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[extract] Sometimes, tuners take a cue from an official manufacturer special like Anderson over here. They

Brabus has launched their styling, handling as well as a slight performance upgrade for the gullwinged Mercedes Benz SLS AMG. Launched sometime last year, the SLS AMG is designed to be a modern 1950s 300SL Gullwing revival and basically replaced the flamboyant SLR McLaren. In standard Mercedes-AMG form, it already looks very impressive right up to the rear section where it does seem slightly plain looking. However, Brabus being a performance tuner, a very Mercedes specific tuner, means that have added some extra Oomph to the looks of the car in total. The aero package consists of a front lip spoiler that reduces lift on the front axle, air inlet surrounds on the front bumper, air outlet surrounds for the vents, a rear fixed edge of bootlid spoiler (which works with the active rear wing), a rear bumper/diffuser setup that fits a newly designed Brabus quad-tailpipe exhaust system that adds 10bhp to the 563bhp 6.3liter V8 engine. This exhaust system not only adds some power but also reduces weight as it only weighs 12kgs instead of the 20kg stock exhaust system. It also has a cabin operated pneumatic bypass valve so that the sound levels can be controlled by the driver. The handling package consists of a height adjustable suspension that allows the SLS AMG to be lowered by up to 40mm and also has driver controlled damper settings to adjust the ride of the car. Brabus has equipped the SLS AMG with 20-inch alloys in 275/30 ZR20 tires at the front and 22-inch rims with 295/25 ZR21 tires at the rear. Brabus has also customized the interior utilizing leather and alcantara with contrasting stitching, a restyled speedometer, Brabus

[extract] Mercedes Benz are no longer very logical when it comes to numbering their cars nowadays. For instance, the current W204 C-Class starts off with a C200 CGI and then a C250 CGI which then cumulates in the range topping C63. If it were the good ol

The W204 Mercedes Benz AMG C63 is my on my wish list for most outrageous small car-big engine combo and if I could afford the actual purchase price, the maintenance, road tax and insurance may kill me afterwards. The reason why I love this car so much is that it has a sense of humour. I mean, the engineer who designed this car must have had such a fun time oversteering everywhere and shredding rubber everytime he stomps on the accelerator, or 'happy' pedal as I would call it. It is also a favourite of a few German tuners too, who somehow think that the stock arches, both front and back which are already a good deal wider than the stock C-Class Mercedes, isn't wide enough. One of them is a tuner called Markuzzi who in the tuning fraternity could be considered as a wide arch expert. Here, Markuzzi have basically added more visible bulk to the 6.3liter V8 C63, especially at the rear wheel arch and some extra inches on the front too. This high fat, high carbohydrate diet has enabled the C63, which was already on a high protein weightlifter's diet to begin with, to become an incredible hulk of a C63. So much so that the car does not look pretty at all. I think its a body kit too much. It looks like a muscle car from the 1970s instead of a Mercedes AMG. Maybe the AMG here stands for

I recently posted about Hamann going ballistic on the looks of the F10 BMW 5 series. Basically Hamann had gone through great lengths in trying to make that car look very aggressive. It had also tried its best, and failed, with the 5series Grand Turismo too (although it wasn't at fault as the car itself looks like a illegitimate child of a 7series, a X6 and with the DNA from a Rover SD1). The latest Hamann Motorsport release is not a BMW, but a Mercedes. The SLS to be precise. This time they have only released a few performance/upgrade parts for the already mad and at the same time fabulous SLS. The most noticeable upgrade featured is the HAMANN alloy rims called the 'Design Edition Race

Mercedes Benz UK in conjunction with the launch of its Specialist Products Division located at Mercedes Benz World in Brooklands, Surrey has previewed the very limited edition Mercedes Benz AMG C63 DR520. The 'DR' here stands for something very simple, in that the engine is 'Dyno Rated' to 520bhp. This C63 is an exclusive 20 unit limited edition (in either sedan or estate form) launched in commemoration to the above mentioned launch. The makers of Awesomely Mega and Grunty Mercedes Benzes, AMG, have fitted the already mad C63 with the AMG Performance Pack as standard to the C63 DR520. The Performance Pack includes AMG

