1973 Mercedes Benz 450sl Convertible Roadster Classic Nice Driver on 2040-cars

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YouTube's Super Bowl commercial buzz list dominated by automakers [w/videos]

After Sunday's big game, YouTube will be the place to watch every commercial that you missed when you left your seat for an emergency guac refill or, as we say in Cleveland, took the Browns to the Super Bowl. That makes YouTube the nation's water cooler on Monday, and it's got some preliminary stats to share in the lead up to kickoff.
As you know, Super Bowl advertisers, particularly automakers, like to endlessly tease their big budget commercials in the weeks before the game, many times revealing them outright days in advance. Because of this, YouTube can tell us which commercials have been viewed the most so far, and their top five list is all automakers.
Kaley Cuoco appears to have been a good investment for Toyota, as her ad for the RAV4 has garnered the most YouTube views - six million and counting - among Super Bowl commercials so far. Second place goes to Mercedes-Benz, though not its actual Super Bowl commercial, but rather the teaser for it. You know, the one with Kate Upton and the car washing, which is up to 5.6 million views. Third place is Audi's Prom commercial (3.3M views), fourth goes to Volkswagen's slightly controversial Get In, Get Happy ad (3.3M views), and the fifth and final spot is bookended by the teaser video for Kaley Cuoco's commercial (3.2M views). You can watch all five in order below.

2016 Mercedes-Benz GLC250 First Drive [w/video]

There's nothing wrong with the Mercedes-Benz GLK other than old age, having first sold here in 2009. But with creased, off-road themed styling, a naturally aspirated V6, and a smallish interior, it's out of step with the company's growing line of sport utility vehicles. Even its name is a harsh-sounding outlier. Enter the 2016 GLC. Mercedes calls this model the second generation of the GLK, but it's closer to a total reboot. The new look follows the smooth design of contemporary Benzes. The spotlight engine is now a spunky turbocharged four cylinder, and yes, the GLC is bigger inside and out. As for the name change, that's part of the latest badge realignment, and the "C" indicates the GLC's position as the crossover counterpart to the C-Class sedan. Now firmly integrated into the Mercedes SUV family, the GLC takes a seat at the table between the entry-level GLA and the larger GLE. The GLC's fresh appearance has all of the tenets of modern Mercedes design. We've come to the Alsace region of France to sample this familiar yet evolved utility vehicle. Driving along route A35, we're immediately struck by the turbo four-cylinder's prowess. It's strong from launches when we mash the gas, returns a subtle but pleasing exhaust note, and it's more than capable of picking off slower moving traffic as we dash through the French countryside. We're driving the European-spec GLC250 model, which has the same 2.0-liter engine Americans will get in the GLC300, though the Euro model has 30 fewer horsepower. The US version will be rated at 241 hp and 273 pound feet of torque, the same output as the C300 sedan. The turbo has big shoes to fill, as it gives up 61 hp to the 302-hp V6 used in the GLK. Mercedes is banking consumers won't miss this raw power, as the GLC's inline-four offers the same amount of torque as the GLK's V6, but much sooner in the rev band. Even in its detuned European state, the I4 demonstrates the kind of urgency that Americans prefer for their grocery-getting people haulers. It's paired with a nine-speed automatic transmission, upgraded from the GLK's seven-speed. There are paddle shifters, though most Americans won't have reason to use them. Sometimes we grab them and lay on the throttle just for fun, and the GLC responds with bursts of speed. Even in its detuned European state, the I4 demonstrates the kind of urgency that Americans prefer for their grocery-getting people haulers.

Mercedes-AMG GT S pit against Porsche 911 Turbo in Evo Deadly Rivals test

When Mercedes-Benz announced that its all-new AMG GT would start at $129,900 deeply undercutting the $200,000-plus of its predecessor, the SLS AMG, immediate questions focused on how it'd stack up against the latest crop of high performers that occupy the mid-$100,000 range. Evo, over in the UK, didn't have to wait all that long. The latest installment in the outlet's "Deadly Rivals" series compares the AMG GT with the latest Porsche 911 Turbo. On paper, the test is sure to be interesting. The Mercedes uses a 4.0-liter, twin-turbocharged V8 with 503 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque, while a seven-speed AMG Speedshift dual-clutch shuffles power to the back axle. The 911 Turbo's formula is more of a known quantity – 520 hp from a twin-turbo, 3.8-liter flat six with the company's own PDK working in unison with all-wheel drive, torque vectoring and rear-axle steering. Of course, we're not going to spoil the results for you. Take a look at the video up top, and let us know what you think of Evo's latest track battle.