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Mercedes-Benz GLA45 AMG spied in Sweden

We've spotted the all-new Mercedes-Benz GLA testing a couple times in recent months in getting closer to production form and shedding camouflage, but now it looks like we're see our first look at the AMG version of this compact crossover. The low ride height might trick some into thinking that we're just seeing the already-confirmed A45 AMG out testing, but the unique beltline, rear doors and side windows confirm this is some version of the GLA-Class.
What makes us so confident that this is the AMG model? Well, for starters, this prototype has beefier brakes with cross-drilled front and rear rotors and bigger front calipers, but it also sports dual exhaust outlets poking through the rear fascia and a suspension that has been lowered considerably. Our spy shooters said that this car's exhaust note made it almost certainly an AMG model.
Just to be clear, the GLA AMG will not be powered by a 4.5-liter engine. The closely related A45 AMG will carry the "45" in its name to celebrate the first 45 years of AMG, and our sources seem to indicate the AMG version of the GLA will do the same. We're expecting this sporty crossover to produce as much as 350 horsepower from its AMG-tuned four-cylinder engine, and like the all-new E63 AMG, it could very well come standard with 4Matic all-wheel drive.

Mercedes considering GLA-based crossover coupe

BMW opened a whole Pandora's Box when it introduced the X6 back in 2008. Sure it made little sense, sacrificing all that "utility" for a little more "sport," but it's been a solid success for BMW - especially considering the nominal expense it cost to develop the X6 on top of the X5 on which it's based. Little wonder that, while BMW has already followed up with a smaller version in the form of the X4, other automakers are starting to catch up. And that includes Mercedes-Benz.
The German automaker is preparing to launch a new MLC, based on the M-Class but with a sportier silhouette, and previewed it with the Concept Coupe SUV at the Beijing Motor Show. But that's just the start, according to the latest report from Automotive News Europe.
Mercedes is reportedly considering spinning off an entire line of crossovers more for use on the road than off it. Which may go without saying for most crossovers on the market, but considering the Geländwagen with which Mercedes got its start in SUVs, would mean an even further departure than it has undertaken already.

SRT Viper dukes it out with Mercedes SLS Black Series in new Head 2 Head

In Episode 36 of Motor Trend's Head 2 Head, now that the Corvette ZR1 is no more, Jonny Lieberman has to look overseas to the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series for a challenger with similar philosophy to the SRT Viper: long hood hiding a high-horsepower engine set way back, rear-wheel drive, tiny trunks. That puts the Viper's 8.4-liter V10 with 640 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque against the SLS AMG's 6.2-liter V8 with 622 hp and 468 lb-ft.
However, the congruences in philosophy and magnitude of numbers doesn't translate to the driving experiences of the two, which are literally and figuratively on different continents. Lieberman gets a handle on the two of them on Northern California roads, Randy Probst then finds out how, and how quickly, they can lap Laguna Seca.
They both get kudos for being improvements on their original sources, but only one of them can take the win. You can find out by watching the video below.