2006 Mercedes-benz Sl500 Amg Sport Msrp $102k! Ac Seats! Pristine & Serviced! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

2016 Mercedes-Benz Metris First Drive

We're sitting 8,700 feet above sea level in the idyllic old mining town of Dunton Hot Springs, nestled deep in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. We've come to drive the newest and cheapest Mercedes-Benz, a midsize work van called the Metris. As the day begins, Mercedes van boss Bernhard Glaser states the obvious, "We're setting up camp in the US." It's a good line, perhaps a little too fitting given our surroundings, but it's accurate. Though the US commercial van market is dominated by Ford and General Motors, Mercedes has staked out a competitive position and is digging for more. The tall, capable Sprinter relaunched with a Mercedes badge in the United States in 2010 and has grown into a $1-billion enterprise in America. Now comes Phase 2, dubbed "Mission Metris," starring a tweener van that's smaller than the towering Sprinter yet larger the Ford Transit Connect and Nissan NV200. The 2016 Metris enters a crowded and evolving segment that also includes the Ram ProMaster City and GM's super-old Chevy Express and GMC Savana. Mercedes will sell the Metris in cargo and passenger forms, meaning it will be outfitted for a range of roles, including taxi and limousine companies, delivery duties, service, and maintenance. Yes, your cable guy might show up in a Mercedes. That's part of the plan, actually. Though the Metris was engineered to be a pack-mule of a van, if the shine of the star on its grille helps attract new buyers – like a chain of upscale hotels that needs a fleet of shuttles – all the better. Our short test drive begins outside the small canyon town of Dolores, CO, as we haul four people and some luggage to the airport in a pre-production Metris. Normally test programs staged by automakers are a little contrived – many feature an off-road course or track time for even the most mundane vehicles – but our stint behind the wheel of the Metris is almost exactly how the van could be used in real life. We make our way along Colorado's winding highways, cruising around 60 miles per hour for much of it. The Metris offers an excellent view of the road and the snow-capped mountains that rise in the distance. It's an easy van to drive. We don't feel like we're piloting a U-Haul or something else cumbersome. Mercedes is billing this as the 'right-sized' option, and our initial impressions support that sentiment as we navigate the curves flanked by steep drop-offs.

Top horsepower-per-dollar cars in 2017

Bang for the buck. That quasi-scientific statistic is bandied about by motor heads everywhere from classrooms to barrooms, though the truth of the matter is that it's exceedingly complex to measure. A fair performance-per-dollar index would include something like cross-referencing MSRP (Manufacturers Suggested Retail Price) with point-to-point times on a track or driving route, which is obviously hard to do comprehensively. But, for the sheer joy of talking about cars and playing with a big spreadsheet, there's always the horsepower-per-dollar index, which is more straightforward, albeit hilariously flawed. There are vagaries even with this simple formula, of course: MSRP for vehicles can change at a moment's notice, to say nothing of the bottom-line shifting that happens with local deals or showroom negotiation. For this list we're running with the straight MSRP wherever possible, and as recently reported as we can get it. All the vehicles on this list are 2017 models, and all trims are reported where the lowest price and differing power levels intersect. Some choices were made for personal preference and some for sanity, avoiding things like all 48 trim levels of the Ford Transit, all with the same horsepower). If this list were a simple top ten, or even a top fifty, you'd be bored to tears with all the red, white and blue that is represented. Following perfectly with conventional wisdom, American cars really do lead the world where hp/$ is concerned. So, for the sake of variety (and the sheer joy of seeing a minivan 'win' one round of this thing) I've sorted out some top five and bottom five lists for broad power categories. Let's dive in. Less Than 100 Horsepower Okay, okay, this is hardly a category we'll grant you. But we've often tried to click off all the sub-100-hp cars on sale in the US, and making this list gave us an excuse. It also illustrates that none of these smallish vehicles bring cheap horsepower to the table - for that you'll need a motorcycle. The segment-leading Chevy Spark (above) asks just over $139 for each hp, and that Smart Fortwo Electric Drive has hp on sale for about the same price as its very distant family cousin, the Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG (insert your favorite Smart joke here... we know you want to).

Mercedes-Benz F 015 Luxury in Motion has an absurd name, remarkable vision

We often hear about cars that don't look good in pictures. "You need to see it in person," people say. Well, the Mercedes-Benz F 015 Luxury in Motion, which the company brought to Detroit after debuting it at CES, is just such a vehicle. Besides having a very silly name and looking, according to one Autoblog editor, like a suppository, this is a genuinely striking piece of design when viewed in the metal. The shape is aerodynamic in the extreme, but still features subtle details and styling cues. Whether that be the small dorsal ridge on the roof, the simply huge wheels and the Cylon-like, wraparound taillights, despite a fairly uniform shape, there's still a lot to see on the F 015. That's doubly true in the cabin, which is typically luxurious, while also doubling as a rolling lounge withs eating for four. Accessible via barn doors that open up to 90 degrees, the F 015's cabin features fine woods and leathers, as well as seats that swivel around to face each other. Screens abound (there are six in total), and gesture-and-touch-based controls are the order of the day, producing what Mercedes calls a "digital arena." As an autonomous vehicle, MB doesn't offer a lot of technical information on propulsion or guidance systems, simply saying that the pod-like concept could accommodate an electric motor and fuel cell. Take a look at our gallery of live images Mercedes' sci-fi vision, and if there's an auto show coming to your neck of the woods, get out and see this strange and impressive car.