The tuning company Brabus has beefed up the underpowered Mercedes G55 AMG with their new 800 Widestar package. It was designed by the tuners to be the most powerful SUV in the world, featuring a 6.3-liter biturbo V12 engine producing 800 PS and 1,100 Nm of torque. The torque has been electronically limited, however the Mercedes G55 can now sprint from 0 to 100 km/h in just 4.0 seconds, and hit a top speed of 240 km/h. The G-Series Mercedes is now making a statement!
An environment friendly engineer in Texas has decided to make his Mercedes SL 600 green and clean for some odd reason. Honestly, he should just buy an electric car, but his name is Bernie Towns, and he has turned his 2007 SL600 Mercedes into a compressed natural gas (CNG) fueled sports car. He hopes that it will be able to break the record for the fastest natural gas car around. Bernie has partnered with the Chicago tuning company Speedriven, who have pushed 800 bhp and more than 1,000 ft-lbs of torque out of the Mercedes SL. Breaking the record will difficult, since the title is currently held by the Hohenester Audi A4 that was able to reach 364.6 km/h in 2009 with 700 bhp.
Another car released at the Geneva Motor Show is the Mercedes SLS AMG from the Hamann tuning company. Called the Hawk, the gullwing door sports car features an Everose Gold exterior with a wind tunnel tested aerodynamic kit. Looks more pink than gold to me, however the package consists of a new front bumper fascia with LED daytime running lights and larger air inlets. A new carbon fiber hood lets hot air escape the engine bay, while the side skirts, rear bumper fascia, carbon fiber wing, and diffuser add styling points.
Rolf Schlepp, chief designer for the Carlsson tuning company, accentuates the coupe styling of the Mercedes CLS with a new aerodynamic package. The kit includes stainless-steel grille inserts, rear apron boasting an integrated diffuser, front spoiler, and RS front spoiler lip, the last available optionally in carbon fiber. Power boosting kits are available from Carlsson for many different CLS engines; one boosts the CLS 63 AMG twin-turbo V8 from the standard 557 PS to as much as 600 PS. The CLS 350 CDI’s power rating is boosted by as much as 20 percent by the Carlsson C-Tronic control unit, bringing it up to 780 Nm and 320 PS, an increase of 130 Nm and 55 PS over the standard model. The sprint time of the Mercedes CLS has been improved from the standard by a full 0.3 seconds, resulting in zero to one hundred kilometers an hour in only 5.9 seconds.
The guys at Carlsson brought their A-game to the Geneva Motor Show with a new version of the C25 called the Royale, based on the Mercedes SL 65 AMG. The tuning firm announced a limited run of 25 units, and the highly modified coupe already has six orders placed. These will be delivered sometime in 2011, while future orders for the C25 Royale take six months to complete and ship out. When comparing the factory Mercedes SL 65 AMG, the Royale weighs 180 kilograms lighter, and this was accomplished with the extensive use of carbon fiber, found on the hood and new roof. Other lightweight components are the full ceramic brake system, which are half the weight of the stock Mercedes SL65 AMG parts. However, the styling and weight reduction aren’t the only parts that Carlsson focused on, the performance under the hood is just as impressive as the exterior.
