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Driving the C8 Corvette, and previewing GM's electric future | Autoblog Podcast #617

In this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by West Coast Editor James Riswick and Road Test Editor Zac Palmer. First they dive right in to the experience of driving the 2020 Chevrolet Corvette, followed by their review of the Mercedes-Benz GLE 350. Then they talk about the week's news, beginning with the whole slew of electric vehicles General Motors surprised us with at its EV Day. Next, they discuss the possibility of Porsche building a hybrid 911, as well as news about Ford's electric Transit van making its way to the U.S.. Last, but not least, they take to the mailbag to help a listener pick his next car in the "Spend My Money" segment. Autoblog Podcast #617 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 2020 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Driving the 2020 Mercedes-Benz GLE 350 GM EV Day: Cadillac Celestiq and Lyriq, GMC Hummers and more A hybrid Porsche 911? Ford Transit electric commercial vans coming to U.S. Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video:

Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series gives the rich and famous what they want

TOPANGA, Calif. – Give the people what they want, right? Especially if they're extremely wealthy. And possibly famous.  Apparently, the requests for a convertible Maybach from existing owners and/or celebrities were so frequent and insistent that the uber-luxury offshoot of Mercedes-Benz finally decided to give them just that. The 2025 Mercedes-Maybach SL 680 Monogram Series answers the call. While all other Maybachs are based on a Mercedes-Benz, this is the first Maybach to be based on a car developed by AMG: the current-generation SL 55 and SL 63. This presented a greater challenge to engineers than past efforts. Although a sportier Maybach was intended (as opposed to modern Maybach's first drop-top effort, the Maybach S 650 Cabriolet), the SL 680 is, not surprisingly, seeking a much different dynamic end goal than its AMG-only cousins. According to Maybach product manager Hannes Meyer, the far shorter wheelbase than the Maybach norm was a particular challenge in making sure that its convertible offering maintained "the same ease and nearly floating driving experience" expected of the brand. To that end, the Maybach SL shares the SL 63's air suspension and trick AMG Active Control interconnected hydraulically controlled dampers, but the tuning is changed, especially with the rear air springs as the driver sits closer to those. Meyer says the damper valves in particular have a greater range between sportiness and comfort than the SL 63. The steering system is totally Maybach-specific, including a different ratio and more upright front camber, resulting in what Meyer described as a more stable and less aggressive setup than what you'd find in the SL 63.  Before you start looking for a 6.8-liter engine in the Mercedes arsenal, remember that those numbers don't really mean anything anymore. The Maybach SL 680 has exactly the same 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 as the SL 63 good for 577 horsepower and 590 pound-feet of torque. The nine-speed AMG transmission is the same in terms of hardware, but it has totally different software. In particular, the 2-3 and 3-4 shifts are most different in order to provide a smoother, more Maybach acceleration experience. The 4Matic+ all-wheel-drive system is also shared, but is programmed to have a more balanced front-to-rear power split than the rear-biased AMG. Finally, the exhaust has been retuned. Meyer said that up to 2,800 rpm, the exhaust isn't quieter than what you'd experience in the AMGs, it just has a different tone.

Mercedes-AMG GT3 racing towards Geneva debut

So far, we've only seen the fundamental road-going coupe version of the new Mercedes-AMG GT, but like the Porsche 911 it targets, you can bet there will be more derivatives to follow. And this is our first glimpse at the first of them. At the Geneva Motor Show next month, Mercedes will showcase the GT3-spec racing version of the AMG GT. The German automaker didn't tell us much more in making the announcement, but did release a pair of cropped teaser sketches showing the sports car with all manner of racing appendages, including what looks like a massive rear wing. Once ready for action, the new Mercedes-AMG GT3 will replace the previous SLS AMG GT3 that won the Nurburgring 24-hour race a couple of years back. But with every automaker and its sister company getting in on the GT3 racing action these days, it'll face some stiff competition on the track. The new Mercedes-AMG GT3 February 12, 2015 Neatly coinciding with the upcoming market launch of the road-going version of the Mercedes-AMG GT, the next stage of the vehicle's evolution is already here: the sports car and performance brand of Mercedes-Benz is presenting a new customer sport racing car that complies with FIA GT3 race regulations in the form of the new Mercedes-AMG GT3. With this, the second customer sport car to be developed by Mercedes-AMG, the Affalterbach company is seeking to build on the success of the SLS AMG GT3 and further expand the customer sport programme first started in 2010. The superb racetrack performance of the road-going GT forms the ideal basis on which to model the new Mercedes-AMG GT3, which is due to make its debut appearance at the Geneva Motor Show. Featured Gallery Mercedes-AMG GT3: teasers Geneva Motor Show Mercedes-Benz Coupe Racing Vehicles mercedes-amg 2015 Geneva Motor Show rendering mercedes-amg gt sketch mercedes-amg gt3