By Jim Brennan

UDMan

Looking for more than just any old station wagon to haul home the groceries from your local Whole Foods? Then here’s your ride: A one-off ’50s Mercedes-Benz station wagon. This vision was probably a bit different in 1956 for Mrs. Caroline Folke, a woman of apparent means (with homes in Paris, Manhattan, and Palm Beach) for whom a top-of-the-line Chrysler, Mercury, or Buick station wagon would simply not suffice. Back when nearly everyone liked Ike, she walked into the New York City Mercedes-Benz dealership with a most unusual request: a brand new Mercedes-Benz station wagon. At the time, Mercedes-Benz was re-establishing itself in the automobile business. It was just 11 years after the end of the Second World War, after all. They were apparently eager to fill her unusual request—even though station wagons were not part of the Mercedes-Benz model range in 1956. Read More at Automotive Traveler!

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

Look, I know it’s possible for cars to drive upside down. But that doesn’t mean I’m ready to buy this clip where Mercedes’ new SLS AMG pulls a barrel roll while blasting through a tunnel. But I really don’t care. I think this is my favorite car on the planet right now, and I’ll basically watch anything that features it and its absolutely gorgeous engine note. So what do you think? Clever fake? Not-so-clever fake?

By Michael Berenis

Tampa Sports Car Examiner

Is it possible that Mercedes-Benz has once again stumped the automotive world with yet another James Bond option package? It appears due their latest propaganda flick that the SLS AMG is capable of traveling upside down through a tunnel. Is this real or fake? Read more about the upside down fun at Tampa Sports Car Examiner.

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

Welcome to the year end wrap-up of the Obscure Muscle Car Parking Lot. If you recall, this series was all about uncovering obscure makes, and redefining what a Muscle Car could be. We have discovered that Muscle originated during the 1950s, blossomed during the 1960s, and continued on through the 70s and 80s in a somewhat de-tuned state only to find a re-birth we are enjoying today. My focus was not to highlight the already established Muscle Cars like the Chevelle SS, the Pontiac GTO, or the Hemi Chryslers, but to find hidden gems that you may not have known about. And not all of them were produced in America, as this post illustrates.

So during this week, it is now up to you, the Car Domain reader, to vote on your favorites. There will be specific categories, like today’s example. In the end, sometime after the New Years Holiday, there will be one car crowned as your favorite Obscure Muscle Car, and park it in the Parking Lot, with a few CarDomain Members rides highlighted.

So what are your favorite Muscle Cars produced Overseas?
- The Jensen Interceptor: Chrysler Power, British Coachwork!
- The Mercedes Benz 450 SEL 6.9: A German Panzer Tank that performed!
- The Mercedes Benz 300 SEL 6.3: The Heart of the 600 Pullman Limo in a manageable size!
- The 2003 – 2004 Infiniti M45: So Obscure, even Infiniti dealers don’t recognize them.
- The Lexus SC 400: The Performance Lexus.
- The 1985 – 89 Merkur XR4Ti: Turbocharged European Ford with a mind blowing name.
- The Ghia L6.4: Italian Body with a Chrysler Power Plant.
- The Chevrolet Firenza Can Am 302 – South African Muscle with a Yankee Heart!
- The Ford Capri Perana – Another South African Wonder, and why was it not offered here in the states?

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

While I think the Jay Leno Show show has its moments, I really wish he’d gone and done a car show after stepping down as host of the Tonight Show. It never would have been Top Gear—after all, NBC is advertiser supported—but he’s great when’s indulging his not-so-inner gearhead and not just gunning for laughs. In this clip, he talks about his love of the Rendezvous, and takes Mercedes’ new SLS AMG on a lap of the 13-mile race track hidden in the streets of Los Angeles. I’m going to drive it ASAP…

By John Coyle

Deputy Editor

We just got word from our buddies over at Royal Purple about “The Forum Wars,” an event that will pit owners of various enthusiast vehicles against each other, and it sounds pretty cool. The bad news is that to compete, you have to been able to be in Los Angeles by Friday. But the good news is that all the battles will be filmed for broadcast on SPEED, so if you’ve ever wanted to show the whole world that your driving shoes aren’t a fashion statement, this is right up your alley. Right now they’re looking for a CTS-V or an E63 Mercedes Benz to race a BMW M5, a Honda Civic Si or Mazdaspeed3 to battle a VW GTi, and a C6 Corvette to pit against a GT500 Shelby Mustang, and there are still plenty of spots. Apparently, the producers are having a hard time finding a ‘Vette owner who’s up to the challenge, so if you own one and know what you’re doing on the track, you should hit them up. Read the full press release with all the details on how to enter after the jump.

Continue reading "SoCal CTS-V, E63 AND C6 'Vette Owners, Royal Purple's "The Forum Wars" Needs You!" »

By Michael Berenis

Tampa Sports Car Examiner

Ride along with the Mercedes-Benz  CL55 AMG as it drifts through the Nurburgring. The Nurburgring is one of the most challenging tracks in the world for both driver and vehicle. Various turn cambers, slopes, hills, and thrills create an amazing challenge that wears down parts, requires specially built engines, and drivers with intense stamina. Watching the CL55 AMG drift through Nurburgring, you can see how the advanced technology built into the Benz helps it achieve maximum drift angles at mind-boggling speeds.

Mercedes-Benz builds their vehicles with Nurburgring in mind, testing each model for performance and reliability on this course. The close ratio steering, large amounts of low end torque, and high horsepower of the CL55 AMG make it an ideal drifter. Read more about the Mercedes-Benz CL55 AMG at Tampa Sports Car Examiner.

By Jim Brennan

UDMan

Cash for Clunkers is over and the government and many dealers proclaim it as an overwhelming success. But at what cost? Many rather unusual and possibly valuable cars were sacrificed during the program; a few that will make the car enthusiasts among us cringe.

There were a number of questions raised when scanning through the list published on September 9th by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). To be eligible for the Cash for Clunkers program, vehicles were specified to only get 19 miles-per-gallon or less, measured by their previously published EPA rating. Yet a few vehicles that were submitted generally get better fuel mileage than the benchmark set by the program rules.

As troubling as that was, it is underscored by the list of truly desirable enthusiast cars that were traded in as clunkers. This raises some troubling questions as to the reasoning behind the transaction. Scanning through the list, here are 12 different vehicles that should have been saved from their eventual fate of being scrapped. These 12 cars will be met with the usual questions as to how this was allowed to happen in the first place, or what kind of person would trade such a vehicle, replacing it with a Hyundai or a Toyota? Continue reading about the “Dirty Dozen”, with details about each one at Automotive Traveler.

By Ben Schaffer

The Real JDM

I remember in the mid 1990s thinking Brabus was an incredible, almost mystical brand. I knew of a guy in Boston with two absolutely sick Brabus built cars back then. Those cars were pushing the limits and when you saw them you felt somehow like you were looking at the future, everything else looked old sitting next to it. This was the era of the Brabus 3 spoke rims, which were super hot at the time and now are an ugly memory to most, after being copied by just about everyone for a decade or so.

Enter the Black Baron by Brabus. I get that feeling all over again when I look at this car. Too bad the damn thing costs $800,000 USD. Anyway, have a look at some inspiration right here. Continue reading at The Real JDM

By Joseph DeLucca

Luxvelocity

This car is hot! When the fellas take it out on the highway for the first time and head out to Vegas, it was hard not to become reminiscent about taking a road trip with my best buds. Now I must ask , what is your favorite road trip car? How many times have you seen The Hangover? List them below and check out the rest of the post over at LuxVelocity