2011 Mercedes Benz C300 Sedan In Excellent Condition. Black On Black! on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Daimler and Geely collaborate to develop 'a highly efficient modular engine'

BERLIN — German car maker Daimler said on Tuesday it will cooperate with China's Geely to build next-generation combustion engines for use in hybrid vehicles. Efforts to share development costs come as the growth potential for combustion engines faces the twin threat of the COVID-19 crisis and stricter fuel-efficiency and emission rules. "The companies plan to develop a highly efficient modular engine," a spokesman for Daimler said, adding that it would be used in hybrid drivetrains and manufactured in Europe and China. Geely declined to comment. The modular engine will be used in cars under different marques at Geely and Daimler, a person familiar with the matter said on condition of anonymity as the companies are still in the early stages of developing the engine. News of the alliance was a surprise to Daimler's works council at its factory in Untertuerkheim, which specializes in electric and gasoline powertrain assembly. "We are speechless. There was not even a discussion about potential alternative manufacturing locations," said Michael Haeberle, the works council chief for Untertuerkheim. "We have the ability to build four-cylinder engines in Untertuerkheim, but there were no talks about it." Daimler said German factories will be retooled gradually to add electric drivetrains production. Most of the next-generation combustion engines will be made in China, business daily Handelsblatt reported. The alliance with Geely, which owns a 9.69% stake in Stuttgart-based Daimler, means that parts of Daimler's existing partnership with Renault could be pared back. A Renault source told Reuters that the Daimler-Geely project does not mean an end of cooperation between Daimler and Renault. Citing Daimler sources, Handelsblatt said the Daimler-Geely pact would save the German carmaker a "triple-digit million sum" — implying an amount above 100 million euros ($119 million) and less than 1 billion euros. Green Mercedes-Benz Volvo Hybrid Daimler Geely

Mercedes out to defend its F1 crown with new W06 Hybrid Silver Arrow

They say there's only one way to go when you're on top, and that's down. That's the direction in which every other team on the Formula One grid will be trying to push Mercedes this season, but the defending champions will be doing their best to stay on top. What you see here is the embodiment of that effort. After taking pole position at all but one race last season, the checkered flag at all but three and an impressive dozen one-two finishes, the new Mercedes AMG F1 W06 Hybrid will have one heck of an act to follow. In accordance with the only major change to the sporting regulations for 2015, the most obvious difference over last year's W05 is the revised front end, but the team insists it worked hard over the winter to optimize everything underneath that silver and teal bodywork, from the suspension to the turbocharged hybrid power unit and everything in between. One of only two teams (alongside Ferrari) on the grid this season to develop its own engine in-house, the Mercedes PU106A proved practically unbeatable last season. And with engine development all but completely frozen in the off-season, its innovations are likely to prove just as insurmountable this year. But as team principal Toto Wolff puts it, in quoting Babe Ruth, "Yesterday's home runs don't win today's games." While nothing's for certain in one of the world's the most competitive arenas, chances are still high that Mercedes will continue to dominate this season just as it did the last. The most gripping battle, then, may very well be waged once again between Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg, whose rivalry started long before either got their start in F1, from karting and up through the ranks of the lower formulae. Though Lewis was just crowned world champion for the second time, Nico has been with the Mercedes team for longer, has been in F1 for longer and didn't give up on chasing Lewis all of last season – so don't expect him to this year, either. MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS Gets Back to Work with the new F1 W06 Hybrid Silver Arrow Jerez, Feb 01, 2015 The MERCEDES AMG PETRONAS Formula One Team today unveiled its 2015 Formula One World Championship challenger, the F1 W06 Hybrid, ahead of the first day of pre-season testing at the Circuito de Jerez in Spain.

Mercedes dealers authorized to spend $2,500 on perks for S-Class customers

If you drop $100,000 on a luxury sedan, it seems only reasonable to receive some preferential treatment at the dealership you purchased from. After all, that price isn't just for the car - you're paying for the brand and all the cachet that entails. For Mercedes-Benz, those benefits have apparently been lacking relative to the German brand's luxury competitors.
That's set to change, though, as Automotive News reports that the German brand is placing a much greater emphasis on keeping its customers happy and loyal with its MB Select program. Starting with the new S-Class and spreading to the CLA-Class (and eventually beyond), dealers are being given money - up to $2,500 in the case of the flagship sedan - just to improve the customer experience.
We agree, improving the "customer experience" is quite a vague term, so it's nice that Mercedes USA's CEO, Steve Cannon, offered up some examples to AN at the LA Auto Show. For example, a customer couldn't fit his sunglasses into the overhead compartment. "So we bought him a pair of Ray-Ban sunglasses that fit because of their shape," Cannon said.