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2015 MV Agusta F4 RC superbike debuts with AMG livery

MV Agusta, the Italian motorcycle maker with 37 Constructors Championship trophies earned in Grand Prix racing, returned to the World Superbike Championship for the 2014 season. With one annual campaign under its belt, it has released the customer version of its racing superbike, the F4 RR. The street-legal version will come in two power levels depending on the exhaust: either 205.5 horsepower with the standard exhaust, or 212 hp with the 4-2-1-2 Termignoni race exhaust. At 386 pounds dry, the RC is about 33 pounds lighter than the World Superbike entrant, but it's still heavier than the competition from Aprilia, BMW, and Ducati. It is, though, a little more powerful than all of them in its full-fat guise. Compared to the RR, MV Agusta made changes to the RC that include a new cylinder head, crankshaft, and camshaft, larger fuel injectors and lighter pistons, a lithium-ion battery, and magnesium casings. Titanium connecting bolts affix a carbon fiber fairing done up in the AMG livery of the World Superbike ride. If you want one, act quickly and come strong: only 250 will be produced, at $46,000 a pop. If you're not that keen, there's a high-res gallery above. Featured Gallery 2015 MV Agusta F4 RC View 26 Photos News Source: Asphalt and Rubber Mercedes-Benz Motorcycle Luxury Special and Limited Editions Performance world superbike mv agusta f4

Mercedes surprised Hamilton with this steering wheel message

Lewis Hamilton had much to celebrate at the end of the Abu Dhabi Grand Prix this past weekend. Not only did he win the race in commanding form (the 33rd in his career to make him the fifth most successful in Formula One history), but he also scored enough points (double on the season finale this year) to outpace his teammate and chief rival to win the world championship. Having already been crowned champion in 2008, that makes him one of only sixteen drivers to have won multiple world titles. It's a point his team at Mercedes didn't want him to miss, so on the cool-down lap at the end of the race, his pit crew radioed him the message "default 44" – an instruction that triggered this image to appear on the display in the middle of his steering wheel. Apparently Lewis, with plenty else on his mind (like getting his car back to the parc ferme in one piece and with enough fuel), didn't notice what was flashing in front of him. Superimposed, as you can see, over an image of Hamilton as a young lad still in karts is Lewis' name alongside those of the other two-time world champs: Jim Clark, Graham Hill, Emerson Fittipaldi, Alberto Ascari, Fernando Alonso and Mika Hakkinen. (Never mind those who've scored more than two titles.) Intriguingly, Hakkinen is the only other one among them to have won either of his titles under Mercedes power like Lewis did, though Fangio won two of his five titles motivated by Benz engines.

Smart Cross Connect app changes how ForTwos get used [UPDATE]

UPDATE: The story's been updated with a response from a Smart representative. There are parking spaces, and then there are Fortwo parking spaces. Smart, which is owned by Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler, is looking for a way for its customers to take advantage of the difference. Think of it as a big thing for really small cars. Smart is working on an app for the redesigned Fortwo called Cross Connect that will be available as soon as next month, says Automotive News, citing Smart chief Annette Winkler. The idea is to connect owners of the diminutive two-seat vehicles to, for example, let them tell each other when there's a parking space that's too small for just about any other vehicle but big enough for a Smart. If you think that's a small thing, think again. The Fortwo is 8 feet, 10 inches long. That's almost six feet shorter than a Toyota Prius, which itself isn't exactly a stretch limo. In fact, the length of a Smart Fortwo is just 10 inches longer than the width of a Ford F-150, in case anyone was having misgivings about parking perpendicular in a parallel spot. Parking has become more relevant, and tougher, as more people move to urban centers. For instance, BMW said earlier this month that it would discontinue its DriveNow car-sharing operations in San Francisco because of the challenge of parking vehicles on that city's streets. Other possible amenities with the Cross Connect app including the enabling of personal car sharing as well as information on car washes that offer discounted rates for Smart Fortwo. Yes, there are some out there, apparently, and we salute them. Michael Minielly, a spokesman for Mercedes-Benz, confirmed to Autoblog that the Cross Connect features would be available in November. You can read Autoblog's driving impressions of the 2016 Fortwo here. Featured Gallery 2016 Smart ForTwo: Second Drive View 23 Photos News Source: Automotive News-sub.req.Image Credit: Drew Phillips Green Mercedes-Benz smart Technology Smartphone fortwo