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2015 Mercedes-AMG C63 S First Drive [w/video]

As I mashed the throttle heading into the back straight of a nearly three-mile-long race track, I couldn't help but center my mind on two ostensibly disparate subjects: physics and pistons. If the heart of an automobile is its engine, the heart of the engine are its rotating bits – the crankshaft, pistons and the block they're nested inside. It seems fitting, then, that the internals of the twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 typify the brand-new 2015 Mercedes-AMG C63 sedan I found myself piloting in Portugal. Whereas the last C-Class AMG availed itself of a brute of an engine, employing 6.2 liters of displacement to make its 451 horsepower the old fashioned way, the latest AMG's V8 engine has been downsized radically. I had the opportunity earlier in the day to actually hold the pistons of the new 4.0 Biturbo V8 in my hands, alongside those of the outgoing 6.2. The difference in size is staggering, the new lumps looking downright picayune in comparison to the latter. These eight seemingly diminutive pistons turn combustion into crankshaft-spinning power inside a block that is smaller, lighter and more compact than I'd have thought possible, considering the prodigious output the engine spits out. I had gone into this assignment expecting to pen an ode to lost love; a sonnet of sorrow bemoaning the switch from massive cylinders to wheezing power adders. But I was wrong. In fact, the report that follows may indeed read a little like a love song, except it will heap praise not on what used to be, but instead on what is now possible. The new heart of AMG more than makes up for its reduction in size by relying on turbochargers and smart engineering to turn just 4.0 liters into 469 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque starting at just 1,750 rpm, or as much as 503 ponies and 516 lb-ft in uprated S guise. Foot to the floor, eyes focused on the turn ahead, a hard right-hander named Primeira that requires hard braking and quick reflexes, I had a fleeting moment of clarity: These are some hard-working pistons. A few days on the street and track in and around Faro, Portugal, has convinced me that the new Mercedes-AMG C63 is a better car in any meaningful measurement than it was before. And I'll go one step further. Not only is this the best C-Class AMG ever, it's also my new favorite in the hotly contested segment that includes such knee-benders as the BMW M3 and M4.

2015 Mercedes-AMG G65 Review

A German friend who lives in Munich told me she might have to retrieve her car from Innsbruck, Austria while I was in Germany to visit her. I said I'd be happy to chauffeur her to the Tyrol in a Mercedes-AMG G65. She responded to the offer with this question: "You mean – in the G65 Rap Train?" I had no idea what it meant, but the name stuck. Her reasoning was that I would be taken for an American rapper, because what other black American would be cruising south, East, and west Germany for ten days in a 272,000-euro, 5,676-pound chunk of... well, let's just say it: bling. Mercedes created the G65 by installing its 604 horsepower, 6.0-liter, twin-turbo V12 in the G-Class engine bay, and laying oodles of quilted leather inside the cabin. Introduced to markets outside the US in 2012, it sat above the twin-turbo, V8-powered G63 that remained the top-of-the-line here. After years of denial, US buyers will finally get their chance to buy the G65 in November for $217,900. It's a 272,000-euro, 5,676-pound chunk of... well, let's just say it: bling. A grandiose, body-on-frame SUV with a price as momentous as its horsepower might appear silly, but Mercedes can point to plenty of good reasons to bring it here now. In the abstract there's customer demand, AMG boss Tobias Moers having said, "There are AMG fans for whom our V12 biturbo engine is the measure of all things." Concrete justification is in the sales numbers: in May 2010 the G-Class sold 99 units in the US on its way to 919 units for the year. In May 2015 US buyers took home 302 G-Classes, and only five months into this year the brand has sold 1,448 of its ultimate off-roader. The G63 outsold the less expensive G550 in the US in both 2013 and 2014. In 2013 the G63 was the best-selling AMG product in the US, and the G lineup posted its best-ever sales year globally during what was its 35th year on the market. Competitive reasons are likewise substantial. The Bentley Bentayga, Range Rover Sport SVR, Lamborghini Urus, and a Rolls-Royce "that can cross any terrain" will soon join the retail celebration of six-figure SUVs. By getting the G65 here first, Mercedes gets the head start. The burble dripping from the quad pipes is quieter on G65 than the G63. In spite of its price, the Rap Train isn't ostentatious – the sample I was given to drive wearing a beautiful coat of muted satin gray. Because Mercedes is going for a more elegant look for the top of the line G-Wagen, the US-market G65 comes without bull bars.

Mercedes claims naming rights for Atlanta Falcons new stadium

Mercedes-Benz signed a ten-year deal for naming rights to the Louisiana Superdome NFL stadium in 2011. If reports streaming out of Atlanta, Georgia are true, come 2017 Mercedes will have its name on two stadiums in the NFC South Conference because it took up naming rights for the new home being built for the Atlanta Falcons NFL team. The Sports Business Journal reported that the $1.4-billion stadium will open in two years, before the start of the 2017-2018 NFL season. Mercedes transferred its US headquarters from New Jersey to Atlanta earlier this year and is working out of temporary offices; its permanent space is scheduled to be ready around the same time as the stadium. The facility will also be home to the Atlanta United FC Major League Soccer club, and the 2020 NCAA Men's Final Four. If there is a point of common interest between the sports team and the carmaker beyond being really rich neighbors, the facility designed by HOK will be full of technology. The overall shape is inspired by the wings of a falcon, and the eight translucent panels at the top that can open and close in less than eight minutes are inspired by the Pantheon in Rome. The tiered bowl structure inside allows capacity to be expanded up to 83,000 or shrunk with mechanized curtains for MLS games and intimate events, and the five-story tall, 360-degree Halo Board will be the largest video board in the world. Neither Mercedes nor the Falcons organization would comment on the news. An announcement is expected Monday. Related Video: News Source: Sports Business Journal via Atlanta Journal-Constitution Auto News Mercedes-Benz naming rights