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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.

2016 Mercedes-Benz C450 AMG Sport bridges the gap between C300 and C63

Mercedes-Benz is looking to its new C-Class for the second member of its new AMG Sport line, unveiling the C450 AMG 4Matic at today's 2015 Detroit Auto Show. Like the GLE450 AMG Coupe that debuted in early December, this particular C-Class bridges the gap between the standard C300 and the new Mercedes-AMG C63. Considering this, the C450 builds on the standard C400's 3.0-liter, twin-turbocharged V6, rather than getting a bespoke, high-performance engine. Output is up from 329 horsepower to 362 ponies, while torque is turned up from 354 pound-feet to 384 lb-ft. The result of these upgrades is a zippy 0-60-mile-per-hour sprint of 4.9 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph. Those figures are identical to the Audi S4, while the BMW 335i xDrive is just a smidge quicker to 60, getting there in 4.8 seconds (the Bimmer is, however, limited to just 130 mph). Shuffling the 3.0-liter's grunt to a 4Matic all-wheel-drive system is the responsibility of Mercedes 7G-Tronic automatic gearbox that, despite not being a member of AMG's Speedshift dual-clutch family, still has its own mind for performance. Along with a quick-shifting, automatic Sport Plus mode, the C450 has a full manual shifting mode that, notably, will not automatically upshift, even when the engine is bouncing off the rev limiter. The C450 AMG hasn't only had its straight-line abilities boosted. Mercedes saw fit to include an AMG adaptive sport suspension with three-stage adjustable dampers, which have been pilfered from the C63 AMG. Paired with the aforementioned all-wheel-drive system, which can send up to two-thirds of its power to the rear axle, it's a fair to say this particular sedan should be one of the brand's more agile and entertaining. Beyond the mechanical bits, Mercedes has beefed up the exterior and interior aesthetics for its second AMG Sport model. The exterior has been touched up with new, staggered 18-inch, five-spoke wheels (or optional 19s), a more aggressive front fascia, a new rear bumper with a matte iridium diffuser, distinctive AMG badges and plenty of chrome and gloss-black elements. The cabin, meanwhile, is home to black MB Tex upholstery with red contrast stitching on the dash and doors, while AMG-specific upholstery lines the sport seats. The flat-bottomed, three-spokes steering wheel, meanwhile, is finished in Nappa leather. We'll have more on the 2016 C450 AMG Sport, including live images, coming soon from the floor of the 2015 Detroit Auto Show.

Daimler: 2017 the right time to launch our hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle

Zero-emissions vehicle development has never focused purely on off-the-line acceleration. So when a research executive with Mercedes-Benz parent Daimler says it's Okay that companies like Toyota and Hyundai will have a head start selling hydrogen fuel-cell vehicle, it's somewhat believable. But is Daimler really fine with being two years behind? It appears so. Daimler plans on debuting its first fuel-cell vehicle in 2017, Automotive News says, citing an interview Automobilwoche had with Daimler's corporate research chief Herbert Kohler. The German automaker estimated about a decade ago that it would be able to get fuel-cell production costs down to an "acceptable" level in 2012, but it turns out that estimate was about five years too aggressive. Daimler originally started leasing out a limited number of its F-Cell hydrogen vehicles in the US for $849 a month, though later brought that down to $599 a month. Daimler says it received a boost in its effort to accelerate fuel-cell powertrain development when it reached an agreement early last year with Nissan and Ford to work together on speeding up relevant powertrain technology. While Toyota's first fuel-cell vehicle in Japan is priced at almost $70,000 (before big government incentives kick in), Kohler says Daimler's first fuel-cell vehicle will be priced similar to a hybrid vehicle. Of course, that's a Mercedes-Benz hybrid we're talking about here, but still. Related Gallery Mercedes-Benz F-Cell View 9 Photos News Source: Automotive News - sub. req. Green Mercedes-Benz Hydrogen Cars h2