If you need to haul some stuff in a big hurry, you could do a lot worse than the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Estate wagon. It offers all the power of its coupe and sedan siblings, only with the added cargo space that so many European customers prefer over the betrunked versions. But if the stock 457 horsepower isn't enough, the good folks over at Edo Competition are glad to help out with an upgrade of their own.
That upgrade, it turns out, is anything but negligible, pumping output up by nearly 150 horsepower to a stonking 600. Torque has also been boosted from 442 lb-ft stock to 501, where that extra single measure of twist makes all the difference.
The boost comes courtesy of new exhaust, headers, cats and filters, supplemented by 19-inch modular alloys riding on suitably low-profile Michelin rubber, with a slew of interior enhancements to make the Edo C63 feel all the more special.
The exterior, however, remains decidedly low-key - all the better for messing with the head of Porsche drivers on the Autobahn while hauling the whole family and all their gear. Check it out in the press release below and the high-res image gallery above.
Continue reading Edo Competition squeezes 600 HP into Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Estate
Ford dealers have started taking orders for the 2013 Ford C-Max Hybrid, the company announced today.
The gas-electric hybrid will arrive later this year with a starting price of $25,995, undercutting its most direct competitor, the Toyota Prius V hybrid, which has a base price of $26,550.
"C-Max Hybrid offers better fuel economy, performance, technology and functionality than Prius V - and C-Max Hybrid customers will pay less at the dealership and at the pump," said Ken Czubay, vice president, U.S. Marketing, Sales and Service, in a press release.
More importantly, Ford will provide some stiffer competition for Toyota, which has ruled the hybrid market, selling 77 percent of all hybrids in the U.S. this April. The C-Max will only be offered in the U.S. as a hybrid, similar to Toyota's Prius strategy. There will also be an all-electric version, known as the C-Max Energi, that arrives this fall.
Ford sells the C-Max, which is built on Ford's compact car platform, in Europe as a gas powered model. Since introducing this utility vehicle in 2010, Ford has sold more than 150,000 C-Max vehicles in Europe.
Continue reading Ford C-Max pricing to undercut Toyota Prius V
Carroll Shelby's passing, BMW 3 Series Wagon, Porsche sub-Boxster/Pajun, Google car in public, BMW 2 Series
Episode #282 of the Autoblog Podcast is here, and this week, Chris, Dan and Zach chat about the passing of industry legend Carroll Shelby, the BMW 3 Series Wagon that's coming soon, Porsche and its rumored small five-door, Pajun (along with plans for a baby Boxster), Google's self-driving car getting the go-ahead to roam Nevada's streets, and the coming BMW 2 Series. Your questions and comments power the end of the 'cast, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. We've embedded our Q&A module after the jump for you to scroll through and follow along, too. Thanks for listening!
Autoblog Podcast #282:
Topics:
Caroll Shelby passes away
BMW 3 Series wagon headed stateside
Porsche baby Boxster and Pajun
Google self-driving car in public
BMW 2 Series arrives in 2014
In the Autoblog Garage:
2012 Chrylser 300 AWD
2012 Honda Fit Sport
2012 Volkswagen Tiguan
Hosts: Dan Roth, Chris Shunk, Zach Bowman
Runtime: 01:23:51
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[UStream] Listen live on Mondays at 10PM Eastern at UStream
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There can be no argument that the Mercedes-Benz E-Class is a handsome sedan, but some changes are underway to make the 2013 model more striking. Our spy shooters caught this wagon, which despite having its front end heavily cloaked, gives up at least a few details.
New headlights are hiding beneath all that masking, which will integrate the current model's separate daytime running lamps. Out back, the taillights will retain the same shape, but get a slightly different look.
Also absent from these photos will be a new design to the rear fenders, as we're told that Mercedes will be changing the rear doors to remove the "Ponton-style" bulge. The interior will be updated, as well, with some improved safety equipment being added to the E-Class order sheet.
Check out all of the high-res images in our gallery.
