This is the third generation of the baby Benz since the salon-favourite debuted in 1996. The face apes the new CLS revealed last year, giving it an injection of warmed bovine to separate it from its limp original. Merc reckons the new headlamps are reminiscent of the 190 SL from the 50s. They are not.

Merc is also making a big song and dance – a world premiere, no less – of its Magic Sky Control. An optional panoramic roof in the SLK lets you change the colour of the glass from light to dark at the touch of a button, and this we think is rather cool.

The new SLK will be launched in 200, 250 and 350 variants; the 200 and 250 models are equipped with a 1.8-litre four-pot petrol producing 184bhp and 204bhp. The 200 does the 0-62mph dash in seven seconds, the 250 shaving four tenths off that time, while returning 45.5mpg on the combined cycle.

The SLK 350 gets a 3.5-litre V6 petrol, producing a meaty 306bhp – same as the BMW Z4 35i – and hits 62mph from rest in 5.6 seconds, topping out at 155mph.

The standard cars get steel suspension, while you can option a sports setup with harder springs and dampers, or the Dynamic Handling pack, which features automatic, continually adjustable damping. It basically responds to different road conditions and adjusts accordingly, like a discerning German schoolmistress.

The DH pack also includes torque vectoring brakes, which in critical conditions, says Merc, “produce a defined rotational movement of the vehicle about the vertical axis in fractions of seconds through selective brake actuation at the rear wheel on the inside of the bend”. So essentially, it’s more stable when cornering. Although, the best translation below gets an award (of no value, and consisting largely of a ‘well done’).

It launches in the UAE in June this year, with prices announced closer to the date. Would it tempt you over a Z4?

If you squealed with delight when Porsche revealed its 918 Spyder, get ready to squeal some more – it’s going into production.

Porsche CEO Michael Macht was yesterday ‘given the mission’ to produce a limited production run of the 918 concept which shocked audiences at Geneva; a mission i have classified as being ‘ruddy impossible’.

This is largely because the Porsche 918 Spyder is a hybrid supercar capable of doling out a 0-62mph time of 3.2 secs, a top speed of 200mph, a scorching Nurburgring lap time of 7m 30s (faster than a Carrera GT) – and 94.1mpg.
What’s more, this super-efficient super-fast Porker can emit as little as 70g/km of CO2. Stats good enough to delight environmentally-concerned speed-merchants to ‘persuade’ Porsche to build the thing. Quickly.

So how can something which looks this good go so fast and simultaneously repopulate endangered African monkeys and seal the ozone layer?

Three electric motors with 218bhp and a 3.4-litre 500bhp racing V8 equals scary and serious in a single Germanic stroke. Couple this drivetrain with a lightweight monocoque bodyshell and efficient aerodynamics, and you get a crisis-inducing supercar.

I had a close peek at this hybrid monster and the fastest Ferrari ever, and got very excited indeed. Are you?

ACS

Merc makes the CL because some folk like an S-Class with two doors. Merc also makes an AMG version because some folk are mad.

This is the new CL63 AMG – Merc’s answer to a question that literally a few people asked.

The gargantuan super-coupe gets a new, hand-built AMG 5.5-litre twin-turbo V8 with 571bhp and 663lb ft of pulling power. Which, if you’re in the mood for pulling, is considerable.

Using subtle forms of witchcraft and some Big Brains, the CL63 AMG sends its power to the rear wheels via a seven-speed AMG semi-automatic gearbox to hit 62mph in just 4.4 secs, and a top speed of 186mph with the AMG performance pack.

Despite the massive power, the new 5.5-litre V8 – which replaces the 6.3-litre AMG of old – gives 7.4mpg more than before, and emits 29 per cent less CO2.

Still, drive-it-like-you-stole-it and you’ll notice the AMG’s standard fit Direct-Steer and torque vectoring brake systems, the latter of which gently applies the brake on the inner wheel when cornering.

You get a range of AMG trinkets to trumpet your autobahn-crushing dominance to puny earth-cars, including some rather tasty 19-inch light-alloy wheels.

Sure it’s big. You may even think it’s ghastly. But – with the right attitude – i think this is a seriously cool car. Agree?

ACS

The irony of ‘special edition’ supercars is that you end up with a car less special, statistically at least, than if you’d specced it yourself.

To wit: simply sticking to visual options – wheels, paint, leather, – there are some 31 billion possible combinations (i’ve done the maths) should you choose to configure your DBS to the last detail. Many do, some with disastrous consequences. For better or worse, you can be fairly sure your magma red DBS with cream-on-purple seats is unique.

The DBS Carbon Black is not unique. It is, however, rather stunning. Maybe it’s a ploy by Aston Martin to save taste-challenged DBS owners from themselves.

Though mechanically identical to the, ahem, normal DBS, the Carbon Black gets an enormous amount of very shiny black stuff as standard: a bespoke black paint job with a ‘metallic twist’, black gloss wheels, a black-on-black-on-black interior, and side strakes rendered in carbon fibre.

The effect is magnificently sinister. If you find the DBS over-jewelled, with too many bells and whistles ruining the elegance of the DB9′s original lines, step this way. It looks like a stealth jet, although this quality is impeded somewhat by the cortex-shattering V12 soundtrack.

Don’t trust yourself to do a decent job of speccing your DBS? The Carbon Black provides a vital service. But be prepared for the day you pass an identical DBS on the street. Oh, the shame!

ACS

You’re probably not wearing a stitch of clothing that wasn’t made in China. Same goes for your mobile and computer, too. So we shouldn’t be at all surprised that a Chinese company today bought one of the most established car firms, Volvo.

Geely, among China’s fastest growing domestic car makers, has agreed to pay $1.8 billion (£1.2bn) for Volvo from Ford. So Ford has taken a bit of a hit – this is only a quarter of the money Ford paid for Volvo 11 years ago.

However enterprising Geely is, it’s hardly in Volvo’s league for car engineering, quality and safety. To rebut the fear that the Swedish cars will be watered down, Geely has said that Volvo will be run as a separate company with separate day-to-day management. And for the time being it will continue to buy engines and technologies from Ford.

But in order for Volvo to get the economies of scale it will need outside the Ford empire, in a few years’ time some Volvos will be built in China to serve the rapidly growing market there and yes thats the most horrific and worst bit of news we expected to hear.

In those 11 years of ownership, Ford never really managed to make money from Volvo. Remember, it also owned Jaguar, Land Rover and Aston Martin, and has sold the lot of them now. Ford’s upmarket multi-brand strategy is history.

Instead Ford wants to concentrate all its efforts on the blue-oval cars. It seems to be working, too. Ford is making better cars than ever. Its image, especially in the US, is stronger than it has been for years. And it’s actually turning a profit all around the world.

ACS

Formula One world champions Michael Schumacher and Fernando Alonso have hit out at the ‘boo boys’ decrying the state of the sport after a less than exciting opening round in Bahrain.

While team bosses discuss ways to improve the spectacle, and the likes of Bernie Ecclestone and reigning world champion Jenson Button call for patience as opposed to a knee-jerk reaction, Schumacher and Alonso have spoken out to defend the status quo amid accusations that rule changes banning refuelling have made F1 ‘boring’.

“F1 is not like motorcycle racing, or like basketball – it is F1 and it has always had less overtaking than in other sports,” the seven-time champion insisted. “If a football match finishes 0-0, is that necessarily not interesting? If a basketball game is 100-100, is that more exciting?

“Sure we can improve, that is quite clear. There are lots of people who have thought about how we can improve it. We know we would like to improve it, but it is not so easy. It is what it is and the excitement is still there – but differently.”

Alonso was more outspoken, suggesting that no one was forcing fans to watch.

“We need to be calm and wait some races to see if the new rules have some impact on the show,” the Spaniard said. “I don’t think it has changed the show. This is about technique, about how precise everything is in terms of the mechanics, the engineering, everything. People who want extra show perhaps need to reconsider if they want to watch F1.”

ACS

This week General Motors – that giant, po-faced car-producing arm of the US government – revealed that it does in fact have a rollicking sense of slapstick humour. The proof: the EN-V ‘future urban mobility’ concept.

