If you have a collection of 35 world-class cars and haven’t a clue on where to put them all, architect Steve Hermann may have an answer for you. Fork up $35 million and you can have the ultimate car collector’s estate located in Montecito, California, a modernist, 15,000 sq-ft house sporting a 35 car garage.

The 35 car garage isn’t exactly a garage, more of an outstanding automotive gallery. Walls and pillars lined in walnut lead way to the rear facade covered in extravagant glass panes which seem to seamlessly hover over the rolling hills of the 3.5 acre estate teeming with ancient oak groves. Neighbors are among the most famous, including Al Gore, Oprah Winfrey, Steve Martin, Jeff Bridges and John Cleese.

With neighbors of the up-most status in society and a design which oozes modernistic times and a love and appreciation of the automobile – whats not to love? For $35 million you can enjoy your top-of-the-line auto collection whilst treating yourself with the epitome of luxury.

Lets just hope it comes with curtains – lots of them.

Source: Luxist

The Car Collector’s Estate originally appeared on topspeed.com on Thursday, 12 August 2010 19:49 EST.

read more

Chances are, you will never fly to the moon, and chances are you will never become a billionaire, and an even more unlikely scenario is to see an original Ferrari 250 GTO Evocazione up for sale. To say the occurrence is once in a blue moon is a bit of an understatement. So, get your checkbooks out and get ready to write down a number well into the 8-figures – but not yet.

The car up for sale is not a real 250 GTO Evocazione. Although the car is a real Ferrari, it started its life as a much more modest 330 GT. The owner then decided to mod the car to resemble a 250 GTO. And not just any GTO, the only right hand drive 4-liter V-12 model Ferrari made to compete at Le Mans.

The fact of the matter is that although you are not getting a real 250 GTO; the replica is sure to make you just as happy as the real thing. Once in a lifetime will you ever see a real 250 GTO Evocazione up for sale, so for an astronomically lower price, you have the opportunity to own a piece of racing history.

The 250 GTO Evocazione replica is expected to fetch $377,000 – a far cry from the $18 million of the original – on September 25th at the Historics at Brooklands in England.

Source: Luxist

Ferrari 250 GTO Evocazione up for sale at Brooklands Auction originally appeared on topspeed.com on Thursday, 12 August 2010 19:03 EST.

read more

We have already seen the 2012 Mercedes CLS’s exterior fully unveiled, and we have to say, we were very impressed by its much more angular and aggressive stance. But this leaves the interior as a dark void for feeding imaginations and assumptions, but thankfully, the CLS’s new interior has been fully exposed by spy photographers.

Looking at the new photos, it looks as if Mercedes has not failed in immersing it’s customers in a sea of leather, woods, and technology. Mercedes has undoubtedly lived up to its image as the quintessence of luxury once again. Look for the official debut of the new 2012 Mercedes CLS this fall at the Paris Motor Show.

Photo courtesy of: Left Lane News
Sources: none

2012 Mercedes CLS Interior fully exposed originally appeared on topspeed.com on Wednesday, 4 August 2010 20:35 EST.

read more

Now, at first glance, one may think that a gizmo that plays the whine of a Ferrari engine through your car speakers is a bit silly. It may even be considered a joke. Well, although it sounds outlandish, the Soundracer V8/V10 can make your $5,000 Kia sound like a $300,000 Ferrari (if you’re sitting on the inside). It’s kind of like putting Mariah Carey’s vocal chords into Britney Spears or some other non-singing singer.

The setup is quite simple and the technology is actually quite remarkable. You simply plug the Soundracer into the cigarette lighter outlet in your car, crank up the volume, and transcend into a world of big, mean, Ferrari V8s. It works by sending FM signals to your car stereo, making the most boring drive to work seem like a track day at Leguna Seca, all without sounding like a petrol-head to the outside world (which, quite frankly, defeats the purpose). Astonishingly, the Soundracer V8/V10 matches the RPMs of your car to the Ferrari track playing, which makes the whole experience somewhat exciting.

Kiss your Elton John compilations goodbye, because you will not be able to listen to music whilst using the Soundracer, which happens to be the products only major downfall. The product also has trouble matching the redlines of both cars, meaning that while at 3,000 RPM on your Kia, you might get the sound equivalent to the redline of a Ferrari. Go up to the redline of your Honda, and the sound can get high-pitched and annoying. But it seems to vary from car to car.

So for $30-$50, which is really a great bargain, you can turn any boring car into a Ferrari. It’s not perfect, and the sound can only been enjoyed for those on the inside, but for a cheap price, you can get a whole lot of entertainment.

Soundracer V8 caters to every man who dreams of owning a Ferrari originally appeared on topspeed.com on Wednesday, 4 August 2010 11:00 EST.

read more

The new 2012 C Class Coupe, which is set to replace the the CLK in March of 2012 has officially been spied in Europe. The new C-Class is set to be produced in the expanding Bremen factory in Germany, making it the third of three other C class models.

The C Class will be a much more smaller version of the over sized, pricey, E-Class Coupe. The styling of the new coupe will be adopted from that of the new C-Class Sedan. Featuring a much more sculpted hood and a new pair of headlamps. Amazingly, the C-Class Coupe will keep the same trunk space as the sedan version.

The redesigned interior has frankly been morphed into the E-Class – they have basically unbolted the seats and dash on an E-Class and strapped it into the new C-Class. It will feature more gizmos than ever, including night vision (if you plan on going on a spec ops mission, presumably?), parking aid, lane-departure warning, and other driving assistance to make the driving experience about as boring as you can possibly imagine.

In terms of craftsmanship, the new C-Class supposedly lives up to Mercedes’ image of pristine build quality, by using state of the art materials, which will also be reflected in the price tag, expected to climb above that of the C-Class Sedan.

The European model range, will come in 5 versions with 4 and 6 cylinder setups in the 100 to 300 hp range and turbodiesels ranging from 170-204 hp.

sources:

http://www.topspeed.com/cars/car-news/mercedes-confirms-c-class-coupe-ar87570.html

http://www.automobilemag.com/features/news/1003_2012_mercedes_benz_c_class_coupe/index.html

First 2012 C Class Coupe Spy Shots originally appeared on topspeed.com on Thursday, 29 July 2010 23:53 EST.

read more

Despite being long time foes, recent reports suggest that the two dominant German automotive powerhouses have found some form of middle ground…in the seat manufacturing process. With the recent economic downturns plaguing the car industry, economies of scale seem to be the answer on reducing manufacturing costs. It seems both companies are aiming to save money by possibly sharing their seat design and manufacturing process.

Even though that sounds very weird, these two rival companies have announced they will come together on a deal to manufacture same seat frames for use in the production BMW and Mercedes-Benz models. The parent companies have said this is just the start of future cooperation with BMW and Mercedes.

According to an authoritative German magazine, Der Spiegel, these companies are pouring in millions of Euros into future projects, which they say could help them save up to 200 million Euros ($288 million) a year. Although the companies claim the money-saving exercise will impact the consumers too, we very much doubt the price of a new luxury Mercedes-Benz or BMW will drop dramatically, if at all, from this exercise. But it could reduce the chances of sale price increases in the near future.

BMW and Mercedes-Benz enthusiasts may be quite hesitant to share some technologies with rival brands, but both companies have assured only the seat frames will be built together. The trimming, internal cushioning, and functions of the seats will be designed and made separately.

BMW and Mercedes Benz in stranger than fiction patnership. originally appeared on topspeed.com on Tuesday, 27 July 2010 08:21 EST.

read more

With Test Drive Unlimited 1, the genre of racing games was changed forever. Featuring over 125 of the worlds fastest cars and bikes. What made the Test Drive Unlimited franchise stand apart was over 1000 miles of road to roam on at will; modeled after satellite images of Hawaii’s island O’ahu. It also brought the ability of being able to buy your own houses, visit car dealers, and start clubs with other gamers.

Now, after a long, 4 year wait, Test Drive Unlimited 2 has been set to hit the shelves on September 21st. Registration for the Beta version has already gone underway, but no specific date has been set for the Beta, (pre-order is also currently available)

With the latest installment of the Test Drive series, comes day and night cycles, dynamic weather, indicator lights, working hard tops, and complete customization of all aspects of the game, including your house, avatar, car vinyls, and car interiors. More major changes include SUVs for off-roading, a new island to explore (modeled after Ibiza) as well as the old island, and an airport to take you between the two. Co-op gameplay, in which one player drives and the other reads a map, will also debut in the new game. More major changes include being able to get out of your car in selected areas, cosmetic damage (will not effect performance), and multiple headlight modes.

A few teaser photos have been released, suggesting what cars will be in the game. Confirmed cars include the McLaren MP4-12C, Gumpert Apollo, Aston Martin One-77, Audi Q7, Nissan 370Z, Audi TTS, Audi R8, Aston Martin DBS, Dodge Viper SRT-10, Ford GT, Koenigsegg CCXR, Pagani Cinque, and the Spyker C8. Happy cruising TDU fans.

Test Drive Unlimited 2 to be released September 21st originally appeared on topspeed.com on Monday, 26 July 2010 16:24 EST.

read more

Ferrari’s poor showing at this year’s F1 championship came to an end yesterday as Fernando Alonso controversially led a Ferrari one-two at the German Grand Prix. Apparently, Felipe Massa was given orders by his team to stand down for Alonso, who subsequently won the race.

After a post-race steward’s analysis, Ferrari was fined $100,000 for breaching F.I.A sporting regulations, which states in Rule 39.1: “Team orders which interfere with a race result are prohibited’. Despite the penalty, Ferrari insisted the incident was “a driver decision” and said no instructions were given to their drivers.

Rob Smedley, a Ferrari race engineer was overheard communicating to Massa over team radio: “Alonso is faster than you. Can you confirm you understand?” It seemed Massa responded by letting Alonso through on Turn Six moments later. Following the move, Smedley added: “Good lad. Just stick with it now, sorry.”

Massa took full advantage of the battle between Vettel and Alonso, taking lead at the start, however on lap 21 the Ferrari pair traded places on Turn Six before Massa regained the lead – resulting in Alonso saying on team radio: “This is ridiculous”.
Asked to comment on the call afterward, Massa, who looked incensed at the podium and was denied a potential win one year to the day after he fractured his skull in the Hungarian GP, said: “I don’t need to say anything about that. He passed me.” Alonso’s win took him to within range of Hamilton, 34 points adrift.

Hamilton, the 2008 world champion, was philosophical about his performance and stated that “the guys in front were phenomenally quick, and I was struggling a little bit with the balance throughout the race. Nevertheless we look forward; we scored some relatively decent points.”

Meanwhile, the Mercedes of Nico Rosberg and Michael Schumacher finished in sixth and ninth place respectively while Robert Kubica was seventh for Renault with his team-mate Vitaly Petrov completing the top 10.

Ferrari scoops F1 win despite controversial win at German GP. originally appeared on topspeed.com on Monday, 26 July 2010 04:45 EST.

read more

Ever wondered where all that money you pay for gas goes? Well, $5,000,000,000 of it has been accounted for. And no, it hasn’t gone to making the world a better place, but its gone to one mans collection of 7,000 high performance cars, no thats not a typo, thats three 0s. Hassanal Bolkiah, Sultan of Brunei is the proud collector of what is undeniably the worlds most unique and gargantuan car collection. Where do you keep 7000 of the worlds rarest cars? No, he doesn’t have a 7000 door garage, but instead most are stored at five ultra-secret aircraft hangars, featuring a team of specialists from different car manufacturers to keep the cars happy. By now you’re probably wondering what 7000 cars he has, and well, the statistics are quite staggering. According to the Daily Mirror, as of June 30th 2010, The wealthy sultan is a proud owner of 604 Rolls Royces, 574 Mercedes-Benzes, 452 Ferraris, 382 Bentleys, 209 BMWs, 179 Jaguars, 134 Koenigseggs, 21 Lamborghinis, 11 Aston Martins, and 1 SSC. To put some thing into perspective, 10 our of those 11 Aston Martins are the super-rare One-77, of which only 77 were made. Koenigsegg puts out about a limited 20 cars a year, he has 134 of them. What makes this collection really stand apart is an aray of super-rare one-of cars. Including two, rare, operational, Ferrari Mythos concepts, a modified Jaguar XJ220, designed by Pinifarina himself, a Bentley Java and a Bentley Dominator 4×4. He is also the owner of the only Cicero BDB Maestro ever built. Other cars include the only right hand drive Mercedes CLKGTR, built just for him, the only Porsche Carma, and the only Koenigsegg Agera CC GT. It makes you wonder, why would all these car manufactures provide such rare, expensive, cars to a man who lets them sit in a aircraft hangar.

Worlds Ultimate Car Collection – 7000 strong originally appeared on topspeed.com on Sunday, 25 July 2010 15:46 EST.

read more

When winter descends and the professional racers of the Nascar and IndyCar series put away their cars for the off-season, amateur racers of the northern regions get ready for winter’s gift: ice racing.

America will soon have its first entrant in Formula One, the world’s top-tier racing series, in thirty years. With less than two months to go before the first race, the obstacles facing the Charlotte, N.C.-based team are enormous, but they’re committed to succeed.