The wagon is not dead! BMW has unveiled the latest 3 Series Sports Wagon and announced that it will again be available to U.S. customers. The new long-roof 3 goes on sale in Europe later this year as the 328i, 330d, and 320d Touring. U.S. customers need to wait until Spring 2013 for the 3 Series Sports Wagon to arrive in showrooms, and powertrain details for our market have not yet been announced. The current 3 Series wagon is only offered as the 328i here in the U.S. (with and without xDrive).
The new car is larger than the current model, and boasts 10 percent more cargo volume according to BMW. As with the 3 Series sedan, the wagon will be available in Sport, Luxury, and Modern lines, as well as an M Sport Line, each with a unique approach to their interior and exterior trim.
Inside, the back seats have a 40:20:40 split and the cargo space offers plenty of room (as you can see in the photos). There's also hidden storage, a standard partition net, and if the cargo cover isn't in use, it can be stowed under the cargo floor for added convenience.
Amenities include an available power tailgate that, with the optional Comfort Access package, becomes a hands-free power tailgate; you just wave your foot under the bumper à la 2013 Ford Escape. Naturally, BMW will offer its full complement of tech and driver aids, like BMW Apps, a color HUD, Lane Departure Warning, Blind Spot Detection, BMW Parking Assistant, Rear-view Camera with Top View, and the BMW Assist telematics service.
So, the good news: There's a new 3 Series wagon. The bad news: You need to wait a year. But that's better than no wagon at all, right?
Continue reading 2013 BMW 3 Series Sports Wagon unveiled, bound for U.S.
The wagon is not dead! BMW has unveiled the latest 3 Series Sports Wagon and announced that it will again be available to U.S. customers. The new long-roof 3 goes on sale in Europe later this year as the 328i, 330d, and 320d Touring. U.S. customers need to wait until Spring 2013 for the 3 Series Sports Wagon to arrive in showrooms, and powertrain details for our market have not yet been announced. The current 3 Series wagon is only offered as the 328i here in the U.S. (with and without xDrive).
The new car is larger than the current model, and boasts 10 percent more cargo volume according to BMW. As with the 3 Series sedan, the wagon will be available in Sport, Luxury, and Modern lines, as well as an M Sport Line, each with a unique approach to their interior and exterior trim.
Inside, the back seats have a 40:20:40 split, and the cargo space offers plenty of room (as you can see in the photos). There's also hidden storage, a standard partition net, and if the cargo cover isn't in use, it can be stowed under the cargo floor for added convenience.
Amenities include an available power tailgate that, with the optional Comfort Access package, becomes a hands-free power tailgate; you just wave your foot under the bumper a la the new Ford Escape. Naturally, BMW will offer its full complement of tech and driver aids, like BMW Apps, a color HUD, Lane Departure Warning, Blind Spot Detection, BMW Parking Assistant, Rear-view Camera with Top View, and the BMW Assist telematics service.
So, the good news: new 3 Series wagon. The bad news: you need to wait a year. But that's better than no wagon at all, right.
Few automakers can produce the kind of sports sedans that the Germans do. And for most of the country's automakers, those performance vehicles can be recognized by one letter (or a combination of a few): M for BMW, RS for Audi, AMG for Mercedes-Benz... and R for Volkswagen. The relatively new performance division at Wolfsburg has now gotten its hands on the Passat, and these are the results.
Well, almost, but not quite. You see, this isn't a full-on R performance variant, but an R-Line model that gives the midsize sedan (and wagon) a sportier look and an upgraded suspension, but without the engine mods you'd expect to come with it.
It also isn't the same Passat as the one we get here. Ours is made in America (Chatanooga, Tennessee, to be specific). This is based on the European model, and as such is available (in Europe, anyway) in both sedan and wagon form. In either body-style, the Passat R-Line includes a new aero kit (complete with sportier bumpers front and rear, side skirts, rear diffuser and deck-lid spoiler), 17-inch alloys, a sport-tuned suspension and a cabin decked out with sports seats, stainless steel trim and a flat-bottomed steering wheel.
The R-Line model stands as a separate trim level atop the Passat range - selling for €30,225 in Germany (equivalent to about $39k) - but buyers of the Comfortline and Highline trim levels can also specify the aero kit for an extra €990 (~$1,300). Check it out in the high-res image gallery for a closer look.
Last time we saw the non-AMG skin of the Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake it was bathed in red paint and caked in Arctic snow and grime. Warmer times have brought new shots of a black car - which we'll christen The Scarab - on standard wheels wearing nothing but a shine and a wisp of camo. Its shape has found a way to divide opinion, as the CLS-Class has always done, and we'll admit that yes, perchance there's something faintly Romulan about it, but we're totally sold on the looks.
Right now, there's nothing left to the imagination but the aft-most sliver of window - that final angle of chrome is an application. We expect all blanks to be filled in come the Paris Motor Show in September, which should see the reveal of the CLS550 and CLS63 AMG versions of the sleekest wagon this side of Rigel 5. The high-res gallery is above, and you should check it out.
The emergence of the V40 is arguably the biggest news to come out of Volvo since Ford sold it to Geely. Just as with any new car - European hatchbacks especially - the aftermarket will follow shortly with modifications, and in the case of Volvo, that means Heico Sportiv.
The German tuning house specializes in Gothenburg's finest. The firm already has a new ECU module for the T5 engine in the V40 that brings output up from 237 horsepower to 266 and from 236 pound-feet of torque to 269. Heico has released a pair of renderings previewing what it plans to do with the outside of the slick new sport-wagon.
From the teaser renderings, we can see a new set of lightweight seven-spoke alloys, new bumpers front and rear, side skirt extensions, a relatively low-key diffuser and quad ovoid exhaust tips. In other words, the V40, only slightly more so. Unfortunately, since the V40 isn't earmarked for American showrooms, this may be as close as we'll get.
Scion has long been labeled as a "youth brand," so perhaps we shouldn't be surprised to read word of parent Toyota turning over the marque's aging nameplates so quickly. According to Ward's Auto, Scion is set to kill off its xB and xD models - the first a onetime icon for the brand, the latter an econobox that never truly caught on with buyers (not unlike it's predecessor, the xA).
A model like the xB was always going to be a love-hate proposition, and indeed, the subcompact sharply divided opinion because of its its t-square styling and funky stance back when it was introduced in 2004. But enough buyers fell enough with its good qualities - remarkable space efficiency, solid fuel economy, ease-of-driving and low pricing that the xB sold surprisingly well, in the process becoming something of a totem for the brand. The second-generation model, which bowed for 2007, seemed to alter all the things that made the original so endearing: the xB grew substantially, had the uniquely sharp corners of its design chamfered off, and it gained more power without adding much in the way of performance because the vehicle had been so radically upsized. Fuel economy dipped, too, as did the xB's popularity with shoppers. Last year, Scion only moved about 17,000 examples - in its heyday, the xB sold over 60,000 units.
A couple of years ago, Jim Farley, Ford's vice president of global marketing, told Autoblog that Scion's intent wasn't to be a youth brand at all - it was to be an experimental division, an incubator for product and marketing techniques. Farley, as you may recall, was one of the driving forces behind Scion, ascending to the role of its vice president before being reassigned to Lexus. By Farley's yardstick, perhaps Scion had pushed the xB and xD as far as they could go, and now it's simply time to test new vehicular hypotheses. Indeed, more recent models like the tiny iQ and FR-S coupe show the brand experimenting in bold new directions... exactly the sort of innovation we can get behind.
Scion has long been labeled as a "youth brand," so perhaps we shouldn't be surprised to read word of parent Toyota turning over the marque's aging nameplates so quickly. According to Ward's Auto, Scion is set to kill off its xB and xD models - the first a onetime icon for the brand, the latter an econobox that never truly caught on with buyers (not unlike it's predecessor, the xA).