2011 Mercedes Benz SLS AMG

Filed under: Sedan, Performance, Videos, Mercedes-Benz, Luxury Mercedes-Benz's AMG division wanted to thank the two million viewers of its various videos, so it dropped a C63 AMG at the top of the corkscrew at Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca and taped it drifting down. The treat was wasn't as sweet as it should have been due to an editor who got a bit too happy with the "Cut" button, and watchers said as much. So, in a nice bit of "Here, let's fix that," AMG has uploaded aerial footage of the uncut drift. Now that we know AMG takes requests, feel free to leave them in the Comments section. On your way there, scroll down to check out the new vid.Continue reading Mercedes releases even more drift-happy C63 AMG footage from Laguna SecaMercedes releases even more drift-happy C63 AMG footage from Laguna Seca originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 23 May 2012 16:56:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

Filed under: Europe, BMW, GM, Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Opel, UAW/Unions Anyone considering a German-built car might want to buy it now. It could be a long summer. Europe's largest industrial union, IG Metall, is taking a tough stance against some job rules German carmakers want to enforce, potentially creating the possibility of a strike, according to TheDetroitBureau.com. "Talks are resuming, but so far five rounds of negotiations have produced little movement and a round of warning strikes earlier this month at several companies, including Porsche, BMW and Daimler, suggest that the powerful union is gearing up for a confrontation," the Bureau reported earlier this week. The union wants a 6.5-percent pay raise for its workers and a limit in how many temporary workers the carmakers can use. Around the world, carmakers use temporary workers as way to increase production without increasing union membership and save money. The union was offered a 3-percent pay raise, but that offer was rejected. Currently, German auto workers are some of the highest paid in the automotive world. And while parts of Europe remain in economic turmoil, Germany has shown signs of slow growth, which might be one reason some government officials are backing IG Metall. All of this doesn't bode well for General Motors' German-based Opel. GM was hoping to get some concessions from the unions representing its workers as part of its restructuring. But if other carmakers are paying more for its workers, it's unlikely the troubled Opel would be able to squeeze much of its people.Union takes hard stance against German automakers originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 22 May 2012 18:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments