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2017 Mercedes-Maybach S650 Cabriolet includes guaranteed exclusivity

For certain buyers, the only thing better than a super-luxurious cabriolet that requires enormous sums of money to buy is a a super-luxurious cabriolet that money can't buy. That's what Daimler promises with the 2017 Mercedes-Maybach S650 Cabriolet to be unveiled at the LA Auto Show. Limited to 300 units worldwide and just 75 in the US, having just three available color combinations magnifies the exclusivity. Turning the Mercedes-Benz S-Class cabrio into a droptop worthy of the Maybach family means slight revisions outside and in, and a whole lot of Maybach badges. Instead of the three lower intakes familiar from Mercedes' corporate language, there's black mesh highlighted by a shiny design element. It's not the most graceful face from dead-on, looking sort of like a chrome-lined grimace picked up from Wallace and Gromit. A Maybach emblem adorns the fenders and gleaming kickplates, the 20-inch wheels add an edge to the brand's traditional dinner-plate design. The 6.0-liter, twin-turbo V12 carries over from the donor convertible, with the same 621 horsepower and 738 pound-feet of torque hooked up to a seven-speed automatic transmission. The only three color treatments available in the US will be Zircon Red with a porcelain and black interior and a black top, Cote d'Azur Blue with a porcelain and saddle interior and a beige top, and Designo Diamond White with a porcelain and Yacht Blue interior with a dark blue top. The cabin works nautical themes lifted in part from the Mercedes-Benz Style Arrow 460-Granturismo yacht. Perforations in the leather seats evoke waterfalls. The "Flowing Lines" trim ornamenting the seats comes two different colors depending on the exterior hue; either "Piano lacquer" black with the Zircon Red or Magnolia Nut Brown with the other two options. Buyers will find profuse badging in embroidered, embossed, and inlaid varieties, as well as chrome-plated "1 of 300" lettering in several places like the cup holder and steering wheel. The few lucky customers who buy an S650 will also find a four-piece set of Maybach-badged luggage in the truck, two travel bags and two weekenders tooled up in the same leather as the interior. The key fob gets finished in Porcelain leather. A car cover comes standard, in the same color as the convertible top. A certificate signed by the mustachioed one, Daimler Chairman Dr. Dieter Zetsche, provides the corporate-badged icing on the cake.

Aston Martin and Daimler continue talks on SUV project, CEO required

The Aston Martin Lagonda SUV concept revealed at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show didn't earn the plaudits the company is used to when it reveals new models, and it has lived an uncertain life ever since. Thought to have been scrapped along with the entire revival of the Lagonda brand, then thought to have been resurrected due to Chinese, Middle Eastern and Russian demand, another year passed before we heard more definitive talk about an Aston Martin expansion when AutoCar reported that the Lagonda could be built on one of Mercedes-Benz's AMG SUV platforms.
A report in Automotive News Europe indicates plans have gotten serious, its unnamed sources saying that the English carmaker is talking to Daimler "to extend their cooperation to building an SUV." Neither Daimler, Aston Martin nor Investindustrial, the managing partner among Aston Martin's ownership consortium, would comment. But with Investindustrial having pledged to expand the range, competitors like Bentley, Maserati and Lamborghini getting into the SUV racket and clear demand from current and future customers, it's easy to believe Aston Martin is working hard to put the pieces together.
One further potential bump on the road to an Aston SUV is the company's search for a new CEO. Ulrich Bez relinquished to top spot at the company at the end of 2013, and Aston reportedly will not finalize its model strategy without a new CEO in place.

Mercedes widens luxury sales gap on strong early CLA demand

Mercedes-Benz CLA sales have been booming, with the Stuttgart-based manufacturer moving 2,300 of the sleek four-doors in its first week on sale. That is astonishing. Mercedes moved nearly twice as many CLAs (which start at $29,900) in one week than Jaguar, a brand that is on a very solid roll, sold in all of September. Ignoring the price differences between the Jag line and the CLA, that is still wildly impressive.
Mercedes has been pushing the CLA in television ads, using a shortened version of its Super Bowl spot, which starred William Dafoe, Usher and Kate Upton. "As the bargain entrance into the Mercedes portfolio, we weren't sure how luxury buyers would react," Kelly Blue Book auto analyst Alec Gutierrez told Bloomberg.
The CLA push was just part of MB's 6.7-percent increase in September sales, which were also helped along by a 17-percent jump in E-Class sales. That surge has allowed Mercedes to widen its 2013 sales lead over its rival, BMW, to 2,491 cars, according to Bloomberg. If CLA sales continue at this rate, we can only expect that margin to grow.