2013 Mercedes-benz G63 Amg Sport Utility 4-door 5.5l on 2040-cars

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Ferrari seeks review of Canadian Grand Prix penalty decision

Ferrari has asked for a review of the stewards' decision that cost Sebastian Vettel victory in the Canadian Grand Prix, a team spokesperson said on Monday. Vettel finished first in the race in Montreal on June 9 but lost the win after a five-second time penalty for going off track and returning in what stewards deemed to be an unsafe fashion. Mercedes' Formula One championship leader Lewis Hamilton was declared the winner instead. Significant and relevant new evidence that was not available at the time is required for a team to submit a 'right of review' under article 14 of the governing FIA's International Sporting Code. The spokesperson said Ferrari, who last week dropped a planned protest against the penalty, had formally requested the review but gave no further details "due to the sensitivity of the matter." Stewards will now have sole discretion to determine whether such a significant and relevant new element existed, with their decision final. If the review is deemed admissible, a secondary hearing will be held. Mercedes has won all seven races so far this season, and the last nine in total, with Britain's five-time world champion Hamilton now 29 points clear of Finnish teammate Valtteri Bottas in the standings. Vettel, who was furious with a decision that caused an immediate controversy, is 62 points adrift of Hamilton. Formula One holds its eighth race of the 21 round season in the south of France this weekend at Le Castellet circuit, where the penalty is likely to remain a major talking point. The Williams team requested a right of review last season against a three-place grid penalty handed to Russian driver Sergey Sirotkin, arguing that significant and relevant new elements had emerged. Stewards unanimously rejected the move. Motorsports Ferrari Mercedes-Benz Racing Vehicles F1 Lewis Hamilton Sebastian Vettel

Brabus Mercedes-AMG GT is a 600-hp exercise in restraint

Big, wild, crazy vehicles from local tuners are one of the highlights of all European auto shows, where even high-performance cars get ludicrous amounts of horsepower and questionable body mods. Occasionally, though, one tuning shop comes out with something that is actually pretty reasonable in both departments. At the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show, that vehicle comes from Brabus and its take on the Mercedes-AMG GT, simply called the Brabus GT. Sure, it has 600 horsepower, which is a lot, but it's only 97 hp more than stock. Asking a European tuner to increase a car's horsepower by just 97 ponies is like asking a six-pack-a-day smoker to quite cold turkey – it requires a tremendous amount of self-control. It's a similar story on the body, where we get a new body kit, new wheels, and a slightly tweaked interior. Now, to be fair, the body kit is made from carbon fiber and the wheels are staggered, multi-spoke alloys, but neither mod is too garish. The cabin gets new black leather, which comes from cows and not some other typical Euro tuner hide, like whale foreskin. The steering wheel gets an Alcantara wrap, and there's some carbon-fiber and wood trim added as well. It's all very, very simple, and not just for a European tuner – we could picture Mercedes itself coming up with a very similar treatment if/when it does an AMG GT Black Series. We've got a wide array of live photos of the new Brabus GT from its Frankfurt debut. Scroll up and check them out. Related Video:

Why it's difficult to accurately test the efficiency of a plug-in car

When it comes to electric vehicles and plug-ins in general, the Environmental Protection Agency-certified range is a hugely important number. While actual range anxiety is largely psychological, the magic number does provide a point of comparison of buyers considering one EV over another. The driving distance is also often touted by automakers when marketing their models. Unfortunately, as Green Car Reports finds in a recent deep dive, the way the EPA calculates the figure is a convoluted mess, and discovering the reasons why is definitely worth the read. The issue isn't about bad science but instead comes down to vague wording. The EPA's accepted range test is sourced from an evaluation called J-1634 from the Society of Automotive Engineers, and it seems to provide balanced results for vehicles that automatically reach a single state of charge when plugged in. However for models with multiple charge settings, the situation gets complicated very quickly. Of course, these modes are often created in the software, meaning that a car's certified driving distance can change with just a few taps of the keyboard without the real world results owners might experience actually changing. By showing the test's effects on the certified range for the Tesla Model S, Nissan Leaf and Mercedes-Benz B-Class Electric Drive over the last few years, Green Car Reports makes a compelling argument that it's the evaluation that needs to change. Thankfully, it appears that the solution is a very simple one. Get the details here.