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German carmakers recall 630,000 diesel vehicles in Europe

Mercedes, Opel, Porsche, and Volkswagen will recall over 630,000 cars in Europe, according to reports Friday. No diesel car has been able to get under the legal emissions limit in real-world driving, according to a German government investigation. While only Volkswagen Group has been using a specific "defeat device", other carmakers have been playing with their exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) systems. Depending of the manufacturer, the systems have been cut off at a certain temperature. In a specific test cycle the systems operate to fulfill the legal requirements, but in everyday use the limits are exceeded. According to the magazine Der Spiegel, the supplier Bosch is behind this programming and has provided it to all German automakers. The mentioned carmakers have announced recalls, but many other manufacturers are also mentioned by name in the report, including Alfa Romeo, Chevrolet, Dacia, Fiat, Ford, Hyundai, Jaguar, Jeep, Land Rover, Nissan, Renault, and Suzuki. PSA Group, which produces Peugeot, Citroen, and DS cars, declared yesterday that its offices were raided following an emissions investigation. Related Video: News Source: AutocarImage Credit: Getty Images Government/Legal Green Recalls Mercedes-Benz Porsche Volkswagen Opel Emissions Diesel Vehicles diesel emissions investigation

2015 Austrian F1 Grand Prix switches to alternating current

It's called the Red Bull Ring, guests are welcomed by a statue of a leaping bull, and dominating its layout demands powerful cars that can run it hard. Perhaps all that aggression is what led both Mercedes-AMG Petronas cars to run off the track in the final qualifying session on their final hot laps, a little too aggressive on the charge. Lewis Hamilton was first into the gravel at Turn 1 when he lost his car under braking, but he was still fast enough to get pole ahead of teammate Nico Rosberg, who spun at Turn 8. Rosberg started second. Or perhaps it wasn't the red bull but the scarlet horse that caused The Silver Arrows to muck it up: Ferrari driver Sebastian Vettel had Mercedes' attention all weekend, and he'd line up in third just 0.355 off Hamilton's time. Williams truly rediscovered its power, Felipe Massa going fourth fastest, teammate Valtteri Bottas in sixth. Between them was newly-minted Le Mans winner Nico Hulkenberg, yet again – can we say that enough? – pulling the still-not-updated Force India to fifth place on the grid. Max Verstappen led the Renault-powered top-ten duo in his Toro Rosso in seventh, Infiniti Red Bull Racing driver Daniil Kvyat behind him in eighth. Kvyat, however, would start down the order because of a ten-place grid penalty for needing a fifth Renault engine. After that it's back to Mercedes Ferrari power, Felipe Nasr in the Sauber in ninth, Romain Grosjean in with Mercedes power in the Lotus in tenth – but fellow Lotus driver Pastor Maldonado actually started in tenth because of Kvyat's demotion. Before we get to the race, can we take a moment to talk about the shenanigans and gaudy penalties? Kimi Raikkonen waved the Ferrari flag in Canada after a season that's been full of "We didn't get it right this time," and we thought he was back. But no. In Austria the refrain returned, the Finn kicked out of Q1 after another miscommunication with the team – he qualified 18th. If the scenario plays to form, we'll now wait for team boss Mauricio Arrivabene to issue a clarification that suggests Raikkonen missed a step. Daniel Ricciardo parachutes ten spots back for the same reason as his teammate Kvyat, needing a fifth Renault power unit, dropping him to 18th on the grid and forcing him into a five-second time penalty when he comes in to pit.

Mercedes-Maybach Ultimate Luxury SUV concept shown in leaked images

Just days ago, we posted the interior teaser image Mercedes-Maybach released of its Ultimate Luxury concept due to be presented at the Beijing Motor Show. Now photos of the entire vehicle, inside and out, have leaked online courtesy of the manufacturer. Thanks to the concept's own microsite being live for a short while, we've gotten a good look of the concept. And it's not just a dressed-up GLS by any means, even if there might be a GLS platform underneath it all: It's a high-riding four door sedan with a clearly formed trunk instead of a traditional SUV shape. There's a big waterfall grille flanked by low, aggressive three-unit headlights, and the detailing is a combination of SUV cues and something a lot more luxurious. It's not easy to design a three-box sedan that's still recognizably an SUV. Inside, there's white leather and rose-gold detailing everywhere. But the big deal is the powertrain, which in the concept is all-electric. The all wheel drive is propelled with four electric motors, with a combined power output of 750 horsepower. The battery, said to be a flat underfloor design, is good for 80 kWh and an EPA range of over 200 miles, and the vehicle's top speed is limited to 250 km/h, or 155 mph. There's DC fast charging at up to 350kW, meaning that the range can be boosted by 60 miles in just five minutes, and induction charging is also available. All in all, the vehicle reminds us of the 2009 Lagonda Luxury Utility Vehicle concept, which was also created around a three-box sedan shape and also based on a Mercedes platform, GL-Class in that case. It did not yield a production version, but maybe the Vision Ultimate Luxury will. Related Video: Featured Gallery Vision Mercedes-Maybach Ultimate Luxury View 9 Photos Image Credit: Mercedes-Maybach Green Beijing Motor Show Maybach Mercedes-Benz Concept Cars Electric Luxury mercedes-maybach