Mercedes-AMG celebrates its latest F1 title with a limited-edition A45

The Mercedes AMG Petronas Formula 1 team recently took first place in both the driver’s and the constructor’s championships. The car maker is celebrating the end of a remarkably successful season with a limited-edition version of the A45, AMG’s smallest model.

Appropriately called Champion Edition, the special A45 immediately stands out from its regular-production counterpart because it’s finished in silver with eye-catching dark green and black accents, a livery inspired by Mercedes’ winning F1 car. The paint job is complemented by a more aerodynamic body kit that includes new front bumper with a bigger splitter and fins and a sizable roof-mounted spoiler out back. 19-inch alloy wheels whose design is loosely inspired by the ones that the F1 car rides on wraps up the exterior modifications.

The cabin gains power-adjustable sport seats for the front passengers, green contrast stitching on the center console, on the dashboard and on the seat belts, as well as a metal plaque on the center console. Every Champion Edition comes loaded to the gills with features such as the Night package, the luxury-focused AMG Exclusive package, and the AMG Dynamic Plus package, which adds a rear-axle differential lock, an adjustable suspension with a race mode, and a sport steering wheel.

Mercedes-AMG hasn’t made any mechanical modifications to the commemorative A45. That’s not a bad thing, because the pocket rocket was recently updated with a 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that generates a healthy 381 horsepower and 350 pound-feet of torque. Bolted to a seven-speed automatic transmission that spins all four wheels, the turbo four sends the A45 from 0 to 62 mph in just 4.2 seconds and on to a top speed that’s electronically limited to 155 mph.

Buyers in Europe will be able to order the Mercedes-AMG A45 Champion Edition from January to May of 2016. Pricing kicks off at 65,402 euros, a sum that converts to nearly $70,000. To put that figure into perspective, the regular A45 carries a base price of 51,051 euros (approximately $54,000) in its home country of Germany.

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Mitsubishi Concept GC-PHEV

Mitsubishi’s impressive-looking full-size SUV concept marks the return of a cult classic, but with a new twist.

It’s a boxy, off-road ready truck like the company’s old Montero, but with an efficient plug-in hybrid powertrain and next-generation tech.

The hulking GC-PHEV is powered by a 3.0-liter supercharged V6 and eight-speed automatic transmission, teamed with an electric motor and 12-kilowatt-hour lithium-ion battery pack. That combination is good for 335 hp, sent to all four wheels.

On the inside, virtually every surface features some kind of tech. There’s an augmented-reality windshield, a Driver Monitor that uses cameras to check a driver’s level of alertness, and something called that “Tactical Table” – a giant screen placed right between the four seats.

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While the technology still isn’t road ready, car companies and many industry analysts are convinced that self-driving cars will soon be available to the public.

Taking one of the first guesses at what those future cars will be like is the preposterously-named Mercedes-Benz F 015 Luxury in Motion concept, which debuted at CES earlier this year.

Mercedes seems to think the autonomous car of tomorrow will look like a hot dog wrapped in aluminum, the better to maximize interior space and flexibility.

With manual driving no longer necessary, Mercedes believes owners will use their cars as mobile lounges. In self-driving mode, the steering wheel retracts and the two front seats can rotate 180 degrees to face the two rear seats.

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Lincoln Continental

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Unveiled at the 2015 New York Auto Show, the Continental is a flagship sedan that would help restore Lincoln’s reputation if built. If you ever forget it’s a Lincoln, just look at the headlights and grille, which feature tiny repetitions of the brand’s logo.

On the inside, the Continental is just as luxurious as its classic predecessors. Standout features include 30-way adjustable seats, and a fully-reclining rear passenger seat that seems aimed at the Chinese market, where many buyers prefer to be driven rather than drive.

In a nod to efficiency, the Continental is powered by a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V6. It’s part of Ford’s ubiquitous EcoBoost family.

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The Asterion combines a 5.2-liter V10 engine with three electric motors, for a total of 910 hp. That’s enough to launch it from 0 to 60 mph in 3.0 seconds, and on to a top speed of 198 mph.

That’s pretty astonishing, especially considering that Lamborghini didn’t even want to build this car in the first place.

Lambo is resolutely anti-hybrid, but acknowledges that it may need to build one eventually to meet stricter global emissions standards. The Asterion shows that the company will be ready when that day comes.

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