New Octavia Combi 4x4

Following the world premiere of the new Octavia Combi at this year’s Geneva Motor Show, Skoda has released information about the 4x4 variants of its station wagon that are now fitted with an updated AWD system featuring the latest-generation Haldex 5 clutch.

Of the 124,500 Skoda Octavia estates sold last year in Europe, almost 20 percent were all-wheel drive versions, with the ratio being even higher in Scandinavian and Alpine countries (61 percent in Norway, 55 percent in Switzerland).

The upgraded all-wheel drive system has an intelligent distribution of torque between both axles and individual wheels. Under normal driving conditions, most of the power will go to the front axle. As soon as more torque is required or the wheels need more grip, the rear wheels are seamlessly activated. The Octavia Combi 4x4 also comes with a standard EDL (Electronic Differential Lock) which acts as a transversal lock allowing for stable starting-off on surfaces with uneven grip.

The Octavia Combi 4x4 is offered with a choice of three engines, one petrol and two diesels. The 180PS (177hp) 1.8 TSI petrol is the most powerful, with the base engine being the 105PS (103hp) 1.6 TDI diesel. There’s also the more powerful 150PS (147hp) 2.0 TDI on offer. All three versions come with start-stop and an energy recuperation system as standard. Skoda says fuel economy and emission figures have been improved by an average of 14 percent over the preceding model.

Combined with a six-speed manual gearbox, the 1.6 TDI averages 4.5 l/100 km (52.2 US mpg) and emits 119 g of CO2/km, while the 2.0 TDI has a combined fuel consumption of 4.9 l/100 km (48 US mpg) and CO2 emissions of 124 g/km.

The gasoline 1.8 TSI, available exclusively with an automatic six-speed DSG dual-clutch transmission, averages 6.7 l/100 km (35.1 US mpg) and emits 156 g of CO2/km. It is, however, the fastest, with 0 to 100 km/h (62 mph) taking 7.5 seconds, while topping out at 227 km/h (141 mph).

Sales of the Octavia Combi 4x4 will begin in Europe in June, a month after the launch of the front-wheel drive model.

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2014 Mercedes-Benz S-Class

The May 15 world premiere date for the all-new Mercedes-Benz S-Class is nearing, and the first official photo showing the exterior of the car has broken cover, courtesy of the German firm itself. To explain, Mercedes-Benz uploaded the picture on its mobile consumer website in Austria earlier this morning but has since removed it.
The single picture shows the front-quarter end of Mercedes’ new flagship luxury sedan, which is dominated by a larger grille than on the current model and teardrop-shaped headlights.

We’re not absolutely sure about this, but the model shown here may be the one sporting an AMG package or at least a sportier trim line, as the bumper looks too aggressive with its creases and large air intakes.

Codenamed W222, the all-new S-Class features a similar side profile with the CLA below the waist line, albeit with different proportions, obviously. Compared with the current model, the wheel arches are no longer exaggerated.

Besides this official image, a fan site named "Humster3d" also posted 3D-renderings of the S-Class that you can check out in the gallery and video posted below.

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Mercedes-Benz GLA Crossover

The star of Mercedes-Benz's Auto China 2013 in Shanghai, the new GLA Concept, was officially unveiled today, following a premature release of photos and initial information on Wednesday.
It represents Stuttgart's vision of a compact off-roader built on the underpinnings of its A-Class hatchback to compete against the BMW X1 and Audi Q3, with the company's CEO Dieter Zetsche having already confirmed that the production model will be released in a few months' time at the 2013 Frankfurt Auto Show in September before it goes on sale next year.

"The Concept GLA marks a new approach for us in the compact SUV segment – this is a sporty and more coupé-like evolution of this category of vehicle," commented Mercedes Cars Executive Vice President, Joachim Schmidt. "The Concept GLA is a compact SUV that combines its sporting spirit with the all-round qualities of a tough, leisure-time companion. 'Escape the everyday' is the message that this car conveys to its driver," he added.

Riding on the same front- and all-wheel drive MFA architecture as the A-Class hatch and CLA compact premium sedan, the GLA is 4.38 meters (172.4 inches) long, 1.97 meters (77.6 inches) wide and 1.57 meters (61.8 inches) tall, with a 2,690mm (105.9 inches) wheelbase.

The overall sense we get from the study is that of a beefed up A-Class hatch with plenty of SUV references like the roof rails and metal skid plates under the bumpers, a more blunt front end, and more muscular fenders. The same applies to the interior, where with the exception of the use of more flashy materials and trims, the only other significant difference over the hatch is the newly styled instrument panel. As one would expect, both the exterior and interior styling of the car will be toned down a notch or two when it enters the production phase.

As a concept, the GLA also introduces a raft of features that we won't be seeing on the showroom floor model, including the laser-beam projectors encompassed in the headlamps, which not only provide the light to drive by, but as pointed out by Mercedes, "are also capable of projecting pictures or films onto a screen or other surface".

For its motivation, the GLA borrows the A250's 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline engine that’s good for 208hp (211PS), paired to a seven-speed dual-clutch 7G-DCT transmission and 4MATIC all-wheel drive. Naturally, the production GLA will offer more engine and transmission choices (both diesel and petrol), with the range to be topped off by the GLA 45 AMG producing well over 300 horses.

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VW CrossBlue Coupe Concept

The CrossBlue Coupe is longer, wider and less tall than VW’s Touareg, measuring 4.89 meters in length, 2.01 meters in width and 1.68 meters in height. Also, with 0-100 km/h (0-62mph) coming up in 5.9 seconds and a top speed of 235 km/h (147 mph) it’s no slouch, thanks to its “Twin Drive” powertrain.

It has a peak power output of 409HP /415PS, sent to all four wheels through a six-speed DSG dual-clutch transmission. The main part of the power is provided by a 291HP / 295PS three-liter turbocharged gasoline-fed V6, while electric motors mounted on the front and rear axles add the difference.

They draw their juice from a nine kWh battery pack, which is good for an all-electric range of 33 km (~ 20 miles). EV mode can be maintained up to a speed 120 km/h (75 mph), so highway cruising sans using petrol is a possibility.

The main benefit of the hybrid system is, of course, the extra efficiency, and VW claims the concept is good for 6.9 l/100 km/h (40.9 mpg UK / 34.1 mpg US) without the aid of the electric motors, and with them working as they should, that can be boosted to as low/high as 3.0 l/100km, which equates to 79 mpg US or 94.1 mpg UK. This means that with the 80-liter fuel tank brimmed, a range of around 1,200 km (~745 miles) can be achieved.

Volkswagen says the concept has “five comfortable seats”, which are upholstered in Nappa leather. The people behind this interior really deserve credit, because despite looking like something you would expect to see in a concept, it appears to be fully-functional, with all the controls you’d expect to find. Judging by the way it looks and how it appears to be put together, it could make it into production in this form – it even has two cup holders in the center console, and a cubby space right next to them.

Aside from the unavoidable speculation, it gets a 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system, and an even bigger 12.3-inch “cockpit display” – the digital gauge cluster. Also, in a similar manner to the Tesla Model S, all buttons aside for the hazard lights have been turned into touch-sensitive panels. Oh, and it gets two iPads, mounted on each of the front seats’

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