What happens when you pit the Mercedes Benz SL63 AMG against the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster? Road and Track magazine recently staged this battle of epic proportions, and we could wait to find out the results! Check out what they had to say below, or head over to Road and Track’s website to read more!

“Both the Aston Martin V8 Vantage Roadster and Mercedes-Benz SL63 AMG were created for the open road. They possess a high level of comfort and refinement, with the option of going top down if the weather permitted…when in California, it usually does. The Vantage has the more communicative chassis of the two as each bump on the road is effectively relayed to the driver in a non-intrusive way. The car feels more nimble than the Mercedes, while still providing excellent ride quality. Although the SL63 AMG feels sturdier and heavier, it’s by no means sluggish; the M-B provided better high-speed stability than the Vantage Roadster and felt more like an Autobahn annihilator than it did a sprightly sports car.”

Victory!

We’re constantly getting some great information from a number if different Mercedes Benz blogs out there, so we figured we’d do the honors of presenting our readers with a short little roundup of some of our favorites.  Check out these guys below for the latest in Mercedes Benz news and the most up-to-date information on Mercedes Benz cars.

BenzInsider: This blog has a team of writers who love all things associated with the Mercedes Benz Car Group (Mercedes, Smart and Maybach).  Daily posts keep this blog’s readers constantly coming back for more.

Mercedes-Benz-Blog: Here, we’ve found a great source for Mercedes Benz reviews, Mercedes Benz spy shots, and brief glances at the history of Mercedes Benz vehicles.

Mercedes-Benz TV: Whenever we want to watch some incredible videos about Mercedes Benz, this is our go-to source! Check it our for the incredible layout and impeccable video quality.

Check out each of these sites and we guarantee  you won’t regret it!

Sure-footed four-corner traction: Standard. Height-adjustable rear AirMatic suspension for deep-snow ground clearance: Standard. Luggage-rack rails ready to accept your Thule ski-rack: Standard (and low enough to show off your Dynastar Ferrari sticks at a comfortable viewing height). Seating for seven (okay, five and two-halves): Standard. Iconic style and a hood ornament that commands respect from the apres-ski club valets: Standard. Could there be a more perfect vehicle than the new Mercedes E-Class wagon for driving up to Deer Valley, Whistler, or Hochgurgl, Austria?

Mercedes-Benz invited us to the latter (if you can say it without dislodging any phlegm, you get a night free) to sample its new E350 4Matic Wagon’s suitability to wintry driving. The visit started with a tech briefing held in an igloo and concluded with a driving session on some of the most nicely groomed parking lots and most gorgeous snow-covered mountain roads on planet earth.

First, you should know that the new E-Class wagon will only be available with the 3.5-liter V-6 and all-wheel-drive. The wicked E63 AMG wagon is finished, at least for the time being. Please observe a moment of silence for its passing. Thank you. Next, you may be encouraged to hear that the latest iteration of 4Matic is lighter (adding just 100 pounds), more compact, and–teamed with the new seven-speed automatic–more efficient (improving by as much as 2.3 mpg on the EPA driving cycle). Its planetary center differential still provides a natural 45:55 front:rear torque split, with slippage at either axle causing friction in the pre-loaded center differential clutch to send as much as 70 percent of the torque to the axle with the best grip.

Mercedes still relies on individual wheel braking to equalize torque side to side or front to rear as needed beyond what the center diff can do. We find this to be a perfectly acceptable solution for on-road vehicles coping with momentary traction losses due to rain, snow or ice (using the brakes to go forward in a hill-climbing off-roader is nowhere near as effective or desirable as proper torque-directing differentials).

And indeed in a series of exercises on a large groomed-snow-covered parking lot, the fourth-generation 4Matic system and its coterie of backup electronic assistants functioned exactly as planned. With all systems on, the car faithfully cleaves to the driver’s intended driving line — at least to the extent that physics can allow (which is impressively high when the various electromechanical traction assistants are abetted by a set of Continental ContiWinterContact footwear). Switch ASR off and deep prods at the accelerator are rewarded with satisfying countersteerworthy slides at 30 or 40 degrees of slip angle (after which the systems step back in to reign in the fun)

Read more.

Because we love the products we sell, I will have to spoil this review by adding this piece of information…

1st Place
You know the feeling. You’ve just walked into the meeting or party or bar wearing an outfit that’s just a little bit more handsome and cosmopolitan than everybody else’s. It gives you an inner confidence and outward respect without your needing to utter a word. You feel effortlessly cool, controlled and more attractive. You think, “This is going to be my day. I own this room.”

That’s how it feels to drive the new Mercedes-Benz E550 Sport. Like many before it, this Merc feels overbuilt, like it’ll go down the road impervious to any exterior influences for the next 250,000 miles. But here’s the difference: This time, it doesn’t drive like a European taxi.

Whatever Mercedes-Benz has done to the steering of this E-Class, it should do with every car in its portfolio. It’s supple, friction-free, informative and predictable. And there’s nothing wrong with the corporate V8 engine. Besides producing the best acceleration, it is also the most fuel-efficient of this trio, and not by a little bit.

The 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Sport amounts to more than the sum of its parts. It’s hard to describe, but there’s an overall sense of satisfaction, competence and experience that’s somehow baked into the fiber of this car. It drives like it knows where it’s going. It looks like it knows where it’s been. And it’s priced as if it knows where we’re all headed.

Here is the video of the review and the written review in its entirety below.

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