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Mercedes First Drives

Mercedes-Benz is one of, if not the, oldest surviving automakers in the world. Founded in 1881, the first Mercedes automobile was created in 1886. The German company is now operated by Daimler-Benz and headquartered in Stuttgart, Germany. In addition to producing automobiles, Mercedes-Benz also makes commercial trucks and buses in Europe.

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA45 AMG
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    A Really Hot Little GT Plants The Seed For A Better AMG Mercedes-Benz has AMG on an impressive growth curve these days, the official name of the effort being Performance 50. By the 50th anniversary of AMG in 2017, the Mercedes performance division will produce 30,000-plus units per year, up from today's 20,000 or so. In addition, AMG will boast a catalog ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz Sprinter [w/video]
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    Ready To Battle Others Of Its Own Kind To the casual van observer, there are likely three seminal categories of big-box hauler. 1) The white Ford Econoline. 2) The decades-old conversion vans made by various manufacturers, with a porthole, an angel and a unicorn floating in an airbrushed rendition of the cosmos. 3) The European van, up until recently ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series [w/video]
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    Now Even Sharper Than The Razor's Edge There have been four Black Series models since the Mercedes-Benz SLK55 AMG Black Series introduced itself to European audiences in 2006. Following that, the Black Series club has hosted appearances by the 2008 CLK63 AMG Black Series, the 2009 SL65 AMG Black Series and last year's 2013 C63 AMG Black Series. The sixth ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2014 Mercedes-Benz CLA 250 Sport
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    Meet Mercedes' Mighty Little Sedan We got overexcited when the W203 Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan came out in 2001, calling it the "Baby Benz" when it really wasn't. We knew that, too, but our enthusiasm for a model more like the old 190 of the '80s was so strong that we were willing to stretch the C-class to fit that mold. Today, the C-class has done what ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2013 Mercedes CLS63 AMG Shooting Brake [w/video]
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    A Heated Up Sports Tourer With One Stylish Tuckus Our jaws collectively dropped at the 2003 Frankfurt Motor Show when the Vision CLS concept debuted. Had Mercedes-Benz decided not to build it, there might have been hell to pay. But build the W219 CLS-Class starting in April of 2004 it did, and the accolades never ceased for that first-generation model ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz A-Class
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    Third Time Is Absolutely A Charm For Entry-Level Merc You are looking at what is likely the most important Mercedes-Benz passenger car since the old 190 turned into the C-Class "Baby Benz" back in 1993. And the United States and Canada won't get it, at least not in this hatchback configuration we have just tested extensively in Slovenia. The big message ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL450 [w/video]
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    Honing The Arrow's Luxury Leviathan It's a wonder luxury SUVs survived the mass extinction event of the 2007-2009 recession at all. As investment accounts withered on the vine and fuel prices comfortably boiled past the underside of $5.00 per gallon in some places, chicken-little minded Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator owners couldn't have tossed ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2013 Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG [w/video]
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    The Marauder Of The Countryside Is Angry There are some drive tests where we would love to have automated voice and sound transcription technology to be able to capture for you the thrills in real time. Don't let this plain ol' four-wheeled box fool you; the new Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG is so full of character it's fit to burst. You would not be chastised ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2013 Mercedes-Benz GLK
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    Littlest G Rocks The Box With Meaningful Improvements We admit it: It's easy to dig the Mercedes-Benz GLK. Like many of our preferred Jeep models, the GLK presents itself as a true small, rugged all-rounder that you can use just about any way you need. Yes, the rectilinear design is polarizing, but for us, the poles seem to line up more often than not. ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG [w/video]
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    Affalterbach Additions Transform Benz's Heavy-Hitting Droptop Saint-Tropez is a charming town in southeastern France nestled along the Mediterranean Sea. Internationally recognized as a summer playground for the wealthy and famous, it is also famed for its "clothing optional" beaches where more than just noses and shoulders get burned in hot weather. ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2013 Mercedes SL550 [w/video]
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    The Official Car Of Beverly Hills Gets A Dramatic Rework Generally speaking, I'm a pretty measured sort of guy. But when it comes to convertibles, I'm a bit of a lunatic. I've been known to motor with the top down in all conditions – including light rain and snow – much to the bewilderment of other drivers (and quite often the chagrin of my ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz C350 4Matic
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    All-Wheel Drive Sans Compromise One can hardly mutter the words "German," "luxury" and "all-wheel drive" without invoking visions of Audi. The company has worked hard to make its Quattro all-wheel-drive system synonymous with each of the phrases above, and its tireless marketing, successful motorsports programs and loyal fans have inextricably married ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG [w/video]
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    How The World's Most Powerful Sport Utility Vehicle Fails At Being Absurd Twenty years ago, sport utility vehicles were trucks. They had big, heavy frames, solid axles and low-range four-wheel drive. At best, they would accelerate to 60 miles per hour in under nine seconds and top out just over 100 mph. "Handling" simply meant that they could keep all ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK55 AMG
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    A Simple Black Dress With A Leather-Wrapped Baseball Bat Yes, it's a tired trope. But if there's a pair of well-off empty-nesters, the husband drives a Mercedes-Benz SL and the wife has an SLK. Stereotypes become stereotypes for a reason: As often as not, they're true. But to dismiss this latest SLK as yet another Executive Assistant-spec coupe/cabrio ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series [w/video]
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    Uncorking This Road-Legal DTM Coupe At Laguna Seca Turn Two at Laguna Seca is one of racing's more interesting creations. Get it wrong here and the rest of your lap will get really grumpy really fast. The AMG-Mercedes people thankfully gave us around 20 hot laps in their new C63 AMG Coupe Black Series over the course of the day – enough that we ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz B-Class
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    Is Stuttgart's Latest People Carrier Finally Ready For The States? Much in the vein of Audi's Sportback models or BMW's slow-to-expand Gran Turismo range, Mercedes-Benz thinks it's time to get excited about various sizes of its "sports tourer" subgroup. Nearly all of the aforementioned are still trying to find proper footing in their bid to be first ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG
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    Turbo Lungs Yield An Improved Executive Express It's an interesting time for Germany's premium performers here in North America. Audi isn't offering any RS models – at least not until the long wait for its TT RS ends. BMW is still cruising along with M3 sales and its new price-leader 1 Series M Coupe while we look forward to the next M5 in May ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz CLS550
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    Modern Art Meets Twin Turbochargers Any time a journalist starts waxing poetic about automotive styling, you can practically hear designers' eyes spinning in their sockets. I've met plenty of automotive scribes with a master's degree in mechanical engineering, but I've yet to shake hands with one packing a design sheepskin. Granted, the average car ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
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    New Engines Add Spark To Brand Staple In past generations, she was often labeled planet Earth's favorite taxi. (Or have you always preferred the Ford Crown Victoria with the shiny black leatherette?) The Mercedes-Benz E-Class, however, has long since graduated to become a premium middle-management darling in all corners of the globe. Still, even ...

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    Mercedes-Benz
    First Drive: 2012 Mercedes-Benz C-Class
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    The Baby Benz Becomes More Like Its Big Brothers When it comes to automobiles, money is usually the limiting factor. Endowed with unlimited dough, who wouldn't drive their dream car? For those inclined toward luxury, the full-size Mercedes-Benz S-Class coddles its drivers with massive comfort and technology that compensates for nearly every common ...

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