How to make this

The only thing that's going to make your smirk more than this caricature of a Lamborghini Gallardo is the eBay seller's blatant admission that "at 15 feet away, the car…looks amazing". Get closer than that, and…well, see for yourself in the picture gallery.

In all fairness, though, the seller, who is not the creator of the car, acknowledges a number of things, including that he wouldn't want to drive the Sagging Bull clone on a highway at 60mph (close to 100km/h) and that "it's not safe enough to drive on the streets" either.

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The only thing that's going to make your smirk more than this caricature of a Lamborghini Gallardo is the eBay seller's blatant admission that "at 15 feet away, the car…looks amazing". Get closer than that, and…well, see for yourself in the picture gallery.

In all fairness, though, the seller, who is not the creator of the car, acknowledges a number of things, including that he wouldn't want to drive the Sagging Bull clone on a highway at 60mph (close to 100km/h) and that "it's not safe enough to drive on the streets" either.

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Filed under: Sedan, Performance, Mercedes-Benz, Luxury, Quick Spins

Maybe you saw our recent blog snippet on a bunch of US journos getting pulled over in the middle of nowhere in Catalunya, Spain for driving a bunch of new 2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG models. By all accounts, they weren't speeding - which makes me softly guffaw. I was there in that group, yet I had taken the more direct route into the mountains from Barcelona so that I could... well, so that I could go faster. No one hassled me and I had the Autovia all to myself. And it was the goodniks - the team players - who got nabbed because Spain had decided to suddenly enforce the never enforced "must carry an international driver's license" clause of the highway code.

The departing E63 AMG with 518 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque from its M157 5.5-liter biturbo V8 hasn't exactly been poorly received. It isn't as crisp as, nor as pleasantly evil as its C63 AMG kid brother, but we generally accept that the heavier and larger car will always feel, well, heavier and larger.

As part of the 2014 E-Class mid-cycle redesign, Affalterbach decided to give its E63 AMG more power and torque for the occasion. The base car now gives off 550 hp and 531 lb-ft, while the hotter S version I tested (formerly the AMG Performance Pack) produces 577 hp and 590 lb-ft. The other big novelty is that E63 sedans will be available with both rear- and all-wheel drive, while all US-spec E63 wagons will be 4Matic equipped.

Driving Notes

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  All S-trimmed AMGs come standard with 4Matic all-wheel drive, as well as an AMG-specific 4Matic clutch pack integrated neatly to the rear of the 7G-Tronic gearbox housing. This unit really alters the game of the E63.


• 
  While the pumped-up standard E63 with rear-wheel drive now reels off 0-60 runs in an estimated 4.2 seconds, this E63 S with AMG 4Matic can straight-line to 60 mph in just 3.6.


• 
  Not much has been altered for the chassis and suspension layout, so the ride and handling on the 19-inch Pirelli PZero treads - 255/35 front, 285/30 rear - and AMG sport suspension is entirely familiar. Merc knows how to coddle me Euro-style, even in an AMG model.


• 
  Things do get pretty hardcore due to the constant fore/aft torque split percentages of 33/67 via the AMG-specific 4Matic. (Non-AMG 4Matic E-Class models run a default 45/55 split, and it varies depending on road and driving conditions.)


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  Along with a completely new front axle to accommodate 4Matic and a more aggressive front wheel camber, there is a quicker 14.0:1 steering ratio versus standard E-Class models at 17.4:1. The more hardcore AMG setup is programmed to be 25 percent heavier feeling than the Sport settings of the series car.


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  The steering action while driving along those Spanish curves was impressive, assisted by the rear axle mechanical differential lock that is standard on S models. This, coupled with the throttle's newfound urgency, makes for a far more aggressive E-Class AMG than I've ever experienced. It's almost more along the lines of a C63 Black Series, honestly, yet more predictable at the hardest speeds.


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  The few tunnels that I shot through were perfect opportunities to shamelessly downshift and listen to the four-tip sport exhaust with the windows cranked down. (See our Short Cut video below.) The twin turbos make for a lower 6,500-rpm redline, but the rumble is as good as what we've come to expect from anything wearing an AMG badge.


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  My only trouble came from the AMG Speedshift version of the 7G-Tronic semi-automatic transmission. In Sport Plus or Manual modes, this transmission as programmed is awkward at times. The trouble is the ultra-conservative settings for upshifts, downshifts, and throttle response when called upon to punch hard from low speeds or in transitions. It is reassuring that Benz promises they are working hard on exactly this issue.


• 
  All of the redesigned E-Class AMG models will arrive in August, and while Mercedes-Benz USA does not yet have exact pricing to announce, the rear-wheel-drive sedan should not vary greatly from its current price of $89,800 due to "current sensitivities in the marketplace." Adding 4Matic to the sedan and wagon (current base price $92,400) should set you back around $3,500. Want the S version in 4Matic sedan or wagon flavor? Be prepared for a further $15,000 hit.

2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG S 4Matic [w/video] originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 20 Feb 2013 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Concept Cars, Coupe, Performance, Geneva Motor Show, Design/Style, Luxury

Nearly lost in the ongoing soap opera that was the Saab deathbed saga is that former CEO Victor Muller's other carmaking operation, Spyker, nearly got flushed down the drain with the Trollhättan patient. But a lot of work has been going on under the hood to resurrect the boutique high-end sportscar manufacturer as of late, and there may yet be light at the end of the tunnel. According to a brief news announcement this morning, Spyker plans to show a new concept car at the Geneva Motor Show, an expo it hasn't attended in two years.

We're not yet sure what the car will look like beyond the outline above, but we're guessing a cash-strapped company like Spyker can't really afford to build a pure concept car without some underlying production intent (it doesn't have a history of doing so, anyway). Thus, it's possible the B6 Concept, as the vehicle is known, could be the company's rumored Porsche 911 fighter, or it might be something else based on Saab's Phoenix platform, which the company still seems to have some level of rights to. There's an outside chance it could be the long-promised production version of the D8 Peking to Paris utility vehicle, but the teaser outline doesn't look right. If the whispers of a Porsche rival are correct, look for a car that's smaller than the C8 Aileron with a lower price tag aimed at helping nurse the company back to health through higher sales volumes.

Continue reading Spyker vows return to Geneva Motor Show with B6 concept

Spyker vows return to Geneva Motor Show with B6 concept originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Feb 2013 13:29:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Filed under: Coupe, Performance, Porsche, First Drives, Luxury

A Blue-Blooded Valentine



I need you to understand what it's like to drive this car. I'm not talking about your ability to comprehend the words on this page or process the figures that surround the 2014 Porsche Cayman S, but rather what it feels like to take control of a car conceived, designed, engineered and manufactured to set your prefrontal cortex alight with all the glee a Zippo typically reserves for pine needles marinated in jet fuel. From the instant you put your tail in the driver's seat, the Cayman sets about impregnating your veins with a full and varied spectrum of ludicrous emotion. It's not like taking the family pickup to market, I can tell you that much.

For 2014, the next-generation Cayman features many of the same styling tweaks first displayed on the coupe's drop-top cousin, the Boxster, though a spate of mechanical changes, more power, less weight and better efficiency join the party to further differentiate this model from its predecessor. And while additions like rev-matched downshifts and electronic power steering help push the Cayman into a new era, one fact remains unchanged: This is one of the best driving cars on the market. Period. Bear with me and I'll try to explain exactly why that is.

Continue reading 2014 Porsche Cayman S

2014 Porsche Cayman S originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 19 Feb 2013 11:57:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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How can you rear-end a car that is slowly moving in front of you? Pfff, that's easy; just take your eyes off the road for a split second and keep your foot on the gas pedal, which is exactly what this young Asian lady (she could be from Taiwan, but don't take our word for it) did in her green Nissan sedan. Read more »

How can you rear-end a car that is slowly moving in front of you? Pfff, that's easy; just take your eyes off the road for a split second and keep your foot on the gas pedal, which is exactly what this young Asian lady (she could be from Taiwan, but don't take our word for it) did in her green Nissan sedan. Read more »

Every few months I’m reminded of the intensity of feeling some technologies – be they physical objects (they usually are) or web services – engender in a certain subset of the human population. It’s a well-documented effect: The object of desire is courted for months before launch, then at launch it is defended to the death, and then, when it is obvious that said object is a success or failure, they react with righteous jubilation or, barring that, a muted boosterism seen in people who play the same numbers in the lotto day after day.

The great Broder v. Tesla controversy is the latest in this ongoing war of logic vs. reality and is still being fought by a group of die-hard Tesla owners who are driving the route a New York Times reporter drove a few weeks ago to prove, unequivocally, that their cars will survive the trek.

