2013 Mercedes-benz C-class on 2040-cars

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Race recap: 2015 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix is Germany rising as sun sets

Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver Nico Rosberg Rosberg doesn't attribute anything mystical to the form that got him ahead of teammate Lewis Hamilton. He said simply, "Before it was close in the other direction, now it's close in this direction." Mercedes non-executive chairman Niki Lauda went further, saying Rosberg's "brain has switched." Under the desert spotlights it switched so far ahead that Lewis Hamilton qualified nearly four tenths behind the German. Kimi Raikkonen flew the scarlet for Ferrari in third position. Being three spots ahead of Valtteri Bottas gave Raikkonen a huge advantage in locking up fourth position in the driver's championship. Even if he doesn't care about it, as he's publicly stated, Ferrari probably does. Teammate Sebastian Vettel was classified 16th after the German slowed down after making a mistake on his final hot lap, and neither he nor his engineer realized how quickly times were falling on a cooling track. He'd be promoted to 15th when Lotus driver Romain Grosjean was penalized for a gearbox change. Sergio Perez knocked it out of the park for Sahara Force India, claiming fourth ahead of Daniel Ricciardo in fifth for Infiniti Red Bull Racing. Williams driver Bottas was in sixth, in front of the second Force India of Nico Hulkenberg and the second Williams of Felipe Massa in eighth. Daniil Kvyat ensured both Red Bulls were in the top 10 with his ninth position, and Carlos Sainz got the upper hand in qualifying over his Toro Rosso teammate Max Verstappen for the final time this year, rounding out the top 10. Beyond Nico Rosberg's mind, one of his weaknesses was his slow starts. Those are stronger, too, the German tearing off away from the field when the lights went out. Hamilton bogged enough to have to defend from Perez behind, the Mexican trying to slide between Hamilton and Raikkonen on the run to the first corner. Rosberg held the lead into Turn 1 and likewise held it through Turn 21 on the last lap of the race, only ceding it during pit stops. Rosberg's 14th victory gets him level with Graham Hill on the wins list – on the anniversary of Hill's death in a plane crash – and marks the first time in his 10-year F1 career that he's won three races in a row. More proof of his strength: the last few races we haven't heard Rosberg ask for regular updates about what Hamilton's doing, he just drives. Hamilton gave it his best but that wasn't enough.

Mercedes-AMG expands V12 engine production to Mannheim

Mercedes-AMG may be downsizing some of its engines, but it hasn't given up on making V12s. In fact it has so much demand for them, and so little room to expand, that it is opening a new workshop at another location just to handle V12s. We take that as a good sign. That new location is the Daimler factory in Mannheim, in southwestern Germany, which is already dedicated to engine production and is located just an hour and a half from the Mercedes headquarters in Stuttgart and the main AMG workshop in neighboring Affalterbach. But although the assembly of its 12-cylinder engines is being moved, it will still be carried out under the "one man, one engine" philosophy that sees each motor built from start to finish by one highly skilled and specially trained AMG technician. The move will give AMG the capacity to build more of its V12 engines. But it will also make use of excess capacity at the Mannheim plant, and allow the Affalterbach site to use the space and technicians freed up by the V12 move to focus instead on V8s. Those concerned about AMG's ability to maintain its levels of quality and performance at a remote location might note that production of its turbocharged four-cylinder engines for the A45, CLA45, and GLA45 models is already carried out by MDC Power GmbH, a Daimler subsidiary in Kolleda, using the same philosophy. AMG's current 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12 engine produces a massive 621 horsepower and an even more impressive 738 pound-feet of torque. It's used in the SL65 roadster, G65 sport-ute, and S65 coupe and sedan... and maybe soon in the S65 cabrio as well. Come to think of it, a twelve-cylinder version of the new GLS seems like a good idea, too. And though Aston Martin is contracted to use AMG's eight-cylinder engines, the added capacity could get the creative juices from Gaydon flowing as well. Related Video: MERCEDES-AMG TO BUILD 12-CYLINDER ENGINES IN MANNHEIM Affalterbach. Due to strong demand for its high-performance automobiles, Mercedes-AMG is to start the assembly of its 12-cylinder engines in a new location at Daimler's site in Mannheim. The traditional AMG "one man, one engine" philosophy continues to hold true: each powerful AMG engine will be built completely by hand by just one engine fitter. The employees who currently assemble 12-cylinder engines at the AMG headquarters in Affalterbach will be shifted to the eight-cylinder engine lines.

Four-leaf clovers, hybrid Hondas and the next automotive downturn | Autoblog Podcast #561

On this week's Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor Alex Kierstein and Associate Editor Reese Counts. The group discuss the Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio, the Mercedes-Benz CLS 450 and the Honda Clarity PHEV Alex has been driving in Seattle. They also discuss the future of the auto industry, how customer tastes and needs are changing and what might happen if the world faces another economic downturn. Finally, we spend your money.Autoblog Podcast #561 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 Alfa Romeo Stelvio Quadrifoglio Mercedes-Benz CLS 450 Honda Clarity PHEV The next automotive downturn Spend My Money Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on iTunes Related Video: