Latest news with #MercedesAMG
4 days ago
- Automotive
Auto Review: 2025 Mercedes-AMG E 53 is a hybrid hit
AMG! What began as a passion project in a garage 58 years ago has evolved into MercedesBenz's full-fledged performance arm — driven by motorsport victories and an uncanny ability to fuse luxury with power. The 2025 Mercedes-AMG E 53 is one example of this work. It picks the baton from its predecessor, boasting a more potent plug-in hybrid powertrain, sharper dynamics, and a bolder design. But does it truly exalt the AMG badge… or is it just a marketing gimmick? DESIGN & AESTHETICS The Mercedes-AMG E 53 Hybrid 4MATIC+ might be a mouthful that not too many talk about, but it's the kind of sleeper sedan that'll leave you drooling. AMG took the comfortfocused E-Class and gave it a controlled dose of madness. Unlike the edgy M5 design, the E 53's bodywork flows smoothly, with a large front grille — now illuminated — featuring vertical slats and a central three-pointed star, flanked by seamlessly integrated Matrix LED headlamps. The gaping, black-outlined air intakes and widened front fenders also mean business. The profile looks clean and sculpted, with flush door handles and 21-inch black AMG forged wheels that pair beautifully with red brake calipers. The rear design gets new triangular LED elements, but keeps the quad exhausts, and a carbon fibre lip spoiler. Sure, the visual similarity to a dressed-up E 200 dulls the exclusivity, but for those in the know, this stealthy super sedan hits the mark. Speaking of 'hits', tall folk may bump their heads into the raked roof line when getting in. But hey, with 600 horses on tap, who's complaining? Once inside, while most sports cars offer a cockpit, you'll feel like this is the bridge of a starship. Everything's lit up and sophisticated thanks to the jaw-dropping three-screen wall and ambient lighting, which, by the way, works in conjunction with the parking sensors. It features a 14.4-inch central touchscreen running the MBUX multimedia system and a tabletstyle 12.3-inch driver display as standard. The Superscreen option (not to be confused with the single-panel Hyperscreen) also adds a 12.3-inch passenger display instead of the illuminated open-pore grey ash wood trim. Add to the mix the carbon fibre centre console and Burmester speaker grilles, and this cabin feels next level. The unique five-spoke flat-bottom steering wheel, made with carbon fibre and DINAMICA microfibre, is nice and chunky, and its newage touch controls — though busy — respond swiftly. The nappa leather seats are soft and supportive up front and offer three inches beyond the needed legroom in the back — though the centre seat is less forgiving. POWERTRAIN & PERFORMANCE The E 53 defaults to electric vehicle (EV) mode on start-up, but the turbocharged 3.0-litre inline six-cylinder chimes in seamlessly with throttle application. Power from the ICE is up by 14 PS, thanks to a new twin-scroll exhaust gas turbocharger, updated software, and cooling upgrades. Paired with the nine-speeder and a 163 PS electric motor, total output reaches a beastly 585 PS — which, unfortunately, has to offset its newly gained mass. Also, unlike traditional AMG engines, there's no signature plaque from the engine builder. Activate Race Start and output jumps to 612 PS, which helps achieve 0–100kmph sprints in a feisty 3.8 seconds. That said, the cabin remains surprisingly quiet, which feels un-AMG-like. Still, there's plenty of 'go' and louder notes in Sport or Sport+ drive modes, adjusted via the steering's rotary knob. Despite its over-two-tonne weight, the AMG Ride Control suspension keeps the ride firm but, surprisingly, not harsh. As for road dynamics, thanks to the combined efforts of the torque-varying AWD system, rearaxle steering, and electronic limited-slip differential, the E 53 delivers superb grip and agility, masking the car's heft. Braking is strong with ventilated discs — 370mm 4-piston fronts and 360mm single-piston rears. However, pedal feel is slightly wooden. Furthermore, despite its reservoirs of power, it meets EU6 emissions standards, and unlike before, you have 100km of pure electric range. As for recharging, besides the hybrid's onepedal driving capabilities and 11kW onboard charger, it supports DC charging — topping up from 10 per cent to 80 per cent in 20 minutes. FEATURES & FUNCTIONALITY