The comprehensive USA blog on automotive news.
Before Jeep became the legendary off-road brand that it is today, it got its start by producing vehicles for the military. The original Jeep (the Willys MB) served its tour in WWII and other battles, and from there, as they say, the rest is history. After being absent from military duty for years, Chrysler LLC has just announced a new military Jeep based on the Wrangler called the J8.
Over the past several months, Mercedes has done little to hide the fact they’re developing a new 571 horsepower model known as the SLS AMG ? a model developed entirely in-house by AMG that’s based heavily on the legendary 300SL. Up until now, it’s a model that’s been distinguished by its Gullwing-style doors, but today, spy photos have emerged hilighting the fact that like the original 300SL, the SLS too will be available as a convertible.
Mercedes-Benz USA is reporting that for the month of July 2009, sales totaled 16,228 new vehicles ? a drop of 21.7 percent when compared to July 2008. As a result, sales at MBUSA now total 101,316 new vehicles through the first seven months of the year, down 27.6 percent compared to the year prior.
As for the models making headlines, the 2010 Mercedes E-Class took the volume lead in its first month on the market, with the sedan’s sales totaling 5,556 units. The C-Class and GLK-Class also noted high volume sales, selling 4,450 units and 1,809 units, respectively.
With the multiple award-winning PRE-SAFE? system, Mercedes-Benz has once again been underlining its role as a pioneer in the safety field since 2002: once the system recognises certain critical driving situations, PRE-SAFE? activates occupant protection measures as a precaution. As a further development, PRE-SAFE Pulse is able to reduce the loads acting on the torsos of the occupants by around one third during a side impact by preventively moving them towards the centre of the vehicle.
MINI has been in the news lately with regards to the forthcoming Clubman model, the much awaited MINI Cooper wagon. Much like the internationally-inspired wagon concepts, the new Clubman will feature a rear-hinged access (suicide) door plus an extended wheelbase for much-needed extra interior room. Undisguised interior and exterior spy shots have already made their way onto the internet and it’s common knowledge that the car will be debuting this September in Frankfurt. But what’s also got MINI in the news is word regarding a forthcoming compact sport utility vehicle, filling in the niche that smart didn’t when the formore compact SUV was canned.