We've been showing you guys all those supercars and mental Mercedes but not many sensible cheap cars. So today show to you a photo of the Proton Saga above, which is an affordable car for the masses. Especially during times where the economy is still sluggish, COE prices high and every penny counts. The Saga would offer ample room for 5, a boot to store your shopping from the Carrefour or Giant across the Causeways and good fuel economy. But I think that's it about the Saga. We'll talk about the newest BRABUS instead as it looks a trillion times better looking and we all need to dream a little as reality bites. BRABUS has decided that the new Cabriolet version of the E-class needs to have its 6.1 liter V8 shoe horned into the engine bay. This engine is based on the base Mercedes V8 which BRABUS adds its own internals and fabulously machined cylinder head as well as those horsepower making camshafts. This time the engine is still slightly smaller than Mercedes' AMG 6.2 liter variant used in the AMG variants of Mercedes Benzes. It still makes 462bhp without the help of any forced induction and in a way is like the AMG engine mentioned above. Torque is about 615Nm, of which all of it is available at 3,100rpm. Quite low for a normally aspirated engine. The horses and torques allow the cabriolet to achieve a 0-100km/h in 4.7 seconds. Now the fun thing about a cabriolet is that it brings you that freedom of driving with the wind around you. Knowing Mercedes, the cabriolet would be perfectly designed so that the wind does not buffet too much around you or allow those old people (or any people) with wigs, hats or caps to drive without the worry of their 'headpiece' flying into the countryside. So you add this useful fact to the interior that BRABUS has handcrafted for its owners and you can appreciate open top driving in bespoke quilted leather that is plastered throughout the cabin. Yes. Being an E-class Cabriolet, it seats 4 in full comfort. There is no need for the rear occupants to chop of their legs at the knee to fit in the rear like some supposedly 4 seater coupes. It also has a BRABUS designed bodykit with those side fender vents that add an air of aggression to the standard cabriolet. This is obvious, as those who end up BRABUS versions of a Mercedes are usually slightly more flamboyant than the usual Mercedes customer. Now isn't this piece of news better than reading about a Proton Saga?

The people from the Middle East are at it again. Remember the posting on the Gemballa Ferrari Enzo where a middle eastern client felt that the Ferrari Enzo wasn't radical enough? Now it seems that the pretty fabulous, limited run twin turbocharged V12 AMG Mercedes SL65 Black isn't radical enough for at least one of them. 670 bhp, 1000 electronically limited Newton meters of torque and a 130 or so kilos lighter, 0-100km/h in 3.8seconds and the 200km/h in 11seconds that the standard SL65 can produce isn't enough. So the quite wealthy chap then decides to bring one to BRABUS so that they can breathe some of their magic unto the SL65 Black and name it the BRABUS VANISH. Vanish into the horizon in a blink of an eye that is. BRABUS adds the usual performance mods; larger turbos, new gearbox, better brakes and the usual air filter and exhaust upgrades make the Vanish produce 800bhp with the same electronically limited 1000Nm of torque. It will produce in excess of 1300Nm but current tire technology does not seem to be able to handle that much of torque. So it gets limited and it is a bit of an anti-climax. But top speed isn't limited like in the standard Black. This one would run to speeds over 321km/h instead of a limited 318km/h. Acceleration times were not published by BRABUS as the car seemed to be fresh out of the factory when this piece of news was released. As for the external details. Matt black seems the way to go for ultra extreme BRABUS' as well as blacked out standard SL65 rims. Aside from this the rest of the car seems to be standard (if such a word could be used) SL65 Black. The interior gets suede alcantara and leather re-trim and some custom 'Vanish' kickplates. BRABUS has not mentioned how many units of the Vanish they will produce but going by their last very limited run V12 E-class sedan with that really ridiculous rear wheel arch covers, I'd have to guess that BRABUS may produce 10 units of the Vanish to have some economics of scale (and of course due to customer interest). Somehow a bottomless money pit is a good thing to have. Taste aside. Source: emercedesbenz.com

