Autoblog

Problems caused by disappearing traction when roads get icy will be solved when we all get our flying cars - it is the 21st century, after all. Until that long overdue promise is fulfilled, we're all relegated to putting rubber to the road to reach our destinations. The way winter road conditions are currently mitigated involves lots of salt and many trucks. The trucks are pretty much necessary for removal of heavy precipitation, but salting exacts an environmental, as well as financial price. Motorists, too, could benefit from a warning that road surfaces are less than optimal. To that end, France's Eurovia is developing a temperature-sensitive varnish that changes color to provide a visual indication to all road users that the pavement is freezing. Once it warms back up again, the varnish returns to its default hue. Durability trials are underway in several areas of France that experience severe weather, and if the coating holds up well, we could all be watching out for pink stripes in the winter. Thanks for the tip, akhel.

Translated press release after the jump.

[Source: Eurovia via Transport Trends; Photo: news.fr]

click the pic to view a video about the Q Celsius tire

Studded snow tires can be a godsend when the going is on glare ice. When roads have been cleared, though, they chew up pavement and can produce some exciting though unanticipated handling characteristics. Japan's ban on studded tires led directly to a new generation of snow tire technology like Bridgestone's Blizzak line. Q Tires, taking its name from James Bond's high-tech quartermaster, has developed a new set of tires called Celsius with studs that can be deployed or retracted with a dashboard switch. Two air chambers in the tires allow the studs to extend or retract without leaking off much inflation. Q Tires is preparing to send its product out into testing soon, and part of that process involves making sure that it doesn't run afoul of any state regulations that prohibit studded tires of any sort for all or part of the year. If the tests prove successful, the tires will likely command a 30-percent premium over other black, round and rolly-things. The increased cost is mitigated by the fact that a separate set of winter tires, and the attendant seasonal mounting chores, are eliminated. Of course, none of this will matter to that knucklehead trying to climb hills in the middle of a blizzard with low-profile summer tires.

[Source: Detroit News]

Whew! We just got back from beating the hell out of an AMG CL 63. Lurid powerslides defined our drifting technique as we slid the big-power Merc hither and yon, earning points as we went. We surely mangled some shrubbery and even smacked the tail of this beastie off a few hard objects. No matter - unfortunately for us, it was all a game - AMG Wintersporting Drift Competition. It's the latest way to amuse yourself at the 9 to 5 using your company's network bandwidth, all while you pretend to focus on putting the finishing touches on mission-critical PowerPoint decks.

As a marketing tie-in to AMG's über-cool website, this game is a fun little way of endearing the CL63 to those of us who lack the money and/or cojones to mercilessly club one of the big-dollar, big-power coupes in real life -- and in the white stuff, no less. The object is to use the car's power to slide sideways and splatter snow on several "backstops." The more snow you kick up on them, the higher the score. It's fun to shirk your responsibilities and live vicariously through the electron beams in your monitor! Now we need a CL 63 in the metal so we can evaluate how the dynamics of game play match up to reality. These are the types of sacrifices we make for you, dear readers.

Thanks to tipster scp459!

[Source: AMG]

By Friday afternoon at 4:30, we're all a little weary from a week of work and the everyday stresses of life. We hop in the car to drive home with a reduced attention span and minds wandering. The damp weather, gray skies darkening towards the early sunset, and the onslaught of the holiday season certainly don't add any enthusiasm to the overall driving experience, dulling normally well-honed driving responses to a level that would make Anna-Nicole Smith appear sharp. Sound like a prime scenario for an accident?

In fact, it is. The chance of having an accident between 4-5PM on Friday is 35% greater than 8-9AM and 50% greater than 9-10AM on the same day. According to a statement issued by Continental Tire, November is the worst month of the year for traffic accidents, accounting for nearly 10% more than October, which ranks next on the list. They also remind drivers to be conscious of tire pressures and cold tires during the winter season. Cold weather often causes lower tire pressures and a cold tire can have substantially less road adhesion, causing longer braking distances and diminished handling characteristics.

[Source: Continental Tires via Automotoportal]

Mercedes-Benz has taken the wraps off its upcoming line-up of 4MATIC S-Class sedans. 4MATIC is, of course, the name for Mercedes' all-wheel-drive system, and the range-topping über-sedan will offer it mated to a number of engines to give the well-heeled a host of choices for uncompromised traction in whatever conditions they may come across.

4MATIC will be offered globally on the S320 CDI, S450 and S500 sedans, although they've yet to announce which of these models will be sold in the North American market. Based on the current American line-up, it'd be safe to assume we'll only get the S550 4MATIC.

Mercedes claims the AWD V8 sedan, despite the extra weight, will accelerate in the same 5.4 seconds it takes its rear-wheel drive counterpart to hit sixty from a standstill, and will only suffer a minor increase in fuel consumption.

The V8-powered 4MATIC models are on sale in Europe now in both short and long wheelbase versions, while customers will have to wait until December for the S320 CDI 4MATIC. Another gas-powered V6 model, the S350 4MATIC, will arrive by mid-2007.

(Official press release can be found after the jump)

[Source: Mercedes-Benz, eMercedesBenz]