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Category: Highlight

  • 2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Wagon spy shots: New longroof coming soon but not to US

    A new generation of the Mercedes-Benz C-Class is coming next year, and we’ve got fresh spy shots and video of the car’s wagon body style.

    Don’t get too excited because we’re unlikely to see it on sale in the United States. Elsewhere, it should trail the sedan by only a few months, meaning a launch in late 2021 or early next year.

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    The prototypes for the C-Class Wagon (C-Class Estate in some markets) are heavily camouflaged but the size and proportions appear similar to those of the current generation. The front looks to sit lower however.

    The interior should be very modern, with a digital instrument cluster, augmented reality head-up display, and a large infotainment screen all expected to be made available. The infotainment will be powered by a second-generation version of Mercedes’ MBUX operating system that debuted last September in the redesigned 2021 S-Class.

    2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class spy shots - Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

    2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class spy shots – Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

    2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class spy shots - Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

    2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class spy shots – Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

    The current C-Class Wagon is about 3.7 inches longer overall than its sedan counterpart, and its wheelbase about 3.1 inches longer. Storage space in the rear is about 17 cubic feet, expanding to 53 cubic feet with the rear seats folded. The numbers should be similar for the new generation.

    Underpinning the new C-Class is an updated version of the current generation’s MRA rear-wheel-drive platform. The updated version will bring significant weight savings primarily through increased use of aluminum over steel. This has been made possible due to advanced joining technologies including aluminum to steel welding.

    2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Wagon spy shots - Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

    2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class Wagon spy shots – Photo credit: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien

    Depending on the market, the base powertrain should be a 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-4. There will be sporty options, too, including C53 and C63 models from Mercedes-Benz AMG. The latter is expected to forgo the current C63’s twin-turbocharged V-8 in favor of an electrified powertrain packing a turbocharged 4-cylinder.

    Even though the U.S. misses out on the C-Class Wagon, local Mercedes fans seeking a longroof can always opt for the E-Class Wagon. There’s also a soft-roader version, the E-Class All-Terrain, that’s been added for the 2021 model year.

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  • Original 1965 Ford Shelby GT350R heads to auction

    Last summer, an original 1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition became the most valuable Mustang in the nameplate’s history when it fetched $3.85 million at auction, eclipsing the the $3.4 million bid on the original “Bullitt” movie car at an auction last January.

    What made it so valuable was the fact that it was the famous “Flying Mustang” driven to victory by Ken Miles at an SCCA event held at Green Valley Raceway in Smithfield, Texas, in 1965, marking the first time the GT350 Competition saw action.

    1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition bearing chassis no. SFM5R106 - Photo credit: Mecum Auctions

    1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition bearing chassis no. SFM5R106 – Photo credit: Mecum Auctions

    Now another GT350 Competition is headed for auction, and while it doesn’t have the provenance of the Ken Miles car, it should still bring some big bucks during bidding. The car, bearing chassis number SFM5R106, is headed to Mecum’s auction running Jan. 7-16 in Kissimmee, Florida. The car is lot F158 and included in the sale are original documents like the purchase order and delivery form. The estimate is between $1.2M and $1.5M.

    The GT350 Competition, traditionally referred to as a GT350R, because of the “R” included in the model’s chassis code, is the race version of the Ford Shelby GT350. Only 34 production examples and two prototypes were built, according to original documentation, though Carroll Shelby maintained that there were 35 production examples originally built. Today there are many replicas, as well as some continuation examples built by the same folks that built the originals.

    1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition bearing chassis no. SFM5R106 - Photo credit: Mecum Auctions

    1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition bearing chassis no. SFM5R106 – Photo credit: Mecum Auctions

    Compared to the regular GT350, the Competition version received new suspension tuning, a modified 289-cubic-inch V-8, an improved cooling system, fiberglass body panels and Plexiglass windows. The interior was gutted for racing, and a full roll cage was added to meet competition regulations.

    Chassis no. SFM5R106 was raced in Midwest SCCA National events by its first owner, Richard Jordan, a veteran Corvette racer and graduate of the Carroll Shelby School of High Performance Driving at Riverside, California. He purchased the car through Jack Loftus Ford in Hinsdale, Illinois, and took it racing just 10 days after taking delivery, in an event held at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin, on September 4, 1965. Jordan put the car into storage in the early 1970s, where it sat until 1987 when it was bought by its second owner. As a result, it only has 4,930 miles on the clock.

    1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition bearing chassis no. SFM5R106 - Photo credit: Mecum Auctions

    1965 Ford Shelby GT350 Competition bearing chassis no. SFM5R106 – Photo credit: Mecum Auctions

    Two original 1965 Ford Shelby GT350s will also go under the hammer at the Mecum event, including one example, the sixth off the line, which was built into a drag racer by its first owner. That owner was Jerry Mendes who set an NHRA class record in 1968 with a quarter-mile time of 12.38 seconds at 110.83 mph.

    Other highlights at the upcoming auction include the first Pontiac Firebird built and a Chevrolet Corvette Z06 formerly owned by racing legend Mickey Thompson.

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  • Singer builds wild Safari-style 911 blending modern and classic goodness

    Singer Vehicle Design is world renowned for its modified Porsche 911s, but despite already having a stellar reputation in the 911 tuning scene, the California company never ceases to push the boundaries.

    Case in point is Singer’s latest reimagined 911, a wild off-roader similar in ethos to the Porsche 911 SC Safari rally car of the 1970s.

    It’s called the Singer All-Terrain Competition Study (ACS), and it’s not just a garage queen. In fact, its owner commissioned it to go racing, making it Singer’s first competition-ready vehicle. Helping in this department was the United Kingdom’s Tuthill Porsche, an expert in turning classic 911s into rally machines.

    The ACS is based on a 964-generation 911 but features elements, such as the wide rear wing, that recall the iconic 959 rally cars that took on and won the Dakar Rally in the 1980s. Its engine is a 3.6-liter twin-turbocharged flat-6 that’s air-cooled and generating around 450 horsepower. It isn’t clear what the transmission is but we know drive is to all four wheels.

    From the video, we can see the interior has been fitted with a digital instrument cluster that flashes red to indicate shift points.

    Singer said more details on the ACS will be revealed in the coming days, so stay tuned.

    There’s been a lot of interest in Safari-style 911s in recent years, with Lehman Keen seeming to have kicked off the modern trend with the launch of his Keen Project Safari conversion program in 2013. Since then famous Porsche tuners Gemballa and Ruf have also teased their own designs, and even Porsche looks to be readying its own entry.

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