Frankfurt 2009: Brabus E V12 Black Baron

Fancy yourself as a real-life Bruce Wayne with the financial wherewithal to match? Have we got a workaday sedan for you. German tunemeisters Brabus have just lifted the sheet off their new E V12 Black Baron sedan, although we almost didn't notice, as the matte-black überBenz swallows all beams of light that dare go near its carbon fiber flanks.

Packing a twin-turbo'd 6.3-liter V12, this one-of-ten wonder spits out a tidy 800 horsepower and 1,047 pound-feet of torque (no, that's not a typo). So equipped, Brabus says the demon tweaked E-Class will lunge to 62 mph in 3.7 seconds and hit 124 mph in a sliver under ten ticks. Thanks to the axe murderer of a powerplant underhood and the aerodynamic-at-all-costs design, the Black Baron will reportedly top out at 230 mph – and when operated at saner speeds, it still manages to return 15 mpg. Won't your neighbors be pleased.

What price for Gotham glory? Check out our high-res gallery below and then check with your financial adviser about cutting a slush fund check for $875,000.

Based on the new 2010 Mercedes E-Class W 212, the E V12 features a 6.0-liter V12 biturbo bored out to 6.3-liters producing 800 hp and 1420 Nm of torque (it's electronically limited to 1,100 Nm). While details are limited, Brabus outfitted the engine with a ram-air system, a quad-exhaust, and revised engine electronics.

To keep the beast under control, the company added a fully adjustable sports suspension, new stabilizers, a high performance braking system, and black 19-inch alloy wheels outfitted with 255/35 (front) and 285/35 (rear) tires.

In terms of styling, Brabus made major modifications to improve aerodynamics, engine ventilation, and brake cooling. Changes include a revised front bumper, new front quarter panels, aggressive side sills, and rear wheel covers. Out back, the car features a trunk-mounted spoiler and a carbon fiber rear diffuser.

Thanks to all these tweaks, the E V12 rockets from 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in 3.7 seconds, 0-200 km/h (124 mph) in 9.9 seconds, and 0-300 km/h (186 mph) in 23.9 seconds. If you keep your foot planted, the car will eventually top out at an electronically limited 350 km/h (217 mph). Without the limiter, Brabus estimates the car can hit a top speed in excess of 370 km/h (230 mph). Fuel consumption is rated at 15.7L/100km (15 mpg), while CO2 emissions are 372 g/km.

Inside, the car features black leather upholstery, an Alcantara headliner, carbon fiber trim, and a 400 km/h (249 mph) speedometer.

Production will be limited to ten units, and prices start at €600,000 ($875,000 USD).

Mercedes-Benz adds AMG Sports pack for 2010 S and CL Class models

For those of you that can manage the payments on a lower-end Mercedes-Benz S-Class or CL-Class, but can't quite stretch enough to swing an S63 or S65, AMG now has you covered. Just as BMW offers M-Sport packages on some of its models, you can now add an AMG Sports pack to any S sedan, as well as the CL-500 coupe.

New front and rear fascias and rocker panel extensions give some of the more aggressive look of a true AMG model, and the S-Class' front air intakes feature LED running lights similar to what will be on the full blown S63/S65. Within the wheel wells are standard 19-inch alloy wheels or optional 20-inch units that again replicate the look of the more expensive versions.

There are functional changes as part of the package too. The AMG Sports pack includes bigger brakes with cross-drilled rotors. Inside, more wood trim including a combination wood/leather steering wheel are part of the effect. According to Mercedes, the package will be made available on all European short- or long-wheelbase sedans as well as the coupes starting in June, although there's no word yet on whether North Americans can expect the same availability

Mercedes planning production E-Class shooting brake?

Body-styles in Mercedes' staple E-Class range have been taken on a heck of a roller coaster these past few years. The original included sedan, wagon, coupe and convertible variants. Then the latter two were split off as the CLK, but after introducing the CLS as essentially a four-door coupe version of the E-Class, Mercedes opted to bring the two-door variants back into the fold for the current generation. Recent rumors have suggested that Mercedes could delay the wagon and cabrio versions, and even re-introduce the CLK alongside the E-Class Coupe, but with neither of those conjectures looking very likely, the latest report from the rumormongers at Auto Express suggest that Mercedes could be planning yet another body-style for the E-Class range: a three-door shooting brake.

For the uninitiated, a shooting brake is an old-school body-style that melds a station wagon with a coupe, traditionally, such load-lugging solutions have been arrived at by hiring a coachbuilder to turn a sedan or a coupe into a wagon. Think Chevrolet Nomad and you're not far off. And with the German auto industry playing an increasingly intricate game of one-upmanship with segment-busting body-styles, Mercedes apparently looks poised to take things one step further with a fifth E-Class form. The prospect looks even more likely when you consider that the current E-Class' design was previewed in the first place by a shooting brake show car called the Concept Fascination at last year's Paris show. If Daimler decides to give the three-door E the green light, it'd likely carry over the mechanicals and engine options from its two-door counterpart, including four, six and eight-cylinder gasoline and clean diesel powerplants. Whether an AMG version like the sedan is offered or nixed like the coupe's remains to be seen, however, but we could get a look at a production prototype as early as the Frankfurt Motor Show in September

Frankfurt 2009: 2011 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Wagon

More wagons! More wagons! That's sort of the unspoken mantra of us American auto journo types. And honestly, after a day spent wandering the streets of Frankfurt and seeing over a dozen Alfa Romeo 156 Sportwagens, our chant grows even stronger. Sadly, it seems that most European automakers prefer seeing us twisting in existential pain and totally ignore the US market vis-a-vis wagons. Except for Mercedes-Benz and their quite fetching all-new E-Class Wagon.

As of right now, M-B is only bringing over the E350 4MATIC Wagon that develops 258 hp from a 3.5-liter V6. But you can bet your carbon offset credits we'll eventually see one of them hot roddy 6.2-liter AMG V8s pushing out well over 500 hp before too long. Probably mostly in a Brentwood elementary school parking lot, but still. As for now, relish the fact a new European wagon is coming our way.

Mercedes-Benz unveils S63 and S65 AMG at Shanghai show

After accidentally leaking a preview on its home-market configuration website last week, Mercedes-Benz has officially unveiled its revised flagship luxo-muscle sedans, the S63 AMG and S65 AMG, at the 2009 Shanghai Motor Show today. Both are treated to the same updates given to the entire S-Class range, but these two big beasts pack one seriously mean punch.

Engines carry over largely unchanged from the outgoing models, which is good news because they're some of the most powerful units on the market. The S63 packs AMG's 6.2-liter V8 offering up 525 horsepower and 465 lb-ft of torque, while the top-of-the-line, have-to-have-the-best S65 AMG (above) features an enormous 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12 pumping out 612 horsepower and a gravity-altering 738 lb-ft of torque. That's a lot of power, but at nearly $200k, the $130k S63 seems like a relative bargain, especially when you consider that the bi-turbo V12 model only gains 0.2 seconds off the V8's 0-60 time.

Although the engines are ostensibly the same, they've been tweaked to improve fuel consumption and carbon emissions by about 3%. They're also both mated to a new Torque Vectoring system that brakes the inside rear wheel in a corner to assist handling, plus a crosswind compensation system. Visually the AMG sedans get a new chromed-up angular grille, LED daytime running lights in the air intakes, full LED tail-lights incorporating 52 LEDs apiece, and a redesigned rear bumper with an integrated diffuser, plus all the requisite special badging and wheels

Swiss-tuned McLaren SLR Red Gold Dream

We know to expect the unexpected when it comes to aftermarket work in certain Middle Eastern enclaves. But this... this is, well, this is something that even Tim Burton would have to dismiss as just too outrageous. Part of what makes this car even more interesting is that it was the product of Swiss tuning firm Ueli Anliker Design, and as such, it is called the Anliker McLaren SLR 999 Red Gold Dream.

What was once a standard SLR (may God have mercy on its soul) now has a cow catcher up front, a Mustang wing out back, and 24 karat gold and rubies plastered throughout

2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG

Despite an achingly long roll-out, the first cracks in the 2010 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG dam have begun to appear, courtesy of CarPoint.

Due to be revealed at next week's Frankfurt Motor Show, the 300SL-inspired "Gullwing" is packing a front/mid-mounted version of the venerable 6.3-liter V8 fitted to the majority of AMG's offerings, mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox channeling 563 hp and 480 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels. Weight is pegged at around 3,500 pounds, allowing the SLS to run from a rest to 60 in 3.7 seconds. Top speed is 197 mph and optional carbon ceramic discs should bring the party to a halt with supreme authority.

Although we've seen an endless string of spy shots of the SLS over the past year, we finally get a clear view of its upright fascia, drawn headlamps and curvaceous rump that draws a few cues from the departed McMerc and modern M-Bs.

Color choices will include Alubeam Silver, Syvanite Grey, Alanite Grey and red, complimenting the leather and alcantara interior and ten-spoke forged wheels. Production will begin in late 2010 with sales starting the following year, and early pricing suggests a €177,310 MSRP in Germany