2005 Mercedes-benz C-class Sport Kompressor on 2040-cars

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Mercedes-AMG previews new C63 Coupe ahead of August 19 reveal

Mercedes has been spending the month of July preparing us all of the debut of the new AMG-fettled C-Class coupe. It dropped an enigmatic teaser video on us at the beginning of the month, followed by a handful of teaser images, and another video after that. Now it's released another batch of images to give us a taste of what to expect. These prototype pictured is still heavily camouflaged, so there's little more to tell from them than we already saw from the spy shots we brought you back in April. We can see the front end a bit better, bearing what looks like the same lower air dam as the C63 sedan, but everything save for the front part of the greenhouse is covered up in the swirly stuff. While the photos posted on the Mercedes-Benz Facebook page refer to this as the C63 Coupe, the AMG post references the Mercedes-AMG C-Class Coupe. Either way, we're expecting it to pack the same 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 as the sedan (as well as the AMG GT), likely to be made available once again in 469- and 503-horsepower states of tune. Affalterbach has also posted a countdown timer on its website, with 23 days left to go until the new muscle coupe makes its debut. So mark your calendars for August 19, and watch this space for more as the German automaker is sure to keep trickling out more photos, videos, and information between now and then. Related Video:

Mercedes may not be done with R-Class after all

The idea of blending a three-row SUV and a minivan into a luxury model like the Mercedes-Benz R-Class still seems wonderfully absurd, particularly when you consider that there was an AMG version of that German people-mover. Apparently, though, one of the brand's execs doesn't believe the concept behind the R-Class is all that bizarre. In fact, he thinks it could be time to try again. Wolf-Dieter Kurz, Mercedes' vice president in charge of SUVs and sports cars, believes that crossovers could be a major driver of product variants in the future due to their popularity. There are a lot of design possibilities to explore in the segment, in his opinion. "There was already one that we had in the portfolio – maybe we were too early – which was the R-Class, which we are still selling in China. It's doing good, with 12,000 to 14,000 units per year," Kurz said during the launch of the GLE and GLE Coupe, according to CarAdvice. Under a recent deal, the quirky model is made by AM General and exported out of the US. Kurz even suggested the exact niche that the new model might fill. "So let's say these more, let's say, on-road based but still very roomy, but not station wagon, is definitely an interesting segment also in the future," he said, according to CarAdvice. That almost sounds like a blend of wagon and SUV in a move not too dissimilar from the current Subaru Outback or the old R-Class. One hurdle for any future model reviving the concept of the R-Class is that the company is already bursting with CUVs. Every size is practically already filled with the GLA, GLC, GLE, and forthcoming GLS, plus Coupe variants for some of them.

Wards names its 2015 10 Best Interiors list

Wards Automotive has named the winners of its 10 Best Interior awards, covering a wide but affordable array of vehicles. Where last year's list contained two six-figure vehicles, including the $372,800 Rolls-Royce Wraith, this year's is, well, a whole lot more reasonable. The publication lists the Mercedes-Benz C400 at $65,000 (which seems off), making it the most expensive vehicle here. That said, we'd argue that the entire C-Class line deserves to make this year's list, owing to its varied and high-quality selection of materials. The other vehicle to break the $60,000 mark, meanwhile, is the $60,675 Ford F-150 King Ranch, which has 327,000 pounds of leather lining its interior. Only one other German car, the BMW i3, and one other pickup truck, the GMC Canyon, managed to make this year's list. Here's the full list of this year's winners: 2014 BMW i3 ($52,550) 2015 Chrysler 300C Platinum ($51,175) 2015 Ford F-150 King Ranch ($60,675) 2015 GMC Canyon SLT ($40,465) 2015 Honda Fit EX-L ($21,590) 2015 Jeep Renegade Limited ($33,205) 2015 Kia Sedona SXL ($43,295) 2016 Mazda6 Grand Touring ($33,395) 2015 Mercedes C400 ($65,000) 2015 Nissan Murano SL ($41,905) See what we mean about the mainstream vehicles? Not only is there a distinct lack of luxury brands, it's the price of some of the vehicles that surprise. The Honda Fit, Jeep Renegade and Mazda6 are very reasonably priced, especially when you compare Wards price with the starting price. The Renegade Limited starts at less than $25,000, the Mazda at less than $22K and the Fit at under $16,000. Head over to Wards for a more detailed explanation of why each vehicle won. Featured Gallery 2015 Ward's Automotive 10 Best Interiors View 10 Photos News Source: Wards Automotive BMW Chrysler Ford GMC Honda Jeep Kia Mazda Mercedes-Benz Nissan Truck Crossover Hatchback Sedan nissan murano gmc canyon Interior jeep renegade WardsAuto kia sedona wards 10 best interiors mercedes c400