Obvious bias aside, it’s a noble goal to defend Tesla. I would say that this fanboyism is important simply because it defends the reality of the electric car. Is Tesla going to be the car-maker of the 21st century? I’m not certain. Even though it’s running circles around the incumbents, there are still far too many unknowns to let the matter of the everyman’s electric vehicle rest in their hands. But I do think they are proving to the world that they can make an electric car that looks great, runs well, and, barring a few glitches, won’t strand you in Scranton? Absolutely.

But a lot of what you people defend isn’t the future of fossil-free transportation. Most of it is Wii U vs. PS3, console vs. PC, and Android vs. iOS. And it’s pretty ridiculous to watch battles rage with such intensity when people are still dying of malaria.

I’d like to address the best way to love something unequivocally without looking like a freak. To be clear, I write this same post almost every year and, not unlike tears in the rain, the wisdom within is lost in the great morass of the blogosphere. But whatever, it’s a holiday weekend and here you go: The Rules Of Online Discourse.

1. Maybe you’re wrong. Understand this when you attack someone for what they’ve written: maybe they’re right. I’ll use a very basic example that I’m sure you will find horribly biased but here we go: I see a lot of things. I know what works and what doesn’t. As Raymond Carver once wrote: My friend John Biggs was talking. John Biggs is a blogger, and some­times that gives him the right.

So I saw this thing called the Notion Ink Adam. It was an Android tablet that came out just before the iPad and was supposed to be the best thing since dry cleaning. There was a vocal group of supporters who absolutely loved the thing and I thought they were deluding themselves. I wrote this:

The result? The device launched, a few other devices were promised, the device failed, and now the website is on hiatus. People defended it for months and months. The message boards were a blur of vociferous justification. New blog posts were hailed as messages from the ether. Then, slowly but surely, the creator stopped talking to the faithful. Messages like “I still love Notion Ink but where are the updates?” and “My Notion Ink is better than anything else but it’s broken now” appeared, where before “PEOPLE WHO BUY ANYTHING BUT A NOTION INK ADAM SUCK” reigned. The justification for their purchases grew increasingly vague, and no one will bet on a horse that died in the stable the night before the race except the insane and/or overly optimistic. I was right; the fanboys were wrong. I’m not happy that happened, but it’s the truth.

2. Say nothing. People online don’t care what you think about Android. They just don’t. Your best bet is to stay inside the forums and websites dedicated to your obsession and to talk about those obsessions there and not in public. Getting into a Twitter fight with John Gruber is pointless because he makes more than you simply by linking and writing one pithy line. He’s got Apple on lock, he’s not paid off, but it’s his business to write intelligently about his favorite thing. Don’t like his opinions? Either open yourself to conflicting ideas or don’t read him. As Wilhelm Stekel wrote, “The mark of the immature man is that he wants to die nobly for a cause, while the mark of a mature man is that he wants to live humbly for one.”

3. No one is biased or everyone is biased. Either way, shut up about it. Human beings contain multitudes. No one cares about the things you care about as much as you do and vice versa. Claiming bias is stupid. It suggests that you are biased in the other direction or suggests you’re free of bias, which is also wrong. You’ll argue with me on this point but you’ll be wrong.

4. When you fail, fail gracefully. When WebOS died, fanboys were forced to concede to the fact that their favorite thing in the world was a dud. A group of fans rallied around the open-source version of WebOS and are still futzing around with it, but like a legion of Betamax fanatics, they’re worshipping at the feet of a dead god. Move on. Be nimble and mentally malleable. Learn something new. Still defending PHP to your dying breath? Go learn Python. Think iOS is a blast? Swap your iPad mini for a Nexus 7. I do this quite often and it’s very refreshing. I learned that I loved Windows 8, for example, and that the Surface Pro is great. I learned these things because I’m in a very special position, but you (meaning MG), too, can at least go into the Microsoft store with an open mind and come out potentially changed.

5. Let’s not fight. There’s beer to drink. There are people to woo and befriend. There are songs to be sung and board games to play. There are things to be smoked, pets to be stroked, and a sun to cavort under or snow to fort into. To those who insist on massing on points of order on the Internet with a horde-like intensity, I say to you: I know high school is hard, but it’s only four years and your time is better spent on lomography or woodworking than defending a technology that will be irrelevant in two years. “We are all prisoners here, of our own device,” said a very wise man once. Let’s all try to get along if only to keep the number of shivvings down.

[Illustration: Bryce Durbin]