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Leopard walks in, shuts down a Mercedes-Benz plant

In recent months the auto industry has seen plant closures due to a host of reasons — parts shortages, recalls, natural disasters, and even a once-in-a-lifetime pandemic. Now it can add to that list the threat of an invading leopard. A Mercedes-Benz factory in Pune, India, was forced to halt production for a few hours when a wayward jungle cat wandered into the facility, When the 3-year-old male leopard was spotted inside the manufacturing unit of the factory, it caused a panic among workers, according to a release by rescue organization Wildlife SOS discovered by The Drive. The site was shut down for about six hours as a Wildlife SOS rapid response team from the Manikdoh Leopard Rescue Centre and the State Forest Department safely removed the curious cat. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The team's veterinary officers Dr. Nikhil Bangar and Dr. Shubham Patil carried out the rescue operation, tranquilizing the feline and loading it into a wildlife carrier. The rescue took about four hours, and Wildlife SOS reports that neither the creature nor any workers sustained injuries. The leopard was released back into the wild.  No one is quite sure how it got onto the factory grounds, but Wildlife SOS says that the forests in the surrounding region have one of the highest densities of leopards in the world. It's also suffering from rapid deforestation. That encroachment by humans has led to a decrease in the leopard's natural prey as well, so wildlife experts think it may have been looking for food.  The Mercedes plant builds the Maybach S 560, S-Class, E-Class Long Wheelbase, C-Class, CLA, GLA, GLE and GLS for the Indian market.  We have a different theory. We believe that the cat was seeking to set the record straight with Mercedes. When the S 65 AMG debuted, Mercedes claimed it featured the world's first Road Surface Scan technology to detect pavement undulations and adjust suspension damping accordingly. The only problem with that claim: Nissan had the technology some 30 years earlier in several mid-80s models, including the Maxima and Japan's version of the Infiniti M30, which was called — you guessed it — the Leopard. 

Race recap: 2015 British Grand Prix is a testament to timing

In front of his home crowd, Lewis Hamilton actually had to work for pole position at the British Formula One Grand Prix. The World Champion couldn't get on top of the setup for his Mercedes-AMG Petronas on Friday, lapping behind teammate Nico Rosberg and the two Ferraris. Come Saturday, after a few alterations and a whole lot of wing to clamp down on understeer, Hamilton returned to his regular program at the front, taking pole position by just over a tenth of a second from his teammate. Williams, thought to be headed for another stretch in the weeds a few races ago, showed its best strength all year. The Grove team got both cars on the second row and in front of the Ferraris, Felipe Massa qualifying ahead of teammate Valtteri Bottas, but they were eight and nine tenths behind the Mercedes'. Kimi Raikkonen out-qualified Ferrari teammate Sebastian Vettel for the second time this year, and only the first time in a straight-up battle with two healthy cars. But more than a second behind the two cars at the front, and with two nearly-impossible-to-pass Williams' in front, neither the Finn nor the German is happy with where they are. Daniil Kvyat claimed seventh, his side of the garage at Infiniti Red Bull Racing having got through the weekend to that point without a single complaint about their Renault power unit. Carlos Sainz, Jr. put a single Toro Rosso inside the top ten in eighth position, ahead of Nico Hulkenberg who did the same for Sahara Force India by slotting in ninth. The second Infiniti Red Bull driven by Daniel Ricciardo did have an unspecified engine complaint – his car kept "bleeding power" on the straights – but even so he managed to qualify tenth with his second-fastest lap. The stewards deleted his best lap because he ran three centimeters outside the track limits at Copse, an infraction that stung a few other drivers as well. Up in front, what would sting the Mercedes-AMG Petronas drivers the most was the start. That's when a dearth of grip struck both Hamilton and Rosberg, allowing Massa and Bottas to slide right up the middle between them and take the first two places. The leapfrogging was so surprising that it looked like the Mercedes drivers were giving the Williams drivers a head start. They diced through the first corners, Hamilton sliding past Bottas into second place halfway through the lap. And then the safety car reported for duty.

2022 Infiniti QX50 starts at $40,025

Infiniti upped prices on the 2022 QX50, but at least some of the MSRP increase goes toward new features. Nissan's luxury arm made ProPilot Assist standard for all five trims, the driver assistance suite includes tech like steering assist, intelligent cruise control, speed limit assist, and distance control assist. Apple CarPlay is another included item for next year's model, as well as an auto-dimming rearview mirror, and more soft-touch luxuries for the rear quarters with keyless entry able to be activated by the rear doors now, LED welcome lights in the rear door handles, and a USB-C port for the aft chairs. The first four grades are front-drivers; adding all-wheel drive adds $2,000 to the tab. For 2022, top front-wheel drive Autograph bows out, making AWD the de facto standard. The trims and their pricing after the $1,025 destination fee, plus their differences from the 2021 model, are: Pure: $40,025 ($950) Luxe: $43,375 ($750) Essential: $47,825 ($2,000) Sensory: $52,525 ($1,400) Autograph AWD $57,975 (no change) On top of the other newly standard equipment, the Essential trim picks up a heated steering wheel, 16-speaker Bose Performance Series audio, climate-controlled front seats,  Luxe fits "leather-appointed seats," and offers an updated Appearance Package for $1,200. The bundle is composed of black mirror caps, body color rear diffuser, black mesh grille, black fender accents, a black liftgate finisher, and 20-inch black-painted, machine-finished wheels. A graphite headliner finishes the package inside.   Sensory snares some features formerly reserved for the Autobiography, like "leather-appointed" perforated seats, four-way passenger power-seat lumbar adjustment, heated outboard seats in the second row, ultrasuede interior trim, and a motion-activated liftgate.  The eight-strong color palette welcomes a new Slate Gray hue. Mechanicals don't change, every model powered by a 2.0-liter inline-four cylinder with 268 horsepower and 280 pound-feet of torque, routing its output through a continuously-variable transmission. The 2022 Infiniti QX50 should reach dealers later this month.