European Car News

The all-new 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan, the German manufacturer’s best seller, is back with a new look as controversial as the time it gained four round headlights for the first time. The new E-class is unoriginal in almost all aspects, starting from the Lexus GS-like front end to the Mitsubishi Galant-like rear lights, with a dash of LEDs in the front bumper to get that Audi effect that is so common nowadays on modified cars here. About the only original bit is the flared rear-side fenders, paying homage to 1950s ‘Ponton’ Mercs, although it doesn’t fit in at all on a modern sedan.

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Seeing Sheikh Mohammed zipping around Dubai in a Mercedes-Benz G-Class is a rolling tribute to the strength of the German manufacturer’s overengineered pre-1995 designs. The Geländewagen is the only Merc to survive the cost-cutting 1995-to-2005 era, when quality hit the crapper. Even the attempt to replace it with the characterless GL-Class flopped. It is hard to imagine that the vehicle that is a favourite with sheikh-copycats has been around since 1979.

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We hear from AutoMiddleEast that the much-hyped VW Scirocco was recently launched for the GCC at a press conference in Dubai. Since we are on Volkswagen’s shit-list, we were not even invited, but we can at least gather an idea from other publications.

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The most hyper version of Jaguar’s XF sports sedan is going to be revealed at the 2009 Detroit Auto Show this month. The 2010 Jaguar XFR is meaner than ever and official images have already been leaked.

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It is already known that Mercedes-Benz is dropping the “CLK” badge in a bid to simplify its stupidly-crowded line-up. The enlarged two-door model being readied for 2010 will be called the Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe, and near-production prototypes are being spotted all over Europe.

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In a bit of a surprise, I got a call from BMW’s people yesterday morning saying they have Mini Clubman S lying around, and whether I wanted it. I have nothing better to do nowadays so I said “sure, why not.” And now it stands under my apartment, thanks to BMW’s awesome home-delivery service for press cars. It goes back to their stable after five days.

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While we get no official love from Maserati’s GCC reps in terms of test cars, we can report that the facelifted 2009 Maserati Quattroporte is now on sale at dealerships in Dubai and the UAE, as newspaper ads for the car appear on a regular basis. The current range includes the standard Quattroporte as well as the Quattroporte S, while a new Quattroporte Sport GT S will debut at the upcoming 2009 Detroit Auto Show and soon join the GCC line-up next year.

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Cars in America get recalled for various safety issues, if enough complaints come in. The NHTSA, a U.S. government entity that oversees car safety, received numerous complaints about the 2007-2008 Mini Cooper S, and forced BMW to issue a recall on 28,450 of those cars. Apparently, the protruding central exhaust tips were burning owners’ legs when they were unloading stuff after a drive.

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The original speed record for world’s fastest sedan, tuned or otherwise, was set by the Brabus Rocket, a heavily-modded car based on the Mercedes-Benz CLS ‘coupe.’ The record has been broken by tuning firm G-Power, with their Hurricane RS that is based on the BMW M5.

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I’ve been zipping around Dubai all morning today, getting my hair blow-dried and losing a few in the process. Because BMW home-delivered this 135i convertible today, and the weather is perfect for such a car.

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