…

Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) fuel estimates are out for BMW‘s new line of 3-Series cars and it looks like they’ve caught the competition with their pants down.

The 2012 328i scores an impressive 24 mpg city and 36 mpg highway, that’s a 28 percent improvement in fuel consumption over last year’s model. What’s even better is that the 328i actually gets more power than the model it replaced for a total of 240 horsepower compared to last year’s 230. The 300-horsepower 335i doesn’t get a boost in oomph but as you may expect, is less thirsty in 2012. In fact, the automatic-equipped version is downright efficient, bragging 23 mpg city and 33 highway.

Though it might seem like it, these jumps don’t happen overnight, or by some magic gasoline fairy waving a wand. BMW achieved such impressive improvements in the 328i through cleverly engineered turbocharging and by lobbing a whole liter off of last year’s engine. That’s right, there’s a 2.0-liter inline four where there used to be a 3.0-liter six cylinder.

So what of the competition? The Mercedes-Benz C 250 has 39 fewer ponies than the 328i and only gets 21 and 31 mpg in the city and highway despite having a 1.8-liter engine. Audi‘s A4 uses a 2.0-liter turbocharged powerplant and also only gets 22 mpg city and 30 on the highway when equipped with their gas-saving continuously variable transmission, not to mention falling 29 horsepower short.

The jig is up for this model year, but it should be interesting to watch Audi and Mercedes-Benz respond to their Bavarian neighbor’s conservative consumption. Perhaps this is why BMW remains the top dog in the bratwurst pile.

Rumblings of a 3-Series GT might have been little more than a shudder from the rumor mill, but according to a story published on BMWBLOG a smaller version of the unpopular 5-Series GT is on the way.

It might seem strange that the company would launch such a niche car after the previous iteration failed so heavily. Maybe BMW is jealous of Mercedes-Benz. Whatever the reason is, expect to see them launching in March 2013.

They will feature the same rear glass to stubby bum you would expect on a 4-door hatchback from BMW, in fact they really look like a saloon version of the old 318ti with updated styling.

Engine offerings should be the same as the new 3-Series lineup, so expect to see a 2.0-liter twin-turbo four making 240 hp and a twin-turbo 3.0-liter six-cylinder making 300 hp in higher end models.

BMW did actually tweak the formula a little with this car, offering more rear legroom than the 5-Series version. Don’t expect to see these hit American shores, though. The company is releasing a touring edition of the 3-Series for American consumers which makes sense because it seems few people actually buy hatchbacks in the U.S.

[Source: BMWBLOG]

The Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG is due to hit North American shores by March, and the luxury German automaker has announced that the performance-minded luxury SUV will start at a significant $95,865.

The listed MSRP includes a $875 destination charge and will net you a 5.5L V8 AMG biturbo engine with 518-hp and 516 lb-ft of torque. The down side? Fuel economy of just 16-mpg.

AMG will also offer a Performance Package that will increase power to 550-hp and torque to 560 lb-ft. The standard ML63 AMG jets to 60-mph in 4.7-seconds, while the Performance Package will knock a tick off to 4.6-seconds.

The Performance Package also comes with an AMG Performance steering wheel, red brake calipers and a carbon fiber engine cover. The top speed of the vehicle is also raised to 174-mph versus the standard 155-mph.

The 5.5L is mated to a seven-speed AMG SPEEDSHIFT Plus automatic transmission with several different modes of driving available to the owner. The ML63 AMG also features an air suspension system that is speed-sensitive, lowering the body at higher speeds to minimize drag while increasing stability.

Unfortunately no pricing was announced for the AMG Performance Package, but it’s a safe bet that it’ll push the ML63 AMG over the six-digit mark. Cha-ching!

GALLERY: 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML 63 AMG

Efficiency is important these days. The government is cracking down on gas guzzlers and imposing strict regulations that force automakers into saving more fuel than ever before.

That’s why it might come as a surprise that Audi of America is opting not to offer their most efficient diesel engine in the upcoming 2013 Q5. That’s right, the German luxury brand sees fit to package the same diesel 3.0-liter V6 that they currently offer American consumers in the Q7.

