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Next Aston Vantage will be the only way to get an AMG V8 with a stick

With only a few exceptions, most of them factory customs, AMG hasn't built cars with manual transmissions. It just isn't the way things are done in Affalterbach. But now that Mercedes's in-house speed shop will be supplying engines to Aston Martin, the world will be treated to cars with three pedals and overengineered German V8s wrapped in a pretty British package. We're into it. The news comes from Car and Driver, which spoke to Aston Martin CEO Andy Palmer about the new Vantage among other things. Palmer confirms to C/D that the Vantage will continue to offer manual and automatic transmissions when the next-gen car arrives featuring the AMG 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8. In its most potent form, the eight-cylinder makes 503 horsepower and 479 lb-ft of torque in the AMG GT S. Figure on a little more from the Aston-ized version, just for fun. The current V8 Vantage GT makes 430 hp and 361 lb-ft from its naturally aspirated 4.7-liter. While some may lament the new engine's forced induction, that added power and the thoroughly modern behavior of the AMG engine should be welcome. While the AMG V8 is currently only planned to go into Aston's entry-level car, C/D does mention a possibility of it (and perhaps its three-pedal transmission) making its way into other cars as an economy option for certain markets. If a V8 DB11 were to be offered, don't expect it to show up here, though. There's also no word on who will supply the manual for the AMG-Aston mashup, but it likely will be a transaxle like the current Vantage. Ex-factory manual AMGs aren't totally unprecedented. Pagani has built some three-pedal cars with its massaged AMG V12s. Compared to those, however, these manual Vantages can be considered mass-production cars. And really, any increase in the number of sticks mated to AMG engines can only be a good thing. Related Video: News Source: Car and Driver Aston Martin Mercedes-Benz Coupe Performance mercedes-amg confirmed aston martin v8 vantage aston martin vantage

2016 Mercedes-Benz C450 AMG Sport bridges the gap between C300 and C63

Mercedes-Benz is looking to its new C-Class for the second member of its new AMG Sport line, unveiling the C450 AMG 4Matic at today's 2015 Detroit Auto Show. Like the GLE450 AMG Coupe that debuted in early December, this particular C-Class bridges the gap between the standard C300 and the new Mercedes-AMG C63. Considering this, the C450 builds on the standard C400's 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged V6, rather than getting a bespoke, high-performance engine. Output is up from 329 horsepower to 362 ponies, while torque is turned up from 354 pound-feet to 384 lb-ft. The result of these upgrades is a zippy 0-60-mile-per-hour sprint of 4.9 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph. Those figures are identical to the Audi S4, while the BMW 335i xDrive is just a smidge quicker to 60, getting there in 4.8 seconds (the Bimmer is, however, limited to just 130 mph). Shuffling the 3.0-liter's grunt to a 4Matic all-wheel-drive system is the responsibility of Mercedes 7G-Tronic automatic gearbox that, despite not being a member of AMG's Speedshift dual-clutch family, still has its own mind for performance. Along with a quick-shifting, automatic Sport Plus mode, the C450 has a full manual shifting mode that, notably, will not automatically upshift, even when the engine is bouncing off the rev limiter. The C450 AMG hasn't only had its straight-line abilities boosted. Mercedes saw fit to include an AMG adaptive sport suspension with three-stage adjustable dampers, which have been pilfered from the C63 AMG. Paired with the aforementioned all-wheel-drive system, which can send up to two-thirds of its power to the rear axle, it's a fair to say this particular sedan should be one of the brand's more agile and entertaining. Beyond the mechanical bits, Mercedes has beefed up the exterior and interior aesthetics for its second AMG Sport model. The exterior has been touched up with new, staggered 18-inch, five-spoke wheels (or optional 19s), a more aggressive front fascia, a new rear bumper with a matte iridium diffuser, distinctive AMG badges and plenty of chrome and gloss-black elements. The cabin, meanwhile, is home to black MB Tex upholstery with red contrast stitching on the dash and doors, while AMG-specific upholstery lines the sport seats. The flat-bottomed, three-spokes steering wheel, meanwhile, is finished in Nappa leather. We'll have more on the 2016 C450 AMG Sport, including live images, coming soon from the floor of the 2015 Detroit Auto Show.

Race Recap: 2016 Austrian GP is mishaps from start to finish

At the 2015 US Formula 1 Grand Prix, rain mixed up the grid and a first-lap incident cast the die for the race. The Austin, Texas event made highlight reels for those reasons and because it decided the Driver's Championship. At the 2016 Austrian F1 Grand Prix, rain mixed up the grid and a last-lap incident cast the die for the race. The Spielbergring race will feature in this year's highlight reel because it might force Mercedes-AMG Petronas to make some hard decisions about the rest of the season. For the first time this season, Lewis Hamilton converted pole position into a lead through Turn 1, and began slowly pulling away from the field. Teammate Nico Rosberg started from sixth because of a gearbox penalty, but was up to third when he pitted on Lap 11. Mercedes normally pits the lead driver first, in this case being Hamilton, but Mercedes wanted to get Rosberg ahead of the two Ferraris. Hamilton pitted on Lap 22, emerging behind Rosberg because of a slow stop. Sebastian Vettel led the race for Ferrari on Lap 27 when his right rear tire exploded coming down the start-finish straight – an eerie reminder of the 2015 Belgian Grand Prix. The Safety Car rolled out, yet when racing resumed Rosberg stayed ahead. After the two Mercs came in for second stops everyone expected Hamilton to lead, but Hamilton had messed up his in-lap and lost a cumulative 3.3 seconds during his actual stops compared to Rosberg's pit-stop times. The Brit remained second. Hamilton chased his teammate for the final 15 laps. At the beginning of the last lap Rosberg messed up Turn 1 and Hamilton closed in. Rosberg took the inside line into Turn 2 as Hamilton pulled up on the outside, then Rosberg appeared to drive straight on as if he simply wasn't going to turn. Hamilton turned in, colliding with Rosberg and driving over the German's front wing. By the end of Turn 2, Hamilton had the lead and Rosberg had a broken car. The Brit won, the German puttered home to finish fourth. The incident promoted Max Verstappen to second and Kimi Raikkonen to third. Verstappen scored his second podium for Red Bull after his victory in Spain. Conversely, Raikkonen's third place for Ferrari was more gifted scraps for the scuderia. Daniel Ricciardo came fifth in the second Red Bull, Jenson Button delivered a terrific sixth for McLaren- Honda, Romain Grosjean got Haas back in the points, Carlos Sainz, Jr. secured eighth for Toro Rosso, and Valtteri Bottas in ninth for Williams.