Tag: youtube

  • 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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  • SSC Tuatara falls short in new land-speed record attempt, will run again

    SSC claimed to set a new land-speed record for a production car in October with its Tuatara supercar hitting a two-way average of 316.11 mph. Issues with the run and how it was measured prompted company CEO Jerod Shelby to abandon that claim soon thereafter, but he promised to make the run again. Now, that’s happened, but it didn’t go as planned, and no land-speed record was set.

    Last Wednesday, Nürburgring taxi driver Robert Mitchell posted a video to YouTube detailing the SSC Tuatara’s Dec. 12-13 record attempt.

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    The SSC team ran the new record attempt at the NASA runway in Florida, the same runway where Hennessey Performance Engineering set its record in the Venom GT Spyder.

    During the first attempt in October, the SSC team used a Dewetron TRIONet chassis with a GPS card and a laptop computer to process the satellite tracking data. For this new record attempt, the SSC team put redundancies in place for satellite tracking with two Racelogic systems including a VBox and an OEM system, a Life Racing tracking system, and three Garmin systems all installed in the Tuatara. Some were installed on the roof of the car and some were placed in the frunk. The latter posed an issue due to wires running out of the hood into the car, which caused the hood to keep popping open during high-speed runs at over 200 mph, according to Mitchell.

    The first record attempt placed professional race car driver Oliver Webb behind the wheel, but for the second attempt the owner, Larry Caplin, raised his hand and said, “I’m driving, I’m the owner of the car, this is my car,” according to Mitchell.

    Since Caplin had minimal seat time in the car, SSC decided to reduce turbo boost and slow down the engine timing, then build things back as Caplin became more comfortable.

    SSC Tuatara record run

    SSC Tuatara record run

    During Caplin’s second-to-last run, the Tuatara hit 244 mph in 6th gear at the runway’s halfway point. At that point, the car became so hot that the engine software began to pull the timing to save the engine. The issue affected two spark plugs, though nobody checked the plugs and didn’t realize the issue existed.

    A chill box was installed to cool the intercooler and the entire engine for nearly two hours to restore a proper temperature. The boost was increased to within 3 pounds of full power, and Caplin went out for one more run.

    This time the Tuatara hit 251.2 mph before the halfway point when Caplin aborted as he felt the car wasn’t building speed as it should. At this point, the SSC team realized two cylinders had lost power, and the record attempt was over. The 251.2 mph run was done with two cylinders not firing properly.

    Motor Authority reached out to Shelby to confirm Mitchell’s story on the record attempt and has not heard back as of the time of publication.

    SSC plans to run the record attempt again at the NASA runway in January, according to Mitchell. Click on the video above for a deeper explanation of the run.

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  • 2022 Audi RS 3 spy shots: 400-plus-horsepower compact sedan coming soon

    A new generation of the Audi A3 was unveiled in April, and like its predecessors the car will spawn performance variants. The S3 was revealed in August and an RS 3 is coming up soon.

    A prototype for the new RS 3 has been spotted again, revealing many clues about the new performance compact sedan. Prototypes for the RS 3 Sportback hatch are also out testing, though we’re unlikely to see this model in the United States, just like with the current generation.

    The new A3 represents more of a major update of the current generation than a true redesign, with both generations utilizing the Volkswagen Group’s MQB platform. This will also be true for the new RS 3.

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    Expect the model to continue with a 2.5-liter turbocharged inline-5, though we could see output exceed the current model’s 400 horsepower now that Mercedes-AMG’s latest compacts are delivering as much as 416 hp. A dual-clutch transmission and rear-biased all-wheel-drive system should also form part of the package.

    We know this prototype is for the RS 3 because of the enlarged intakes at the front, the flared wheel arches, massive wheel and tire combo, and the signature pair of oval exhausts at the rear.

    We can’t see the interior in any of the shots but previous generations of the RS 3 point to body-hugging sport seats sitting up front and a flat-bottom steering wheel positioned in front of the driver.

    2021 Audi A3 Sportback

    2021 Audi A3 Sportback

    We also know from the new A3 that there will be a digital instrument cluster, a large touchscreen for the infotainment system that can recognize letters entered by hand and responds to natural-speak instructions, and a color head-up display. A performance data recorder might also make it into the new RS 3.

    The new A3 is scheduled to reach the U.S. in late 2021 as a 2022 model. The RS 3 should arrive about the same time, meaning we’ll likely see it also arrive as a 2022 model.

    Potential rivals for the RS 3 include AMG’s new 45 series, as well as the BMW M2 and a future CT4-V Blackwing from Cadillac.

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