Autoblog UK

Autoblog's James Baggott reports from the Frankfurt Motor Show

MERCEDES' UK managing director Dermot Kelly has told Autoblog the UK allocation of the SLS Gullwings is nearly sold out – months before it hits the road.

Speaking moments after the wraps had been pulled off the new supercar, the UK chief said: 'We've already sold nearly all our allocation of cars and are working on getting more.'

Just how many that was, he refused to say, but the fact buyers are prepared to order before they've even seen the car in the metal is testament to the draw those special doors have!

The number of cars the UK are getting – and in fact how many Mercedes will make in total – is still under consideration with Kelly refusing to comment on either. The new SLS AMG is set to arrive in the UK in the summer (2010).

Autoblog's James Baggott reports from the Frankfurt Motor Show

MERCEDES' latest supercar - the SLS AMG - 'winged its way into the Frankfurt Motor Show.

The stunning Gullwing packs a monstrous 6.3-litre front-mid engine V8 packing 571bhp and 650Nm of torque.

That's enough to power the £150,000 machine to 60mph in 3.8 seconds and on to a top speed of nearly 200mph. It features a seven speed semi-automatic gearbox with paddle shifts.

Mercedes chairman Dr Dieter Zetsche told the hundreds of journalists watching the car's Frankfurt unveiling that the new Gullwing was the 'realisation of a dream'.

'It is 55 years since the last Gullwing arrived,' said Dr Zetsche. 'And that car was rightly named the sportscar of the century. Now we're in a new century and have a new contender.'

The Merc boss also revealed the manufacturer was planning an electric version of the car for 2013. This will be able to accelerate to 60mph in four seconds – just two tenths shy of the petrol version!

The Mercedes SL is a luxury model among roadsters and the letters SL represent a Mercedes automobile legend.

TOP 10 roadsters: Cadillac XLR, Opel GT

Luxury cars barely attract a second glance on the roads of the United Arab Emirates, so in one of Dubai's shopping malls, they decided to one stage further. In a region that has grown rich on the 'liquid gold' that keeps crankshafts turning all around the world, the local sheikhs can afford to splash out.

The showroom in downtown Dubai had a range of makes on display, amongst them this Mercedes C63 AMG. A model that would normally cost around 82,000 US dollars – and that's before you start adding on the usual Arab potentate extras. This particular owner managed to make the forecourt price of his car seem like a mere down-payment by commissioning a very special paint job. And here, we're back on the topic of 'liquid gold'. The gold finish probably cost the equivalent of a tankful or two – in fact, it will have cost more than the car itself.

After you've taken a look at the gallery, perhaps you'll have your own view of whether they succeeded in making this particular 'Silver Arrow' golden.

On Friday McLaren launched the car it will campaign in the 2009 FIA Formula 1 World Championship at its headquarters in Woking, England. At the launch of the new McLaren Mercedes MP4-24, Ron Dennis announced that he would pass the role of Team Principal to Martin Whitmarsh on March 1st. Whitmarsh will therefore lead the team of Lewis Hamilton at grands prix from this season onwards.

Unveiled by world champion Lewis Hamilton and his team-mate Heikki Kovalainen, the new MP4-24 bears little resemblance to its world championship-winning predecessor due to the introduction of a raft of new rules that have reshaped Formula 1 ahead of the 2009 season.

The team has already completed two MP4-24 chassis and begins publicly testing at the Autodromo do Algarve circuit in Portugal on Monday. Test driver Pedro de la Rosa will conduct the first two days before Lewis (Wednesday) and Heikki (Thursday) sample the car.

Everyone agrees you can never have too much power under the bonnet, whether in a sports car, a luxury limousine or an SUV. Whilst Mercedes displayed their entire AMG fleet directly alongside their eco-models in Bologna, they relegated the large SUVs to the second row and even the Maybach was found a more discreet home. But this allowed the SLR McLaren 722 GT, produced in limited numbers for the racing circuit, to take the limelight.

Audi followed the same policy as Mercedes, tucking the Q7 V12 TDI away in a corner, but gave the R8 a more prominent position. BMW weren't at the show anyway. But this made Brabus all the more visible with its Rocket 6.3 S Biturbo. Based on the Mercedes CLS and packing a mighty 730 bhp and 1,320 Nm (974 lb-ft of torque), it is absolutely not politically correct. But who cares? The Bentley Continental Flying Spur Speed was also there, boasting a far from miserly 610 bhp, and the Americans had brought over the Corvette ZR1 which has 620 super-charged horsepower under the bonnet. Exotic species such as the Pagani Zonda F and the six-wheeled Covini C6W also raised the level of excitement.

At the next Detroit Auto Show, a star will be born: Mercedes Benz plan to steal the show with the 2009 McLaren SLR Stirling Moss. This boldly styled racer is the last vehicle scheduled to be built in the context of the partnership between Mercedes and McLaren. The price tag will be around 750,000 euros and only 75 will go on sale. The bodywork for this tribute to the legendary Formula 1 driver will be made of carbon fibre. The turbocharged 5.5-litre V8 engine packing a mighty 650bhp is the same one that has already been used to power the SLR 722.

They have also instituted a few cost-cutting measures, i.e. there is no roof or windscreen. The car reaches a top speed of 217mph and goes from 0 to 100kph in just 3.5 seconds. Other unique features are the swing-wing doors, a retractable air brake and a two-piece protective cover that is stowed in the boot. Check out the gallery for a foretaste of what's in store for Detroit 2009...

Mercedes are presenting three new environmentally friendly 'show' cars to appease the brown rice brigade and are also using the opportunity to anticipate the design of the next B-Class.

Before we examine the eco-drivetrain concept in more detail, let's stick with the superficial aspects and concentrate on the likewise 'green' bodywork which is identical for all three prototypes. Some details such as the transparent cladding for the rear wheels or the streamlined dolphin-like silhouette are already familiar to us from the F700 Concept.

The fashion activities of Mercedes-Benz in over 20 countries now have a new face.

Who? Julia Stegner, international fashion brand-ambassador for Mercedes-Benz. The German model from Munich was discovered at the famous Oktoberfest in her home town. Her international breakthrough came in 2003, when she opened the Yves Saint Laurent show. Since then, her career has enjoyed a meteoric rise. Julia Stegner has appeared on the covers of most international fashion magazines and in many advertising campaigns for designers, including Chloé, Dolce & Gabbana, Escada, Guerlain and Hugo Boss.

When? Stegner will make her first appearance as the fashion brand-ambassador at the Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Berlin Autumn/Winter 2009, which will take place from 28 January to 1 February 2009 at Bebelplatz, in the heart of Berlin. At a recent photo shoot for the new key visual, Julia Stegner posed together with the Mercedes-Benz CLS 350 CGI Grand Edition in outfits by Anne Valerie Hash.

Why? "With Julia Stegner as brand ambassador, we have given our long-term, international fashion activities a fascinating and world-famous face," says Anders Sundt Jensen, Vice President Brand Communications Mercedes-Benz Cars. "She particularly represents the connection between German origin and international flair. That's why in our key visual we have very consciously placed Julia Stegner together with the new Mercedes-Benz CLS Grand Edition, which will be launched on the market in March 2009."

The most open automotive secret of recent months was finally revealed. Recently, the first photos of the new and long-awaited Mercedes E-Class were already seen, so there was hardly any great surprise in all this. The media had after all gone to a great length in digitally decoding all the spy shots and looking back, it seems that they were quite successful in their efforts.

The LED daytime running lights that had been seen by many as an Audi exclusive have now also been adopted into the star cruiser and put an end to what Audi liked to see as a monopoly. But Audi was simply one of the first manufacturers to have used LED technology and it is certainly not a question of any copying or imitating on behalf of Mercedes. LED technology will in future be adopted into all vehicles classes, right down to the smallest cars.