1986 Mercedes 300 Sdl - Not Beige! Very Clean, Rebuilt Engine, Svo Equipped on 2040-cars

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Mercedes-Benz GLA Concept gets mobbed in China

If the reception it received at the Shanghai Motor Show is any judge of marketplace acceptance, Mercedes-Benz has a hit on its hands in the form of the GLA Concept. And we can understand why - we're quickly becoming fans of Mercedes' recent styling language, as defined by new models like the CLA and this GLA Concept.
The big news on the exterior front are the headlamp clusters, which have frickin' laser beams attached to their foreheads embedded inside that are capable of projecting videos and images on a screen. Plus, a pair of video cameras are mounted on the roof that can be used to capture driving excitement or removed and taken with you. How cool is that? We just hope they have a substantial locking mechanism to prevent would-be thievery...
If the exterior is mostly ready for production, with a few of the more outlandish elements moved to the trash bin - like, for instance, laser-beam headlamps and removable action cams - the interior is a true custom job that screams concept loud and clear. There are all kinds of jewel-like finishes inside, along with transparent surfaces showing what looks like metal latticework underneath and some awfully thick looking leather with massive exterior stitching done by hand similar to what you'd find on a baseball glove.

Rare Isdera Imperator 108i flexes its considerable muscles

The Isdera Imperator 108i is a remarkably rare supercar from the late 80s and early 90s. Born of a Mercedes-Benz concept car, it's powered by a range of AMG-developed V8s, with five to six liters of displacement, depending on the engine. The example shown here, lapping the legendary Spa-Francorchamps circuit, features the most potent 6.0-liter V8 available. And rather than just being driven about on a perfectly clean racing line, it's freaking power sliding!
Yes, there's something eternally childlike about a wedge-shaped supercar from our formative years being flung about a Belgian racetrack. Adding to the appeal is the Imperator's stumpy, periscopic rear mirror, sticking out of the roof. Even after being out of production for 20 years, this is still a wild, wild car and we'd happily snap up the opportunity pilot one of the 36 Isderas that were built. Take a look below for the full video from Spa.

Is Audi getting complacent and suffering from brain drain?

The argument is made in a Reuters article: Audi is falling behind other luxury brands, such as Mercedes-Benz and BMW, due to a lack of research-and-development spending and "brain drain," or the migration of top executives and R&D chiefs to other parts of the Volkswagen Group. Reuters notes that Audi's current R&D chief is the third in 16 months.
Audi, which contributed to 40 percent of VW Group's $11.6 billion in profit the first nine months of the year, is delivering cars at a record pace: 1.31 million were delivered from January to October 2013 versus BMW's 1.35 million. Yet Audi, Reuters reports, doesn't have a halo car akin to BMW's new electrified i3 and i8 or an answer to Mercedes' plug-in-hybrid S-Class, and the R&D spending at Audi is less than BMW and Mercedes by a fair margin. It's noted in the article, however, that Audi benefits from other R&D spending within VW Group.
Reuters mentions that BMW "trumpets its new 'i' series" and the new Mercedes CLA and GLA ranges are winning "rave reviews" as part of its argument that Audi's recent lack of technological innovation could hurt future sales. Those cars do pack tons of new technology, some of which are firsts for mainstream production cars. But last time we checked, the i3 could be causing BMW's stock to slide, the CLA isn't receiving the rave reviews that Reuters would have you believe and the GLA hasn't been reviewed yet.