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2021 Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600 First Drive | Fat cat money

ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Do you like the Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class, but just donÂ’t think itÂ’s fancy or expensive enough as it is? Maybe the AMG version is too audaciously sporty or you'd prefer a completely different flavor of garish. Maybe you donÂ’t want to be seen driving the GLS at all. If youÂ’re looking for the perfect GLS to be driven in, but need to make sure you look more like the type of fat cat to blow money on lavish, boozy dinners and decorative fountains than the pro baller who splurges on a home gym and tennis courts, Mercedes finally has the giant SUV just for you: the Mercedes-Maybach GLS 600. Is this tongue-in-cheek straw man in any way indicative of an actual Maybach owner? Who knows. We can barely comprehend how rich someone might be who can afford this $161,525 ultra-luxury SUV (before any options) let alone actually know someone of such largesse. Nevertheless, the GLS upon which it's based is certainly no stranger to us. We first drove the GLS 470 in Austria's Tyrolean Alps, sampled the AMG GLS 63 in the Columbia River Gorge, and nominated its bouncy E-Active Body Control suspension for AutoblogÂ’s 2020 Technology of the Year Award. Most of the same ingredients are present in the Maybach 600, but just one look at this two-tone luxury liner requires you to rethink the scope of what the GLS can do. While the overall body style looks more or less the same, there was no mistaking our tester for an ordinary GLS, or even an extraordinary AMG model. The two-tone paint — Lunar Blue Metallic below, and Iridium Silver Metallic from the beltline up — shouts to passersby (in an aristocratic German accent, presumably) that thereÂ’s something different going on here. The optional wheels, which get their own Maybach design, measure an absolutely massive 23 inches. Perched on the nose is the nearly extinct Mercedes hood ornament. The final giveaway comes when you move in a little closer and see the Maybach badging on the grille, tailgate and D-pillars. But seriously, that paint job is something else. The exterior doesnÂ’t quite do justice to what awaits within. The driverÂ’s door opens to a rich, inviting and clearly technologically advanced cockpit. The dual screen dash housing the instrument panel and infotainment touchscreen is becoming familiar from GLS down to GLA, as are the multitude of controls on the wheel and center console with which one can easily interact with them.

2016 German Grand Prix race recap: so-so racing, great questions

We can summarize the 2016 German Grand Prix in one sentence: Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver Lewis Hamilton started second on the grid, passed pole-sitter and teammate Nico Rosberg before the first corner, and dominate to the finish. In fact, Hamilton turned his engine power output down on Lap 3 and still took the checkered flag seven seconds ahead of Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo. Ricciardo's teammate Max Verstappen crossed the line another six seconds back. Rosberg fell to fourth at the first corner and couldn't find the pace to reel in the Red Bulls. His questionable pass on Verstappen didn't help when the stewards penalized Rosberg five seconds; the overtake reminded us of Rosberg's move on teammate Hamilton in Austria. That penalty turned into eight seconds when the Mercedes-AMG Petronas stopwatch didn't work in the pits. Ferrari pilots Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen finished fifth and sixth. Those six drivers all started in the top six, too. Behind them, on Lap 28 of the 67-lap race the next four drivers were Valtteri Bottas in the Williams, Nico Hulkenberg in the Force India, and Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso in McLarens. Low fuel and old tires put the kibosh on Alonso's pace just four laps from the finish, allowing Force India's Sergio Perez to pass, rounding out the top ten. The issues up for debate during the four-week break are far more interesting than the weekend's race. As bad as Ferrari's day might have been – and we'll get to that – Rosberg probably took the biggest hit, losing the race before the first corner for the second weekend in a row and falling 19 points behind Hamilton. Rosberg won the first four races of the season, then the teammates tripped over one another in Spain. Hamilton's won six of the seven races since Spain, Rosberg's best result in that time is a second-place in Hungary. Hamilton turned his engine down on Lap 3 (!) because he's used his entire season's allotment of five turbochargers and five MGU-Ks. Those early-season gremlins now have him on edge of grid penalties. Unless Hamilton's momentum cools off in August, however, that reliability danger might be the only dent in his armor. Rosberg, who once led the Championship by 43 points, will surely drown in his thoughts – and maybe schnapps – over the summer break. Whatever the Italian word for "meditation" is, there'll be a lot of it at Ferrari during the F1 summer break.

Major automakers urge Trump not to freeze fuel economy targets

WASHINGTON — Major automakers are telling the Trump administration they want to reach an agreement with California to avoid a legal battle over fuel efficiency standards, and they support continued increases in mileage standards through 2025. "We support standards that increase year over year that also are consistent with marketplace realities," Mitch Bainwol, chief executive of the Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, a trade group representing major automakers, will tell a U.S. House of Representatives panel on Tuesday, according to written testimony released on Monday. The Trump administration is weighing how to revise fuel economy standards through at least the 2025 model year, and one option is to propose freezing the standards through 2026, effectively allowing automakers to delay investments in technology to cut greenhouse gas emissions from burning petroleum. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has not formally submitted its joint proposal with the Environmental Protection Agency to the White House Office of Management and Budget for review. Even so, last week, California and 16 other states sued to challenge the Trump administration's decision to revise U.S. vehicle rules. Auto industry executives have held meetings with the Trump administration for months and have urged the administration to try to reach a deal with California even as they support slowing the pace of reduction in carbon dioxide emissions that the Obama administration rules outlined. One automaker official said part of the message to President Donald Trump at a meeting on Friday will be to consider California like a foreign trade deal that needs to be renegotiated. Automakers want to urge him to get automakers a "better deal" — as opposed to potentially years of litigation between major states and federal regulators. On Friday, Trump is set to meet with the chief executives of General Motors, Ford, Fiat Chrysler and the top U.S. executives of at least five other major automakers, including Toyota, Volkswagen AG and Daimler AG, to talk about revisions to the vehicle rules. Senior EPA and Transportation Department officials will also attend. Environmental groups are eager to keep the rules in place, saying they will save consumers billions in fuel costs. A coalition of groups plans to stage a protest outside Ford's headquarters in Michigan.