Why, you might ask? The answer is simple, though less than logical. Audi is afraid of selling a 2.0 turbo diesel Q5 because it gets better milage than the hybrid-electric powertrain they are offering in the same vehicle.

In other words, the diesel engine is too efficient for the discerning U.S. palette. Now, there may be some merit to the theory, considering diesel fuel is more expensive than gasoline. People can be quick to judge at the pump and diesels still carry a somewhat sordid name among American consumers, even today.

On the other hand Hybrids evoke green imagery and environmentally friendly thoughts, which is even funnier when you realize that Europeans have been driving diesels to save fuel for decades.

Regardless of the reasoning, Audi is doing a good job of pandering to consumer egos, saying they chose to offer a more performance oriented diesel and an efficient hybrid.

Speaking of performance-oriented diesels, the company will also be offering Americans the same engine in the A8 later this year. The same logic that spoiled the chances for a 2.0-liter diesel Q5 is also keeping the hybrid A8 out of reach.

“Our current A8 with the 4.2L gasoline V-8 gets the same fuel economy as hybrids from BMW, Lexus and Mercedes” due to its emphasis on weight-saving aluminum construction, Audi of America President Johan de Nysschen said to Ward’s Auto. “Imagine now what happens when you put a diesel in the car. You have all the driveability and driving enjoyment with even better fuel economy.”

In fact, 41% of Q7 and 55% of A3 sales in the U.S. were diesel models, though the fact that Audi still ships from Germany probably restricted supply, so it makes sense that they would be rolling more models out with the oil-burning option.

GALLERY: Audi Q5 Hybrid

[Source: Wards Auto]

Back in September, we heard news that John Travolta’s 1970 Mercedes-Benz 280-SL was stolen from the street out in Santa Monica, California near a Jaguar dealership. And now the unfortunate news has come that the vintage Benz was recovered in pieces, but two men were also taken into custody as part of a car-theft ring.

Michael Green, 58 and D.L. Rayford, 52, were both taken into custody back in December when a law enforcement task force was investigating a sophisticated car-theft ring. Both these individuals were suspects relating to the theft of Travolta’s Mercedes and through leads developed after Travolta’s theft, a chop shop was found with plenty of other stolen vehicles and parts. That is where the police located the parts to Travolta’s 280-SL.

The arrests weren’t mentioned earlier in order to not compromise a larger investigation into the theft ring. It’s unfortunate that Travolta will no longer have his vintage Mercedes back in one piece, but at least another car-theft ring was managed to be shut down.

GALLERY: John Travolta Vintage Mercedes-Benz Recovered

[Source: Reuters]

In 1989, Rick Moranis played a nerdy dad who accidentally downsized his children to an insect scale in Honey, I Shrunk The Kids. He probably wouldn’t have believed it if someone told him that 23 years later automakers would be doing the same thing to their cars.

For those of us living in the North American 2012, there are increasingly large swarms of little cars buzzing around the streets. The din their tiny engines makes isn’t overwhelming yet, but just wait.

General Motors’ German subsidiary, Opel, is planning to release a micro car they’re calling the Allegra (or, tentatively, Junior). No, not the allergy medication, though the thing is small enough to be mistaken for a bee in ragweed season, at least compared to the standard American palate. When the Allegra hits Europe in 2013 it will probably stand to compete against cars like the Volkswagen Up, MINI Cooper and Fiat 500.

In fact, it’s a solid 3.3 feet longer than the Mercedes-Benz spawned Smart ForTwo, which looks like a cross between a golf cart and an alien space pod. Our spies caught the Opel Allegra on camera during winter testing, but what’s the big deal? Opel cars aren’t sold in North America, right?

Well, not necessarily. Rumors are floating around that the not-so-smallish micro car might make it overseas rebadged as a Buick. (Why not? It’s not the first Buick to come from Opel). And with the recent launch of the Fiat 500 and the Scion iQ on our shores, the market for mini-cars is growing.

Of course, the name will likely change to keep big pharma happy.

GALLERY: Opel Allegra/Junion Spy Photos