Cabin space is generous, with cupholders, door bins, and a central cubby. However, the already limited 370-litre boot is further compromised by a space-saver spare and charging cables. As for entertainment and connectivity, the Burmester surround sound system delivers rich audio across genres, and the built-in navigation is functional, with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto allowing use of preferred apps and playlists. There's even an onboard selfie/video camera and Zoom app support — ideal for meetings on the move. Four-zone pre-entry climate control is standard, and the climatised front seats come with hot/cool massage functions, greatly enhancing comfort. The MBUX Connect app also offers remote functions like cabin precooling and seamless access using the Digital Vehicle Key. Standard safety features include road sign recognition, TPMS, Active Lane Keeping Assist, Cross-Traffic Assist, a high-resolution 360° camera, and even self-parking. VERDICT The 2025 Mercedes-AMG E 53 Hybrid 4MATIC+ is an artfully styled four-door performance sedan with a luxurious, techladen interior. Yes, the sloping roof line hampers entry, and boot space is limited. More critically, while it's pretty darn quick and composed around turns and over bumps, it lacks the fearinducing, typical AMG madness, which may make it hard for aficionados to commit to an almost Dh600,000 price. But for everyone else, the competence of the most powerful E-Class is self-revealing. SPECIFICATIONS BODY TYPE — five-seater; four-door premium high-performance mid-size sedan TRANSMISSION — AMG SPEEDSHIFT TCT 9G (automatic)
Motor Trend
19-05-2025
- Automotive
- Motor Trend
2025 Aston Martin Vantage First Test Review: Proper Performance Car
Pros The best Vantage ever Absolutely gorgeous Fun to drive and a rip-roaring exhaust tone Cons Carbon brakes aren't quite as precise as the best For track junkies, there are slightly better handlers Hood release still deep in passenger footwell (do you really care?) If you don't know from reading our previous coverage of the latest Aston Martin Vantage that arrived on the market for 2025 as a coupe and in Roadster form as a 2026 model, the gist is this: Aston is focused on making serious performance cars rather than squishier grand-touring machines that happen to go fast in straight lines. 0:00 / 0:00 Based on our extensive seat time in the Aston Martin Vantage coupe and a day spent in the new 2026 Roadster, our seat-of-the-pants feel confirms the work done by the engineers at Aston's Gaydon, England, home base has paid off. But we hadn't until now hooked our data-collecting gear to the new Vantage to put real numbers alongside our perception of improved performance. Power Up The 2025 Aston Martin Vantage continues to employ a Mercedes-AMG-sourced 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8, which Aston says it tunes to its own specifications, but the new version produces a lot more power and torque than before. Thanks to bigger turbos, new cam profiles, a compression ratio of 8.6:1 versus 10.5 (meaning the turbos can run more boost), and a better cooling package, the engine produces peak figures of 656 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque compared to the old car's 503 hp and 505 lb-ft. The upshot: Aston Martin says the 2025 Vantage accelerates to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and reaches a top speed of 202 mph, the latter number being 7 mph faster than before. That said, the front-engine/rear-wheel-drive architecture and 50/50 weight distribution front to rear keeps that official 0–60 time a mere 0.1 second quicker than the old car's, thanks to the layout's traction-limited nature. Considering many automakers' official acceleration times often don't precisely match our real-world testing results, we were rather curious to find out if Aston is being conservative or optimistic with its claim. Hit the Gas As it transpired, it's being neither and is instead dead-on accurate. Once we deactivated traction and stability control, selected the Sport+ drive program, and sent the car down the dragstrip with a 2,000-rpm launch-controlled getaway, it returned a 0–60-mph time of … 3.4 seconds. The surreal thing, however, is that other than the V-8's aggressive, loud, and massively satisfying sounds, the launch experience isn't as exciting as you'd