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Mercedes-Benz

2008 Mercedes-Benz C Class Estate

Mercedes-Benz C Class Estate

Current Wheels Car of the Year, the Mercedes-Benz C Class, has a new stable mate sharing the showroom floor in the form of the new C Class Estate. For those of you reading this that do not realise just how cool Euro wagons are, trust me. Think of Euro wagons as the Dunlop Volley of the automotive world. You’re probably thinking terms such as ‘daggy’, ‘unfashionable’ and a bit ‘pointless’. If that is you, then I am sorry to say, you could not be more wrong. You just are. Euro wagons are the business and this new C Class Estate further enhances that fact.

The new Benz wagon is available in three models, a supercharged four-cylinder C 200 Kompressor Estate (available now), a turbo-diesel C 220 CDI Estate and the cool enough to make hell freeze over high-performance C 63 AMG Estate (both available from September 2008). Just like the Saloon, the Estate version of the new C Class has been awarded an Environmental Certificate, which attests to the environmentally-oriented development process as conforming to the international ISO standard. Try fooling your mates over an organic soy latte that any petrol powered SUV has any bona fide environmental credentials. But, an AMG Estate, well, that’d be enough to make Alan Partridge cower into a quivering mess of denial.

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Audi BMW Mercedes-Benz News

Australian International Motor Show – A German free zone?

AIMS logoGoAuto are reporting that Audi Australia has now been confirmed as the third major German manufacturer to withdraw from October’s Australian International Motor Show (AIMS) in Sydney. Only Volkswagen remain confirmed, with BMW, Mercedes-Benz and now Audi pulling the plug. BMW subsidary MINI has not had an official presence at either the Sydney or Melbourne shows for some time.

In our relatively small market it is no surprise that Audi has cited the costs of major stands at the Melbourne and Sydney motor shows as the main issue behind their decision.

From GoAuto: “The top three German makers in Australia are all lobbying for such an alternating arrangement on the basis of cost (a single motor show exhibit can cost anywhere between $300,000 and $1 million), but say the retail focus of smaller shows like Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide actually cover their own costs.”

As you can imagine the thought of rotating shows hasn’t gone down well with the organisers of AIMS, the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries, or the Melbourne International Motor Show promoters, the Victorian Automobile Chamber of Commerce.

Click HERE to read the GoAuto article in full.

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Mercedes-Benz

Australian pricing for new Benz CLS range

Mercedes Benz CLS

Mecedes-Benz Australia have today released pricing and specification details on their all new CLS class saloon range. The CLS still looks like a competently designed AU Falcon, something Ford couldn’t manage, with the attractive swooping hipline giving the big Benz it’s most distinguishing feature. As to be expected Mercedes have upped the ante on the electronic gadget front. LED lighting is used for rear tail lights and indicators, as well as in the often copied side mirror indicator repeaters. A revised steering wheel has also been introduced, but no word on whether it can be fitted with a diamond encrusted Benz roundel from factory. Other electronic specifications are best left to the press release, which reads: