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Eight Mercedes Fuso Canter E-Cell trucks now in service

Portugal is far better known for its scenery and seascapes (not to mention some of its alcoholic beverages) than its place as a vehicle-testing center. But the European country is serving just that purpose for Daimler's Mercedes-Benz division and a new line of trucks. And they are of the battery-electric variety. Daimler has sent eight of its Mercedes-Benz Fuso Canter E-Cell battery-electric trucks for customer-trial purposes to various parts of the Western European country. And these customers include the Portuguese cities of Lisbon, Porto and Abrantes as well as delivery company Transporta. These entities will be testing trucks that have about a 60-mile single-charge range and deliver 150 horsepower. The trials for the trucks, which have 14-foot beds, will last one year. Daimler hasn't released a whole lot of details on further development or sales possibilities of the model. The hybrid version of the Fuso Canter debuted in the fall of 2009 and was under the Mitsubishi badge at the time, even though it was 85-percent owned by Daimler. That model is said to boost fuel economy relative to conventionally-powered trucks by as much as 23 percent. Take a look at Daimler's press release on the Fuso Canter E-Cell and its Portugal testing below. Zero emission and quiet as a whisper: eight new Fuso Canter E-Cell in customer trials Eight Fuso Canter E-Cell in real-life testing with customers for a year Locally emission-free and virtually noiseless Powerful, high-torque electric motor Battery capacity ensures range of more than 100 km Highlight of anniversary year for the Canter assembly plant in Tramagal, Portugal The drive system to suit: Canter Euro VI, Canter Eco Hybrid and Canter E-Cell The cleanest technology, whatever the application: Fuso is a pioneer of "green" drive systems in the commercial vehicle sector. The Daimler subsidiary in Japan is the home of Daimler Trucks' centre of competence for hybrid technology, and with this experience behind it, Fuso has also been responsible for developing the new battery-electric-powered "Zero Emission" Canter E-Cell. The first all-electric light-duty truck, produced in a small series, runs emission-free and almost silently. The Canter E-Cell for Europe is manufactured at the Tramagal plant in Portugal. Eight vehicles have now been released for customer trials.

SRT Viper dukes it out with Mercedes SLS Black Series in new Head 2 Head

In Episode 36 of Motor Trend's Head 2 Head, now that the Corvette ZR1 is no more, Jonny Lieberman has to look overseas to the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series for a challenger with similar philosophy to the SRT Viper: long hood hiding a high-horsepower engine set way back, rear-wheel drive, tiny trunks. That puts the Viper's 8.4-liter V10 with 640 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque against the SLS AMG's 6.2-liter V8 with 622 hp and 468 lb-ft.
However, the congruences in philosophy and magnitude of numbers doesn't translate to the driving experiences of the two, which are literally and figuratively on different continents. Lieberman gets a handle on the two of them on Northern California roads, Randy Probst then finds out how, and how quickly, they can lap Laguna Seca.
They both get kudos for being improvements on their original sources, but only one of them can take the win. You can find out by watching the video below.

Watch Evo pick its 2015 Car of the Year in this epic video

With just a few days left in 2015, it's the perfect time to check out Evo's annual Car of the Year test to determine the greatest performance vehicle of the last 12 months. The writers' picks for the 11 finalists spanned a breadth of engaging models and included: Peugeot 208 GTi by Peugeot Sport, Lamborghini Aventador SV, Seat Leon Cupra Sub8, McLaren 675LT, Porsche 991 GT3 RS, Porsche Cayman GT4, Honda Civic Type R, Ferrari 488 GTB, Chevrolet Camaro Z/28, Lotus Evora 400, and Mercedes-AMG GT S. For the venue to test the mettle of these performance machines, Evo stuck close to home this year and visited the twisting roads at the beautiful north coast of Scotland. Racing brothers Marino and Dario Franchitti also came along for the ride to provide two more voices in the competitive challenge to determine a winner. Evo's video explains why each model deserves to be among such rarified company but doesn't gloss over their faults either. There can be only one winner, though. We don't want to spoil it, so check out the clip for magnificent views of these performance machines through the Scottish countryside.