This bizarre battery-powered device was developed with help from Segaway, another answer in search of a question. Like the Segway, it uses bewilderingly complex gyro-sensor electronics to balance on just two wheels. They’re arranged side-by-side, not fore and aft like other two wheelers.

When parked the EN-V rests on two tiny dolly wheels, as well as the main wheels. But once turned on, it rears up into its wheelie position.

The developers say it’s designed to have network capabilities, GPS and proximity sensors. It could talk to its brethren, find parking and charging spaces. If GM’s trigger-happy corporate-liability lawyers could be pacified, it could therefore drive itself.

You could go somewhere, jump out, and then pack it off to graze some electricity, in the knowledge it will come back when you call for it. Like a faithful donkey.

GM chose to unveil the EN-V in Shanghai, saying: ‘Shanghai is expected to become one of the epicentres for the establishment of personal mobility solutions for the future.’

Certainly Shanghai needs new forms of transport. GM has recently helped to sell the residents so many cars that traffic is now completely choked much of the time. With the EN-V, GM has gone into battle with the Toyota I-Real.

The way GM paints it, the EN-V is an environmental miracle because it weighs just 500kg and takes up about a fifth of the parking space of a normal car.

Well that’s one way of looking at it. The other is to realise that it’s still about 25 times heavier and bulkier than a bicycle, which used to be Shanghai’s main form of transport. And its range and speed (20-odd miles, 20-odd mph flat out) are spookily similar to a bike’s. Please tell me are we getting any where????

ACS

Well, at least Fernando Alonso has better taste in company cars than he does in sweaters.

Ferrari F1′s newest pilot – and early championship leader - has just picked up the keys to his box-fresh fleet vehicle and, instead of the 458 Italia we’d have predicted, he’s opted instead for a Maserati Gran Carbio.

Especially in Alonso’s discerning spec of – and here we must quote from Maserati’s adulatory press release - Grigio Granito paint with a Pearl Beige and Bordeaux leather interior and a Bordeaux soft-top. A truly stunning combo when teamed with the Reddish Red and Definitely White of Nando’s weekend wear.

Maserati also helpfully mentions that the GranCabrio goes on sale in the UK next month, with prices starting at £95,510. Grumpy race driver not included.

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Lewis Hamilton has revealed that he ‘wouldn’t be surprised’ to see Red Bull Racing rival Mark Webber walk away from the top flight at the end of the current campaign should the Australian enjoy a successful season at the highest level.

Webber is now in his ninth year on the grand prix grid, but it was only in 2009 that he finally had at his disposal a competitive car with which to fight at the front – and the New South Wales native wasted little time in proving his potential, registering his breakthrough victory at the Nürburgring in Germany and following that up with a second triumph at Interlagos in the penultimate outing in Brazil.

In-between there were moments where Webber threatened to mount a genuine world championship challenge – something he ostensibly has a chance to do again this year, with the Adrian Newey-designed Red Bull RB6 widely regarded as one of the very quickest cars in the field. And at 33, and with the rumours that rallying refugee Kimi Raikkonen is already being lined up to take his place in 2011, Webber could be considering imminent retirement, reckons Hamilton.

“I don’t know how long he plans to stay in Formula 1, but I get the sense that it’s one of the years he wants to finish on top and perhaps call it a day,” says the McLaren man, ahead of this weekend’s race down under. “He has the best chance to end on that high this year, and I wouldn’t be surprised if he is considering it.”

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One aspect of the Toyota Recall you might not have considered. The company is developing a more comprehensive ‘black box’ data recorder to be installed in every car. Like the ones in aircraft, these will record exactly what’s happening in key systems up to a crash.

They’ll keep an eye on speed, throttle, brakes and more.

Toyota wants to use the data to help diagnose the causes of ‘unintended acceleration’. There’s a big storm brewing in the US, where many consumer groups and members of the congress are alleging that there’s a more complex problem than the sticky throttle pedal that’s being recalled in Britain at the moment.

Of course, you can immediately see where this is going. If this idea catches on, every move we make as drivers will be recorded and could be stored. Fancy that? Me  neither.

ACS