2002 Triple Black C32 Amg Mercedes-benz W/ Custom Susp. & 20" Staggered Cec Rims on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2015 Austrian F1 Grand Prix switches to alternating current

It's called the Red Bull Ring, guests are welcomed by a statue of a leaping bull, and dominating its layout demands powerful cars that can run it hard. Perhaps all that aggression is what led both Mercedes-AMG Petronas cars to run off the track in the final qualifying session on their final hot laps, a little too aggressive on the charge. Lewis Hamilton was first into the gravel at Turn 1 when he lost his car under braking, but he was still fast enough to get pole ahead of teammate Nico Rosberg, who spun at Turn 8. Rosberg started second. Or perhaps it wasn't the red bull but the scarlet horse that caused The Silver Arrows to muck it up: Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel had Mercedes' attention all weekend, and he'd line up in third just 0.355 off Hamilton's time. Williams truly rediscovered its power, Felipe Massa going fourth fastest, teammate Valtteri Bottas in sixth. Between them was newly-minted Le Mans winner Nico Hulkenberg, yet again – can we say that enough? – pulling the still-not-updated Force India to fifth place on the grid. Max Verstappen led the Renault-powered top-ten duo in his Toro Rosso in seventh, Infiniti Red Bull Racing driver Daniil Kvyat behind him in eighth. Kvyat, however, would start down the order because of a ten-place grid penalty for needing a fifth Renault engine. After that it's back to Mercedes Ferrari power, Felipe Nasr in the Sauber in ninth, Romain Grosjean in with Mercedes power in the Lotus in tenth – but fellow Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado actually started in tenth because of Kvyat's demotion. Before we get to the race, can we take a moment to talk about the shenanigans and gaudy penalties? Kimi Raikkonen waved the Ferrari flag in Canada after a season that's been full of "We didn't get it right this time," and we thought he was back. But no. In Austria the refrain returned, the Finn kicked out of Q1 after another miscommunication with the team – he qualified 18th. If the scenario plays to form, we'll now wait for team boss Mauricio Arrivabene to issue a clarification that suggests Raikkonen missed a step. Daniel Ricciardo parachutes ten spots back for the same reason as his teammate Kvyat, needing a fifth Renault power unit, dropping him to 18th on the grid and forcing him into a five-second time penalty when he comes in to pit.

Mercedes-Benz to boost stake in Aston Martin to 20%, lend it some tech

Daimler unit Mercedes-Benz is to lift its stake in Britain's Aston Martin to up to 20% by 2023, making it one of the struggling British carmaker's largest shareholders, Aston said on Tuesday. Aston Martin, popular for being James Bond's carmaker of choice, has suffered a torrid time since it went public two years ago, with its shares losing two-thirds of their value this year. The 107-year-old firm hired Tobias Moers, former CEO of Mercedes-AMG, as its new boss from August. Aston said the increase in Mercedes-Benz's stake, from 2.6% currently, would take place in several stages as part of a wider issue of 250 million shares at 50 pence each. The stock issued to the German group will have a maximum value of 286 million pounds ($372.7 million), it said. The deal will see an existing supply agreement between the two firms, in place since 2013, expanded to give Aston Martin access to key Mercedes' technology, including hybrid and electric drive systems. "We take another major step forward as our long-term partnership with Mercedes-Benz AG moves to another level, with them becoming one of the company's largest shareholders," said Aston's chairman and biggest shareholder Lawrence Stroll. The German firm will get the right to nominate one non-executive director to Aston Martin's board after its first shareholding increase, the London-listed firm said. Aston, which has started deliveries of its first sport utility vehicle, the DBX, said on Tuesday it swung into an adjusted core loss of 29 million pounds in the third quarter, versus a profit of 43 million pounds last year. Revenue in the period nearly halved to 124 million pounds, it said. Aston Martin is targeting annual capex of 250 million pounds to 300 million pounds per year between 2021 and 2025. It envisages production volumes of about 10,000 units, revenues of about 2 billion pounds and adjusted core profit of 500 million pounds by financial years 2024 or 2025.

Mercedes-Benz recalls 3,800 total vehicles in two campaigns

Mercedes-Benz is recalling 3,813 vehicles in two campaigns in the US, and the affected models span the top and bottom of the brand's product range. The larger recall covers 2,956 examples of the 2014 S63 AMG sedan and 2015-2016 S63 AMG 4Matic sedan and coupe. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, a software error in the engine control unit can cause the high-performance luxury cars to stall when coasting to a stop. While this can initially appear to be normal operation of the stop/start system, the engine doesn't restart when the driver releases the brake pedal. Getting moving again involves shifting into neutral or park and going through the ignition process. The repair campaign will begin on December 8, and the models will need an update to the engine control unit software. This will also be the second recent recall for the 2015 S63 AMG 4Matic Coupe because another fix will replace their seatbelts. In a more complicated issue, Mercedes is recalling 857 examples of the 2015 CLA250, CLA250 4Matic, GLA250, GLA250 4Matic, and the 2016 SLK300 because a weld on the camshafts might be in the wrong place "due to a production deviation at a supplier." Potentially, the important parts could break and damage the engine. Beginning November 30, dealers will replace the affected camshafts as a precautionary measure. RECALL Subject : Engine Stall due to Engine Control Unit Software Report Receipt Date: OCT 14, 2015 NHTSA Campaign Number: 15V652000 Component(s): ELECTRICAL SYSTEM , FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE Potential Number of Units Affected: 2,956 All Products Associated with this Recall Vehicle Make Model Model Year(s) MERCEDES BENZ S63 AMG 2014 MERCEDES BENZ S63 AMG 4MATIC 2015-2016 Details Manufacturer: Mercedes-Benz USA, LLC. SUMMARY: Mercedes-Benz USA LLC (Mercedes-Benz) is recalling certain model year 2014 S63 AMG sedans and 2015-2016 S63 AMG 4Matic sedans and coupes manufactured May 14, 2013, to September 18, 2015. In the affected vehicles, due to a software error within the engine control unit, the vehicle may stall when coasting to a stop, such as at a traffic light. CONSEQUENCE: The vehicle stall may be interpreted by the driver to be a planned shut-down as part of the ECO-Start-function. However, the engine will not restart automatically after releasing the brake pedal, immobilizing the vehicle and increasing the risk of a crash.