expect in a car this quick. There's no drama, no sense of unhinged fury. Instead, it launches incredibly smoothly, other than a bit of wheelspin during the first second of the run. While the Vantage's 3.4-second 0–60 time is certainly solid in today's terms, the quarter mile lets the car use its muscle to more effect. It flashed past the marker in 11.2 seconds at 132.0 mph, and it was unsurprisingly still pulling strong at that point. We never had an opportunity to test the previous Vantage coupe like this, but we did test a 2021 Vantage Roadster to the tune of an 11.9-second time at 119.3 mph. Granted, that convertible version weighed 60 pounds more than this 3,878-pound coupe, according to our scales, but the improved quarter-mile performance is significant nonetheless. In the name of a more contemporary comparison with an in-market rival, we also recently tested a 2025 Porsche 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid that returned a nutso 0–60 time of 2.6 seconds and a quarter-mile pass of 10.7 at 129.7 mph. Those results came despite the Carrera's 121-hp and 141-lb-ft deficits to the Vantage. That says a lot about the Porsche's lighter weight (280 pounds) and better traction off the line, though you can easily see where the big-power Aston begins to severely claw back the acceleration gap as speeds rise well past 100 mph. Braking and Handling When it's time to stop the 2026 Aston Martin Vantage, there's no need to fret. However, be aware that when equipped as our test car was with optional carbon-ceramic brakes, the Vantage performs best when those brakes have a fair amount of heat in them. We noted this on the street during a chilly morning drive (ambient temps in the high 40s) on Southern California's challenging and twisting Angeles Crest Highway, when the brake pedal initially felt a bit soft. That carried over to the test track, where we found the stopping distances got shorter and shorter with each attempt, yielding a 60–0-mph best of 99 feet—just 4 feet longer than the lighter 911 Carrera GTS T-Hybrid needed to do the same. And we were happy to discover the initially average-feeling brake pedal firmed up in the process, reminding us why we liked it so much during our first drive opportunity on a Spanish racetrack last year. As for handling, the Vantage posted a best skidpad figure of 1.04 g (average) versus the 911's 1.11—a solid number but not an extraordinary one despite the car's massive Michelin PS5 tires. On our proprietary figure-eight course, however, the Aston was more of a handful. It posted a best lap of 23.3 seconds at 0.94 g (average) compared to the Porsche's 22.4 seconds and 0.99 g. Clear advantage to the German, and we found the Vantage to be inconsistent here. Worth noting as well: The eight-speed automatic transmission was sometimes lazy to downshift, leading to us switch the gearbox to manual-shift mode. That's something we previously learned is preferable while driving the car aggressively, as the gearbox isn't as quick or sharp as a twin-clutch unit. Running the coupe in Track mode and with its adjustable traction control switched off completely, it would sometimes rotate into the corners nicely but at other times fall into lap-time-killing understeer. And even with both traction and stability control turned off, we were frustrated during corner exits by the car's tendency to seemingly dial back the engine's power until you get the steering wheel mostly straight. We don't have a clear understanding of why, though it could be the Aston's particular combination of mechanical grip and its dynamics-controlling software package and electronic-differential characteristics simply don't like our admittedly unique figure-eight layout. We say this because we found the car behaves quite differently and to be spring-loaded with chassis rotation and plenty of driftability, and then some, when we drove it on that quick Spanish road-racing course a year ago. Final Word Puzzling figure-eight performance aside, our official test results solidify what we already knew about the Aston Martin Vantage: It's a legit sports car/driver's car and an intriguing, enticing alternative to something like an upper-echelon 911 Carrera. Speaking of which, remember that 911 GTS Hybrid we mentioned? We have something special cooking very, very soon between those two, so watch this site.
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Yahoo
Sheriff Grady Judd speaks about arrests made in Lakeland double-homicide
WINTER HAVEN, Fla. (WFLA) — Sheriff Grady Judd will speak Wednesday regarding multiple arrests made in an alleged double-homicide that occurred earlier this week. The Polk County sheriff said the incident happened Monday on Pirates Way around 1:30 p.m. when a Mercedes AMG crashed into a Lakeland house. The driver of the car, Davin Boutwell, 19, was found with a fatal bullet wound in his chest, according to Sheriff Grady Judd. Another individual, Nathaniel Jones, 38, was riding his bike at the time and was also killed in the crash. The briefing is scheduled to begin at 1:30 at the PCSO Sheriff's Operation Center at 1891 Jim Keene Boulevard. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Sun
14-05-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Moment fuming Michael McIntyre gets £200,000 Mercedes TOWED on posh London street
MICHAEL McIntyre found out parking in London was no laughing matter after watching his flash sports car being towed away. The comic was filmed begging enforcement officers to leave his black Mercedes AMG GT Coupe in Derry Street, Kensington. 6 6 He even offered to pay the charge on the spot - but they removed his personal number plated £200,000 motor around 11am today. Suited and bespectacled McIntyre, seen remonstrating alongside a male pal, left it in a bay outside popular Indian restaurant Dishoom. Parking is believed to be temporarily restricted there due to it being near a building site. Workers provided an audience by watching and filming the funny man as he protested his innocence. A passerby told The Sun: 'McIntyre's car was being lifted. I walked past and said 'unlucky'. He just seemed to laugh it off and said 'oh well'. 'I think he may have been coming out of Dishoom as he was on that side. There was a load of builders all watching and filming the incident. 'McIntyre was trying to get them to put his car back down but he made sure he didn't make too much of a scene given his audience. 'He was protesting and trying to pay the two tow truck operators not to take his Mercedes away but they weren't having it. 'You could tell he was frustrated but kept himself calm. He was trying to see if he could go with them to the impound. 'The parking bay was temporarily restricted and enforced due to a building site next to it.' Avid car collector McIntyre, 49, was pictured admiring a previous model of his top spec Merc in 2020 while parked in North London. The Wheel host has also been seen driving a matt black £150k Ferrari, a Jaguar XK and a Range Rover which was damaged by moped muggers in 2018. His net worth as one of the UK's biggest comedians is believed to be around £80million following bumper deals with Netflix and the BBC. 6 6 6
Daily Mail
14-05-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Disgruntled Michael McIntyre gets his £195,000 Mercedes sportscar TOWED in Kensington
Michael McIntyre was left unimpressed after having his luxury sportscar towed in High Street Kensington, London, on Wednesday. The comedian, 49, was photographed speaking to an official as his high-end £195,000 vehicle was hoisted on to the back of a lorry with its wheels clamped. Michael looked unimpressed as he had an animated discussion with an official, who wore a yellow hi-vis jacket as builders watched on. The funnyman looked dapper in a navy suit and pink shirt while he sported his signature square glasses for his unfortunate outing into the city. Michael's vehicle, a Mercedes-AMG GT R, had been hoisted on to the back of a tow truck as it was moved from the street. It is not known why Michael's vehicle was towed. MailOnline has contacted Michael's representatives for comment. Michael's specific car model retails for anywhere between £155,000 to £195,000 and boasts a 4.0litre twin-turbo V8 engine. The limited-edition vehicle has the ability to produce 585 horsepower and can accelerate from 0-62mph in just 3.6 seconds, with a limit just shy of 200mph. It is not his first car from the German automotive brand as he also owned a dark blue Mercedes AMG GT, which he purchased back in 2014. The $144,000 motor boasted some very lavish features including climate control, leather upholstery and parking assistance with 360-degree camera. It also boasts full LED headlamps, alloy wheels of at least 20 inches and heated front and rear seats. Michael has long boasted a luxury collection of cars and has also owned expensive vehicles including a Ferrari and a Jaguar over the years. The stand-up comic has also been spotted driving a £150,000 Ferrari California, which has a top speed of 193mph and can do 0-60mph in 3.8 seconds. Michael's vehicle, a Mercedes-AMG GT R, had been hoisted on to the back of a tow truck as it was moved from the street Back in 2010, Michael also purchased a £80,000 Jaguar XK convertible to ferry himself around the country. The super-car has a V8 5.0 litre engine can go from 0-60 in 4.6 seconds. His top of the range line-up of cars is also said to include a BMW X5 and a Porsche Cayenne. Michael has previously told how he and wife Kitty spent years living in rented flats and at one point were £40,000 in debt before he found national fame as a comedian. Now, Michael is said to have a staggering net worth of £80million and also owns at least two multi-million-pound properties in the UK.
