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2016 German Grand Prix race recap: so-so racing, great questions

We can summarize the 2016 German Grand Prix in one sentence: Mercedes-AMG Petronas driver Lewis Hamilton started second on the grid, passed pole-sitter and teammate Nico Rosberg before the first corner, and dominate to the finish. In fact, Hamilton turned his engine power output down on Lap 3 and still took the checkered flag seven seconds ahead of Red Bull driver Daniel Ricciardo. Ricciardo's teammate Max Verstappen crossed the line another six seconds back. Rosberg fell to fourth at the first corner and couldn't find the pace to reel in the Red Bulls. His questionable pass on Verstappen didn't help when the stewards penalized Rosberg five seconds; the overtake reminded us of Rosberg's move on teammate Hamilton in Austria. That penalty turned into eight seconds when the Mercedes-AMG Petronas stopwatch didn't work in the pits. Ferrari pilots Sebastian Vettel and Kimi Raikkonen finished fifth and sixth. Those six drivers all started in the top six, too. Behind them, on Lap 28 of the 67-lap race the next four drivers were Valtteri Bottas in the Williams, Nico Hulkenberg in the Force India, and Jenson Button and Fernando Alonso in McLarens. Low fuel and old tires put the kibosh on Alonso's pace just four laps from the finish, allowing Force India's Sergio Perez to pass, rounding out the top ten. The issues up for debate during the four-week break are far more interesting than the weekend's race. As bad as Ferrari's day might have been – and we'll get to that – Rosberg probably took the biggest hit, losing the race before the first corner for the second weekend in a row and falling 19 points behind Hamilton. Rosberg won the first four races of the season, then the teammates tripped over one another in Spain. Hamilton's won six of the seven races since Spain, Rosberg's best result in that time is a second-place in Hungary. Hamilton turned his engine down on Lap 3 (!) because he's used his entire season's allotment of five turbochargers and five MGU-Ks. Those early-season gremlins now have him on edge of grid penalties. Unless Hamilton's momentum cools off in August, however, that reliability danger might be the only dent in his armor. Rosberg, who once led the Championship by 43 points, will surely drown in his thoughts – and maybe schnapps – over the summer break. Whatever the Italian word for "meditation" is, there'll be a lot of it at Ferrari during the F1 summer break.

Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6 Cabriolet is last year's concept with a soft top

Last year, Mercedes brought an absurd, excessive two-seat coupe to Pebble Beach called the Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6. We say absurd and excessive because it was a roughly 19-foot long coupe for just two people. It also packed a 750-horsepower electric powertrain. This year, Mercedes brought pretty much the same car, but now with a soft top and the suffix "Cabriolet." Because the Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6 Cabriolet is basically the same car as the coupe, it's also dripping with unashamed excess. It's still 19 feet long, it still carries only two people, and it still has 750 horsepower from electric motors. Mercedes claims that power will propel the car to 60 mph in under 4 seconds. Also like the coupe, it has a range of 200 miles on a charge, and with the right charger, can supposedly regain about 60 miles in 5 minutes. There are changes to the car, though. For one, it's painted a different color. Instead of the vibrant red of the coupe, the roadster is a navy blue that Mercedes says helps evoke the feeling of a yacht — more so than the size already did. It also has new wheels with a more conventional multi-spoke look. They're also have rose gold-painted accents. The change to a convertible body style alters the appearance of the Mercedes-Maybach 6 more than you'd expect, too. Now that a significant portion of the vehicle is finished in a contrasting color, the car looks a bit shorter, in a good way. It doesn't look cumbersome. The lack of a fastback also helps keep the tail from looking like it's sagging, as it does on the coupe. The interior of the Vision Mercedes-Maybach 6 Cabriolet is mostly the same as the coupe, too. It features the same white leather seats that blend into the doors and dashboard. It also has the wild wraparound display and clear center tunnel with light tubes that show the flow of electricity to the motors. Metal highlights are finished in rose gold hue, as is the stitching. The differences include more prominent shapes that imply air vents, as well as a wood floor with aluminum strips to complete the yacht feeling. Also, the buttons that dot the seats have Mercedes logos on them, and they're backlit. We also get a peak under the hood of the Mercedes-Maybach 6 Cabriolet. It opens up like pre-war cars with two panels connected by a center hinge. Because it uses compact electric motors and underfloor batteries, there's storage space under the hood.

BMW expects China to pass US as its top market in 2013

When you combine two billion citizens, 100 cities with more than a million inhabitants and an economy that's as unrestrained as Jim Cramer on an Adderall binge, China's explosive auto industry growth shouldn't be a huge surprise. Audi already lists the communist country as its largest market, while Mercedes-Benz is expecting it to be there in the next few years. Now, according to a report from Automotive News, BMW is expecting the People's Republic to overtake the United States in sales by the end of 2013.
We already discovered the extent that BMW is going to in establishing a dedicated Chinese stronghold, when we explored BMW's Shanghai-based DesignWorks studio ahead of April's Shanghai Motor Show. And while we argued that DesignWorks Shanghai hasn't really borne fruit, it isn't due to a lack of sales.
BMW China has seen a 16-percent jump in year-over-year sales, lead by a 28-percent gain in 5 Series sales. Part of BMW's growth strategy comes from an ever-expanding dealership network. Remember those 100 cities we mentioned with over one million people? According to Karsten Engel, CEO of BMW's Chinese operations, those 100-million-plus city dwellers don't have access to a premium dealership.