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France formally moves to ban Mercedes vehicles using contested refrigerant

That didn't take long. Shortly after a French administrative court gave the French government a ten-day window to reconsider its ban on registrations of Mercedes-Benz A-, B- and CLA-Class cars using the prohibited R134a refrigerant, the government cited an EU directive to formalize banning the sale of the cars. The country's environmental ministry said that registrations "will remain forbidden in France as long as the company does not to conform to European regulations," meaning so long as they do not use the approved R1234yf refrigerant.
Daimler had won the administrative court decision by challenging France's application of a "safeguard" provision in which the EU allows a country to block sales of cars that would "seriously harm the environment." In spite of Daimler's victory, France has cited that very provision as basis for the continuation of the ban.
Daimler got permission from Germany's KBA federal motor authority to keep selling cars with the coolant banned by EU politicians, and is using that national permission as the right to sell the cars throughout Europe. Meanwhile, above that battle, German politicians are asking the EU to let Mercedes sell the cars in France while the KBA does more testing, at the same time as the EU is threatening Germany with repercussions if it doesn't bring the KBA and Daimler into line.

European jury picks finalists for 2015 Car of the Year

There are countless Car of the Year awards handed out each year, and naturally, Europe has its own way of doing things. Every year, a panel of jurists representing seven publications in seven different languages and seven different countries get together to name their joint Car of the Year. The panel released a list of 32 candidates back in July, and it has now whittled that list down to seven nominees. The list consists of the BMW 2 Series Active Tourer, the Citroen C4 Cactus (shown), the Ford Mondeo, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class, the Nissan Qashqai, the Renault Twingo and the Volkswagen Passat. Of those seven, only two are available in the US – those being the Mondeo (sold Stateside as the Fusion) and the C-Class. The Passat is an entirely different model in North America, the Qashqai isn't offered here, Citroen and Renault don't even participate in our market and the BMW 2 Series is represented here only by the completely different coupe and convertible. Expect the one and only recipient of the 2015 Car of the Year award to be announced at the Geneva Motor Show this coming March, and while you're waiting, you can place your guesses for the eventual winner in Comments. Featured Gallery 2015 European Car of the Year: Nominees News Source: CaroftheYear.org BMW Ford Mercedes-Benz Nissan Volkswagen Citroen Renault car of the year nissan qashqai citroen c4 cactus bmw 2 series active tourer

Leno shows off his current project cars

When your car collection grows to the enormous size of Jay Leno's, adding the usual muscle cars or European exotics loses the allure. It becomes necessary to start taking the things in weird directions. Leno is proving just that with his latest tour of many of the ongoing projects currently happening in the garage. With everything from Harley-Davidson generators to '50s hot rods on display just in this short video, there's something any fan can love. The place is like an automotive wonderland. For most people any one of these projects would be an absolute dream. For example, Leno has a copy of a one-off Mercedes-Benz racecar transporter that is nearly ready to drive. Another project hasn't even started yet but already seriously piqued our interest. Leno obtained a very ratty 1966 Volvo 122S wagon, but rather than just a restoration he's has a plan to get a V8 with a flat-plane crank from Volvo performance specialists Polestar. Another project on the way should provide a significant upgrade in performance, while still being quite green. Leno's team has already rebuilt the frame and wooden body from a 1914 Detroit Electric, and with that work done they've started dreaming of a modern drivetrain for it. One proposed candidate for the swap has been to install motor from a Nissan Leaf and a bank of lithium-ion batteries. News Source: Jay Leno's Garage via YouTube Aftermarket Celebrities Mercedes-Benz Volvo Electric Performance Classics Videos Jay Lenos Garage detroit electric