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First official shot of Mercedes S-Class Coupe leaks out

With the official debut for the Mercedes-Benz S-Class Coupe expected tomorrow, it shouldn't be a surprise that some clicky fingers have already managed to uncover an official image of the car before the unveiling. Outside of this sole image, though, there's precious little detail on the new car.
First posted by Autofilou and then picked up by WorldCarFans, the production S-Class Coupe isn't far off from the concept car we saw a few months back in Frankfurt. Like the concept, the leggy production model appears related, albeit distantly, to the S-Class Sedan. The hood and front fascia are longer and lower, befitting of a two-door, while the character lines in the profile are more pronounced. Obviously, the beltline and slim, B-pillarless greenhouse are coupe-only items. We can't see any details on the back of the car, although it does appear that the long hood has a correspondingly short rear deck.
We'll have all the details on the official replacement for the CL-Class when it makes its full debut tomorrow. Until then, what do you think of this lone image? Does it appear that Mercedes has got it right? In terms of design, where would you rank this with the departing CL-Class? Have your say in Comments.

Mercedes rules out hybrid supercar, promises SLS successor

The recent Geneva Motor Show was a festival of hypercars, with the presence of not one, but three over-the-top debuts: the Lamborghini Veneno, McLaren P1 and Ferrari LeFerrari. The latter two have hitched their carbon fiber bumpers to the electrification bandwagon by using hybrid-electric powertrains not entirely unlike the propulsion systems we've come to know in cars like the Toyota Prius and Chevrolet Volt. Does that mean the flow of electrons up the four-wheeled food chain will eventually consume our hallowed supercars? Not if AMG has anything to say about it.
AMG Director of Vehicle Development Tobias Moers recently confirmed that not only will there be a successor to the Mercedes-Benz performance division's SLS AMG, he notes that its internal combustion engine will most definitely not be sharing living quarters with an electric drivetrain. Instead, AMG plans to focus on further pushing the power and efficiency envelope of the internal combustion engine and advancing the use of lightweight materials to achieve their goals. The first example of this effort can be seen in the new SLS AMG Black Series that incorporates many weight-saving techniques to shed some 154 pounds from the SLS AMG GT (above), which itself is lighter than the standard SLS AMG.
Furthermore, Moers remarks that his company is happy to leave the hypercar segment to companies like Ferrari and McLaren. He admits that, "Ferrari in the hyper-car segment is still a different brand than AMG. We have to be honest..." So rather than taking the SLS further upmarket to do battle with bulls and stallions, Moers hinted that the next-generation SLS may be joined by another performance model that fits neatly between itself and the C63 AMG.

Mercedes-Benz A45 AMG shows up to fight the hottest hatches [w/videos]

Fun coincidence. On the same day that Audi announces the unveiling of its new S3 Sportback at the Geneva Motor Show, Mercedes-Benz steals the spotlight by confirming that the all-new A45 AMG will also receive its official debut early next month. Starting life as the entry-level A-Class hatchback, the A45 AMG gets the full AMG treatment, which includes numerous performance, handling and styling upgrades.
Under the hood sits an AMG-tuned 2.0-liter turbocharged I4 breathing through a sport exhaust system helping the five-door produce 360 horsepower and 332 pound-feet of torque. This engine is paired to a seven-speed AMG dual-clutch transmission and power is sent to the ground using 4Matic all-wheel drive. Mercedes-Benz says that the A45 AMG will be able to accelerate from 0-60 miles per hour in under 4.5 seconds and it will have a top speed of 155 mph; in the land of hot hatches, it doesn't get much hotter than that. For added performance and handling, AMG has retuned the A-Class' suspension and steering systems and equipped The A45 with a three-stage stability control system that is specific to this car.
Surprisingly, the exterior styling of the A-Class was already sporty enough that the new model doesn't receive too many changes to become the A45 AMG. The biggest alterations include black accents to the chin spoiler, rocker panels and mirror caps, black wheels with red-painted brake calipers and rectangular dual exhaust outlets. Inside, it doesn't take a trained eye to spot the differences. The flat-bottomed sport steering wheel and the numerous red accents throughout the cabin (including the seatbelts!) really help to make this AMG interior stand out; front passengers will also get sport bucket seats that appear to be more than supportive enough for even the most spirited driving conditions.