Okay, this will be the last Mercedes based posting from me for this month at least. I promise. We end this trilogy of Mercedes tuner related postings with another Geneva Motor Show preview. Brabus has officially launched the coupe version of the EV12. Last year at the Frankfurt Motor Show they previewed the E V12 in the newly launched W212 E Class chassis and they absolutely went bonkers by shoehorning in that 788bhp twin turbocharged V12 engine as well as putting full rear wheel covers on it. Making the car look like a throwback to some 1930s art deco car but only a million times uglier. Now they've done the same with the newly launched E Class coupe with the exception of the rear wheel covers. Which I think is a sensible deletion. Now how do you get 788bhp and 1420Nm of torque from an engine? Well you take the original twin turbo Mercedes engine, bore it out from 5.5 liters to 6.3liters and change almost everything internally from the crankshaft, camshafts as well as cylinder head honing. It includes two custom high-performance headers with integrated turbochargers and four water-to-air intercoolers. The stainless-steel high-performance exhaust system with free-flow metal catalysts was also custom-tailored for the confined space under the E-Class Coupe. Brabus has their own bespoke ECU to control the engine and even with enough power to take it into orbit it still complies with Euro IV emissions regulations. And that fact makes it Green enough for me. Now while the engine does make 1420Nm of torque, 320nm of them will be made redundant because if all of them gets unleashed at one go that reinforced 5-speed automatic gearbox will not even last one single full acceleration run. So with a bit of an anti-climax, it gets electronically limited to around 1100Nm. The same as any AMG S65 engine. The chassis has been thoroughly reworked with the front designed to reduce lift on the front axle and to provide all the radiators/water to air intercoolers of the V12 with an optimal supply of cooling air. The air outlets on the sides route air away from the heat exchangers. Another design feature is air ducts that provide the front 12 pot brakes (rears are 6 pots by the way) with cooling air that would be essential to slow down this spaceship when it wants to come out from hyperspace. A wider track means better directional stability at high speeds. Because of that Brabus developed special carbon-fiber sport fenders with integrated air vents for the front axle. Special carbon-fiber rear fenders add 60 millimeters to the width of the coupe on the rear axle. The E V12 Coupe runs on 19-inch combination which are 9.5 inches and 10 inches wide and customers can choose from BRABUS Monoblock designs VI, E, Q and S. Tires in size 265/30 ZR 19 are mounted on the front and 285/30 ZR 19 tires on the rear provide optimal traction. Or try to do so as well as they could with that much torque. Like the four door version the Brabus E V12 Coupe sprints from 0

[extract] Looks like there will be another Mad Mercedes is on the way. But only for GT racing. Coinciding with the official market launch of the road going AMG SLS on 27 March 2010 Mercedes-AMG has showcased the SLS AMG GT3 for FIA GT3 Racing teams to consider. The SLS AMG GT3 is designed as a racing car for customers competing in sprints and long-distance races. These race series for near-series GT cars are noted for their very varied participants and great excitement. Not least because of their comparatively favorable cost structure, they are enjoying increasing worldwide popularity. Oh yes, favorable for those racing Aston Martins, Maseratis and Ferraris in those GT races most popular in the United States and in Europe. How favorable it is for any small time South East Asian motor racing team is questionable but that

Hello. We're back with mental Mercedes Benzes again. This time Carlsson has decided to do their own version of the AMG SL65 Black in their own manic little way. The Carlsson Super GT C25 is a fixed head coupe unlike the model the car is based upon, the normal SL65. Like the AMG SL65 Black, the GT C25 has its own bespoke bodywork that dispenses with the folding top and has that fixed roof. Of course this lessens weight by losing all those motors and folding roof parts from the original SL65. The material utilized for the bespoke bodywork is mainly the very light and very strong carbon fibre. All the lights have been changed and from the outside, it is barely recognizable as a Mercedes. The interior is surprisingly a very dull brown with some yellow thrown about here and there. After the fairly outrageous (for a Mercedes) exterior, the show car's interior is pretty subdued. I think it needs a Gemballa like interior with all those garish red quilted leather to really make an impact. Maybe Carlsson wanted a balance that wouldn't chase away prospecting customers as they are only planning to build 25 units of the C25. Anyway, the interior is fully customizable with only 1 unit allocated per country. I wonder if there's any allocated for Singapore or even this region? So what's the other specification like? On the aerodynamic front, the bodywork includes a rear double diffuser and those very wide sculpted arches. According to Carlsson, the car produces zero lift up to speeds of 220mph. The C25 has a fully

- This here folks is the AMG-Mercedes showcase S63 AMG Concept car. Why they still call it a 63 is beyond me as the new engine is a twin turbo 5.5-litre V8. But the Gurus of All Mighty Grunt, AMG has done it again. It has plastered an S-Class with racing livery, added a full roll cage and race seats to it. Imagine a 50 year old CEO of some large multi-national company driving a car decked out like this. The supposedly stripped out racer like concept for the car together with all the stickers is because Mercedes wants to gather some nostalgic moments in which the car pays homage to the 1971 300SEL AMG racing car. That was the one of the first AMG powered Mercedes