If you plan on visiting the Mercedes-Benz Museum this winter, two special exhibitions will be on hand, depending on when you go. The first takes place from November 2009 through March 2010, and is entitled “A Journey of Innovations.” A total of nine vehicles will be featured in this exhibit, including the Benz Patent Motor Car of 1886, the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL of 1955, the E 250 CDI of 2009 and the S 400 HYBRID, all of which highlight how the concept of mobility has been redefined over the course of time.

After returning to profitability in the third quarter of 2009, Daimler AG (stock-exchange abbreviation DAI) anticipates positive EBIT from its ongoing business also in the fourth quarter. However, general economic developments and their effects on dealerships and suppliers could lead to an impact on fourth-quarter earnings.

Dr. Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management (CEO) of Daimler AG and Head of Mercedes-Benz Cars: ?In recent months, we have increasingly mastered the crisis. Daimler has been able to maintain its financial flexibility and has intensified the actions taken to enhance efficiency, while pushing forward with the development of new products and markets. We are now very well positioned and can look with confidence to the coming year, which will remain challenging due to the still-difficult situation of automobile markets worldwide.?

For those seeking a little more output from the C63 AMG, Mercedes has announced the availability of a new Performance Package Plus which aims to make the model even more appealing. Available ex factory, power in the C63 AMG is increased 22 kW/30 hp to 358 kW/487 hp, enough to help the model accelerate from 0-62 mph in 4.4 seconds and 0-124 mph in 13.9 seconds (standard C63 AMG: 0-62 mph in 4.5 seconds and 0-124 mph in 15.2 seconds). Top speed remains at 155 mph, electronically limited.

I don’t know about you, but nothing gets me hotter on a Monday morning than reading some juicy third-quarter cash flow figures. Daimler’s are in, and according to the company, cash flow and earnings are both better than expected. In total, Group revenue amounted to ?19.3 billion, while Group EBIT amounted to ?470 million. Furthermore, the industrial business generated a free cash flow of ?2.3 billion in the first nine months of this year (Q3 2009: ?2.0 billion).

Individually, Daimler’s various divisions noted EBIT as follows:

The Stuttgart-based automobile manufacturer Daimler AG has won four first places in the Europe-wide survey to decide the 2009 Internet Auto Awards. The Mercedes-Benz B-Class was voted Europe’s most popular van, for which it received the “Carolina” Trophy. The new Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG took first place in the online vote for the most popular new product at this year’s Frankfurt International Motor Show. The editors of AutoScout24 declared “e-mobility Berlin” with the smart electric drive to be the best environmental initiative ? the first large-scale project for urban electro-mobility. The best innovation was the SPLITVIEW technology that now enables the driver and front passenger to see different displays on one and the same screen at the same time.

U.S. sales figures for the month of September are in, and Mercedes-Benz USA is reporting that for the month, sales hit their second highest level of the year with 16,985 units sold ? a decrease of 9.6 percent when compared to September 2008. As a result, sales at Mercedes-Benz USA now total 135,413 new units through the first nine months of the year, a 23.6 percent drop when compared to the year prior.

While we’re on the topic of the Mercedes SLS AMG, new spy photos have emerged today highlighting the not-yet-released cabriolet version of the model testing on the world famous Nürburgring. It’s still tough to tell whether or not the SLS cabrio will feature a retractable hard top (as opposed to a soft top), but one thing that is clear is the fact the Gullwing doors are no more (a fact visible from prior spy photos as well).

Pole Position for the new E 63 AMG estate: The performance estate car with an AMG 6.3-litre V8 engine delivers 386 kW/525 hp, accelerates from zero to 100 km/h in 4.6 seconds and offers a load capacity of 1,950 litres – and that with a relatively low fuel consumption of 12.8 litres per 100 km (combined, preliminary figures). With these dream figures, the new E 63 AMG estate is an extraordinary combination of dynamic performance, great utility and high efficiency.

From November 2009, Mercedes-Benz will be expanding its family of E-Class vehicles by adding another highly distinctive model: the new estate. Just like the saloon and coupe, the new estate combines unique design with leadership in safety, comfort, quality and practicality. The new E-Class marks the debut of a number of technical innovations which no other car in the world in this category is able to offer – from drowsiness detection to automatic emergency braking when an accident is recognised as being imminent, and from Adaptive Highbeam Assist to the Active Bonnet. Naturally the new estate also features all these innovations. In addition, it also features air suspension with self-levelling at the rear as standard as well as unique innovations with regard to load compartment management features.