2010 Mercedes-Benz C-Class is leather-clad luxury

The 2010 Mercedes-Benz C-Class.

Really, it's not even a ton of money needed to wrap yourself in a leather-clad class. It's the least expensive Mercedes available -- but by no means is it cheap; it's refined through and through.
Cruising along in the C300 4Matic all-wheel drive Benz is like talking with a well-dressed old friend. Every part of the car seems familiar and comfortable, but there's something kind of formal about the occasion.


One day, during my testing, I was going to run to the store and realized I was wearing shorts and a T-shirt. I felt underdressed to drive the car, as well as get out of it and walk through a Meijer parking lot.

There are just some cars that demand a little bit more out of their owners: A Mercedes does that, even the C300.

Nothing is over the top with this car. The way the optional 7-inch color navigation screen moves out of the dash when you start it up seems almost magical. It whirs quietly and efficiently. It's simplicity and artistic.

The leather seats (and leather-wrapped steering wheel) feel comfortable enough for long road trips or daily commuting.

There's a German sensibility to this car that caters to your slightly frugal side -- it starts at $34,000 -- as well as the air of luxury that comes with the Mercedes badge.

The loneliest Mercedes

In car-loving Los Angeles, red, mid-engined sports cars barely raise an eyebrow. But the one I’m driving is causing a stir.

Burly men in huge pickup trucks goggle through smoked glass windows and make thumbs up signs. At every stop, people cluster round the tiny car. “That’s cute,” says one bystander. Another reckons she’s never seen anything like it.

And she would be right, because the car, a 1935 Mercedes 150H Sport Roadster, is unique. It’s not known how many were built, but it’s between two and 20, and this is the only survivor.

After Mercedes bought the car back from a private owner in the 1950s with just 44km on the clock, it sat in a German museum. Suggestions about bringing it back to life were greeted with stern head shaking by Mercedes management. The car was precious, and taking it to pieces to restore it could damage parts that would be impossible to replace. Apparently, the powers that be were worried that they’d end up with an expensive pile of bits.

Their change of heart represents a startling turnaround. Not only is the car now very much alive, but it’s also being driven on public roads, mixing it with towering yellow school buses and gawking commuters. And, as a huge act of faith, Mercedes invited journalists to get behind the 150’s slim, spoked steering wheel and take it for a spin on Los Angeles’ sun drenched streets.

Valuing the 150H is tough because there isn’t another one to compare it with. But a Mercedes chaperone described it as, quite literally, a million-dollar car. Anyone wrapping it round a mailbox wouldn’t be popular.

Kicherer Mercedes SLS AMG With 620 hp

German tuner Kicherer released a new tuning package for the great Mercedes SLS AMG, which unlike their first attempt is actually very nice. They call it the supersport black, and while, mercifully, they have not done much to the body, its matte black finish is just awesome. It makes the SLS to look even more mean and nasty!

Kicherer provides the car with a front spoiler lip, and a new rear diffuer, probably to improve the car’s aerodynamic’s efficiency. And that’s kinda necessary because they’ve tweaked the engine as well and gave it a whole lot more power.

The car’s 6.3 liter AMG V8, which recently won the award as 2010 best performance engine, is upgraded from 571 hp to a massive 620 hp. The standard unit sounds really dirty, you can imagine how cool the roar of this beefed up version would be!

The tuner also hooks you up with a set of three-piece RS1 20-inch wheels with performance tires which provide extra grip. These wheels are painted in black with silver outer lip to cope with the swell style of the Black.

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-Cell Prototype breaks cover

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-Cell Prototype

So you think Porsche has the hottest plug-in hybrid electric supercar (the 918 Spyder). Well you may have forgotten, but shortly after the 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG supercar made its debut, the Stuttgart automaker confirmed that it will do an electric-version, scheduled to debut in 2015. Well, here is the prototype of the electric Gullwing.

Known as the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG E-Cell Prototype, the electric SLS AMG is powered by four electric motors that pump out a total of 526-hp with a maximum torque of 649 lb-ft. The four motors are positioned near each wheel with a transmission on each end to transfer power to the road. That gets the SLS AMG E-Cell to be as fast as its V8 sibling going form 0-60 mph in just 4 seconds. While not confirmed, previous reports suggest a total driving range of 110 miles.

“With the SLS AMG with electric drive, we wanted to redefine the super sports car,” said Volker Mornhinweg, Chief Executive Officer of Mercedes-AMG. “For us, it is not just about responsibility. We attach just as much importance to excitement and classic AMG performance.”

We’ll grab you more details when Mercedes-Benz officially drops the press release (oh, and yes, we’ll grab you high-res photos for your desktop needs).