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Aston or Bust? Maybach's fate to be decided next month

2011 Maybach 62 - Click above for high-res image gallery
What will become of Maybach? That question has been rattling around the halls of Daimler headquarters in Stuttgart for some time now. But all questions will be answered, and answered soon: according to reports, the German automaker is currently evaluating prototypes and propositions for its top-end marque, and will make its decision next month.
So, what are the options? On the one hand, Daimler could kill the Maybach brand altogether. It was a notion ill conceived and even more poorly executed, taking an old platform and building a new flagship atop it. In that way, it was sort of like the Chrysler Crossfire, only far more costly to both the buyer and manufacturer. On the other hand, Daimler could opt for the long-time-coming proposition of contracting the production (and possibly much of the development) of a new generation of Maybachs to Aston Martin.

Mercedes expected to announce US HQ relocating to Atlanta today

Employees at Mercedes-Benz's US headquarters in Montvale, NJ, are set to gather today for the annual president's reception. Only this year, company chairman Dr. Dieter Zetsche is expected to fly in from headquarters to make a big announcement. That announcement, according to mounting speculation, is that MBUSA is moving to Atlanta. News of the potential move first broke around three weeks ago, suggesting that the German automaker was looking to relocate its US headquarters from New Jersey to somewhere in the South, with the Atlanta area tipped as the front-runner. Now sources are expecting that announcement to be made imminently. Although the specifics of the move have yet to be made public, Mercedes is tipped to be looking at moving into either a purpose-built facility or an existing office space in the Sandy Springs area, specifically near the intersections of Georgia 400 and Abertnathy, where UPS has its headquarters. The move is said to have hinged on a substantial incentives package worth nearly $50 million put together by the Georgia state government. The state of New Jersey is said to have offered similar incentives to keep Mercedes in the Bergen County borough of Montvale, where it employs 800 in its 141,000-square-foot office complex. One advertising company even put up billboards encouraging the company to stay, but if the reports prove accurate, it looks like their efforts may have been too little and/or too late. Mercedes wouldn't be the first automaker to move to the South, where numerous foreign carmakers have been also setting up factories. Toyota is also preparing to move its US headquarters to Texas, and though already based in Georgia, Porsche is preparing to move into a new $100 million facility, complete with on-site test track, closer to Atlanta's Hartsfield-Jackson airport that has grown into a major international hub. The move on Mercedes' part would put its US base of operations closer to its factory in Tuscaloosa, AL, and the port near Savannah, GA, from which it ships out the former's production overseas.

Ford and Mercedes join Renault in French emissions investigation

The French government is investigating certain models from Ford, Mercedes-Benz, and Renault because they allegedly produce more nitrogen oxide than the country's pollution rules allow, according to Automotive News, citing a French newspaper. After VW's emissions scandal, French regulators began checking more vehicles for evidence of defeat devices and excessive real-world pollution. According to Automotive News, the Mercedes S350 allegedly showed inconsistent results across these tests, and a Ford C-Max had NOx levels five times over the limit. The Renault Captur crossover, Espace, and an unnamed utility vehicle also had results that were too high. The French testing for this investigation includes an on-road emissions check that's not part of the EU's normal evaluations, which some automakers claim is unfair. "Unofficial on-road testing has varying conditions and can produce significantly different results," a Ford of Europe spokesman told Automotive News. Renault representatives met with French officials on January 18 to explain the situation. The company later submitted a plan to recall 15,800 examples of the diesel Captur, and said it would offer a voluntary software upgrade for about 700,000 other vehicles, according to Automotive News. Representatives from Ford and Mercedes will meet with the government soon, too. Renault's stock price plunged last week after investors heard that French regulators searched three of the automaker's sites as part of the emissions investigation. The stockholders feared an environmental scandal like the one currently embroiling Volkswagen. There's one major difference – as of now, there's no evidence Renault equipped any of the polluting models with defeat devices. Related Video: