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Mercedes fights off late BMW surge to claim 2013 luxury sales crown

The king is dead - long live the king. Mercedes-Benz is now your new US sales champion in the fiercely competitive luxury market, deposing the champ BMW, which has enjoyed annual supremacy for the past two years.
Thanks in no small part to the dynamite launch of the new, affordable CLA-Class, not to mention a redesigned E-Class and hot-selling S-Class, Mercedes moved 33,007 units in December alone, while sales in 2013 were up 14 percent, to 312,534. BMW, meanwhile, managed to sell 309,280 units in 2013. It was far from a sure thing for the Stuttgart-based brand, though, as BMW managed to nearly halve its rival's sales lead heading into the last month of 2013.
"We saw record sales, flexed our muscles across the entire product line from top to bottom and brought the customer experience to an all-time high," said Steve Cannon, Mercedes USA's CEO. While we don't have individual figures, it seems at first blush that the CLA was really the car that pushed Mercedes over the top.

Experience the New York Auto Show by drone

The Autoblog team recently returned from wildly running around the Javits Center to cover all the news and debuts at the New York Auto Show. Sometimes, it's nice to take a more serene look at the exhibition floor, though, and the event's organizers are providing that exact opportunity by flying a drone through the hall. Combined with the down-tempo music, this clip feels like a form of automotive meditation. If you're going to miss the show in the Big Apple, the drone also provides a good overview at the exhibition floor, especially at the stands from Lexus, Buick, Dodge, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and BMW. Plus, it's a fun way to see some vehicles from a completely different angle than they ever appear on the road. Related Video: News Source: New York International Auto Show via YouTube Auto News New York Auto Show BMW Buick Dodge Honda Lexus Mercedes-Benz Toyota Videos drone 2015 ny auto show

Watch this BMW take flight at Viru Rally

An E36 BMW 3 Series might be a good choice for a lot of purposes - a long road trip, a track day, rallycross, impressing your friends... but a full-on rally? It's rear-drive when the best rally machines are front- or all-wheel drive. But that didn't stop Pritt Koik and Alari-Uku Heldna from entering their stripped-out E36 in the Viru Rally in Estonia... or from getting some big air time when they did.
Fortunately the jump was not just caught on video... it was caught on video from three angles: two from the side of the rally stage and one from inside the cockpit. Check out all three below to see how this particular BMW got back into the aircraft business.