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Mercedes was set to sell version of Nissan Titan, now Infiniti might instead

Mercedes-Benz Titan. Mercedes-Benz Frontier. Mercedes-Benz pickup truck. None of these things roll off the tongue particularly well. We'd like to think that's the reason Daimler opted to kill the idea of rebadged Titan and Frontier pickups from corporate ally Nissan. In reality, the execution before the Frankfurt Motor Show was due to more complicated issues.
Yes, Mercedes, byword for German luxury, style and quality, would have slapped a three-pointed star on a pair of Japanese pickup trucks that have failed to resonate with consumers in the world's largest truck market. That slapping of badges isn't much of an exaggeration, at least on the outside. According to the report from Road & Track, the truck's front clip would have been tweaked, but beyond that, the sheetmetal would have been unchanged. The interior would have received a more thorough going-over by the team at Mercedes, while the suspension and noise, vibration and harshness tuning would have also received significant attention.
The trucks would have ended up being sold through the light-commercial branch of Mercedes-Benz - the same folks that will happily sell you a Sprinter van - had the deal gone through. Issues arose, though, first with the engines. Mercedes wanted a wider range of powertrains to allow it to tune models for specific markets, while Nissan said it couldn't engineer the wide variety of engines that MB wanted to drop under the hood. For the smaller truck, meanwhile, MB was interested in a hybrid or plug-in variant, according to R&T, although this was also shot down by Nissan.

2016 Mercedes-Benz C350e Plug-In Hybrid casts a green light in Geneva

Mercedes revealed another plug-in hybrid model, the C350e, at the Geneva Motor Show. Based on the company's scalable hybrid platform, the C350e offers 19 miles of electric range, and the total system makes 279 horsepower and 443 pound-feet of torque. It's part of the company's goal to bring 10 new plug-in models to the market by 2017 around the world. The hybrid system teams an electric motor with a turbocharged four-cylinder engine with a seven-speed gearbox. The C350e also has regenerative braking and can be driven in four modes ranging from Eco to Sport Plus. The lithium-ion battery pack can be charged in 1 hour, 45 seconds, and it has a total capacity of 6.2 kilowatt-hours. The C350e has an Airmatic suspension, an interior climate control system that can be controlled via the internet and offers Mercedes' suite of driver-assist technologies. Mercedes will sell the model as a sedan and a wagon in some markets. The new Mercedes-Benz C 350 e: Efficiency, dynamism and comfort – the best of three worlds The new Mercedes-Benz C 350 e: Efficiency, dynamism and comfort – the best of three worlds Following its premiere in the S-Class, Mercedes-Benz is now offering its most advanced hybrid technology yet in the C-Class and, for the first time, also in an Estate model. The dynamism and efficiency of the C 350 e make it a convincing proposition in both its Saloon and its Estate guise. With a range of 31 kilometres in purely electric mode, local emission-free driving is now a reality. Its four-cylinder petrol engine, in conjunction with a powerful electric motor, gives it a total system output of 205 kW (279 hp) and torque of 600 Nm. The new C 350 e thus delivers the performance of a sports car and yet offers certified consumption figures of just 2.1 litres of fuel per 100 kilometres both as a Saloon and as an Estate. This corresponds to CO2 emissions of 48 grams (49 grams for the Estate) per kilometre. Both models are also equipped as standard with AIRMATIC air suspension plus a Pre-Entry Climate Control system that can be controlled via the internet, adding up to a truly exceptional level of driving and climate comfort. Prof Dr Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG and responsible for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development: "The PLUG-IN HYBRID is an investment in the future of Mercedes-Benz and we believe it will become established as the successful technology for maximum efficiency coupled with powerful dynamic performance.

VW gets help from Daimler to deal with VW scandal

Volkswagen has hired Christine Hohmann-Dennhardt, a compliance officer, away from Daimler. Normally, this wouldn't be particularly big news. The reason you might care is summed up rather succinctly by Ferdinand Dudenhoeffer, director of the Center for Automotive Research at the University of Duisburg-Essen, who said that Hohmann-Dennhardt is being tasked with helping the entire German automobile industry "clean up the collateral damage from the diesel deceit." Hohmann-Dennhardt had to be released early from her contract with Daimler in order to take on this difficult role with an inter-country rival. VW Chairman Hans Dieter Poetsch thanked "Daimler AG for agreeing to our request to the early termination of Dr. Hohmann-Dennhardt's contract." What makes this move even more interesting is that Daimler and Volkswagen have had a terse relationship in recent years due to the poaching of important employees from one side to the other. According to Bloomberg, Hohmann-Dennhardt's contract with Daimler had been secured through February of 2017, but with her early release, she will start her new role on VW's board of management in January of 2016. Daimler, for its part, released a statement suggesting the decision was made "in the interests of the good corporate governance of the German automotive industry." Prior to her employment at Daimler, Hohmann-Dennhardt served for 11 years as a judge. Reading between the lines, it seems VW's massive corporate scandal has rocked the German auto industry to its core. Enough so, in fact, that Daimler would be willing to let go of a highly talented and well-respected executive – the first woman ever appointed to the German automaker's board – who had served since there since 2011. Feel free to read through VW's entire statement, below. Related Video: Dr. Christine Hohmann-Dennhardt to move to Volkswagen AG in 2016 as Board Member for Integrity and Legal Affairs Daimler AG agrees to move of Board Member for Integrity and Legal Affairs to Volkswagen AG The Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Volkswagen AG, Hans Dieter Potsch, has requested the Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Daimler AG, Dr. Manfred Bischoff, to agree to the early termination of the contract with Dr. Christine Hohmann-Dennhardt, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG for Integrity and Legal Affairs, which runs until February 28, 2017. She is to join the Volkswagen Group as of January 1, 2016 as the Board Member for Integrity and Legal Affairs.