2008 Mercedes Benz G550 4matic on 2040-cars

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Some intriguing showstoppers from Auto China 2024

“Electric” may be the most appropriate word to describe the atmosphere at the recent Beijing motor show, now considered to be one of the worldÂ’s largest automobile exhibitions. ChinaÂ’s vision of the electric mobility future is on full display during the ten-day event, which ends this weekend. Organizers estimated that 117 new global and China-domestic models would debut in Beijing. In fact, about 30 foreign brands had stands, a turnout that hasnÂ’t been seen at auto shows since before the pandemic. The South Koreans and the Japanese came, and from Germany, representatives making the case for their brands included CEO Oliver Blume of Volkswagen Group, Oliver Zipse of BMW Group and Ola Kallenius of Mercedes-Benz Group. A few of the models would be powered by gasoline—by ICE, or internal combustion engines—but the vibe was clear: electrics are it. According to to show officials, Beijing hosted a total of 278 electric and plug-in hybrid models on display. After digesting most of the reveals unveiled during the show, weÂ’ve parsed a list to a select few of the more interesting models. Here it is, in no particular order: BYD Ocean-M concept BYD has launched off-roaders, SUVs and sedans in its global assault on the car market — and added a hot hatch concept at Auto China. The Ocean-M (above) is a Volkswagen Golf-sized five-door hatchback, meaning itÂ’s likely that BYD will pitch it as a rival for the Volkswagen ID.3 GTX. The show car has sporty design, rises sharply towards the rear window, and sharp surfacing at the front and along the flanks. The show car has a huge rear wing, aero diffuser and side blades.   Denza Z9GT BYDÂ’s luxury brand, Denza, a joint venture between BYD and Mercedes-Benz, showed the Z9 GT, a massive wagon carrying three electric motors putting out a stunning 952 horsepower. The EV weighs an extraordinary 6,338 pounds, almost 440 pounds more than a Rolls-Royce Cullinan. BYD's design boss is a German -- Wolfgang Egger, who previously worked for Alfa Romeo and Audi. Lamborghini Urus SE The Volkswagen subsidiary brought a bit of Italian sex appeal to Beijing in the form of “super” luxury SUV that received its first public premiere in China. The plug-in hybrid Uris SE SUV gets nearly 800 horsepower as well as a series of visual and technology updates inside and out.

Mercedes driver Lewis Hamilton buys LaFerrari

Lewis Hamilton has driven some of the fastest cars ever devised, like the McLaren MP4-23 with which he won the 2008 Formula One World Championship, the Mercedes W05 with which he won the title last year, and the new W06 he drove to the checkered flag in the season opener earlier this month. But what does he drive in his spare time? According to the latest reports quoting his boss Toto Wolff, the reigning champ celebrated his win at the Australian Grand Prix by ordering a new LaFerrari. The seven-figure, 950-horsepower hybrid hypercar may be made by a rival manufacturer to the team for which he drives, but then his employers at Mercedes don't (for the time being at least) build anything that competes in the segment – unlike his former employers at McLaren that offer the similarly potent P1. Something tells us he won't be invited to drive it at Fiorano, though - which is something his rivals Fernando Alonso, Kimi Raikkonen and Sebastian Vettel have all had the chance to do. Hamilton has a long-established penchant for driving twelve-cylinder exotic supercars in his spare time. At his previous place of work, he was promised an exceedingly rare McLaren F1 LM – valued at some $4 million – but only if he won three world titles for the Woking-based team. He also owns a Pagani Zonda that was made specifically for him with a 760-horsepower engine (supplied, naturally, by Mercedes) and a six-speed manual – complete with a clutch pedal, which (apart from starting off the line) is something he doesn't usually get to operate during working hours. Related Video:

Subaru ice driving and Mercedes-AMG G 63 | Autoblog Podcast #571

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Green Editor John Beltz Snyder. They kick things off by talking about the cars they've been driving: the 2019 Mercedes-AMG G63 and Autoblog's long-term Kia Stinger. Then they discuss hooning the Subaru BRZ, WRX and WRX STI on ice at the Subaru Winter Experience. Then they talk news, specifically Amazon investing $700 million in EV startup Rivian, and Maserati finally launching the Alfieri. Finally they help spend a listener's money on a new, green car. Autoblog Podcast #571 Get The Podcast iTunes – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown Driving the 2019 Mercedes-AMG G63 Long-term Kia Stinger update Subaru Winter Experience Amazon invests in Rivian Maserati Alfieri on its way Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: