Mercedes gives a crash course in S-Class history

The new S-Class might be the latest and greatest from Mercedes-Benz, but the groundwork for its emergence at the forefront of automotive development was laid back in the 1950s with the Type 300 – also known as the Adenauer. Mercedes chose the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance to showcase the 2014 S-Class alongside some of its predecessors, and earlier this month it released an interesting look at this luxury sedan's pedigree.

Following the Adenauer, the S-Class made huge advancements in luxury, safety and performance on cars like the 220SEB Fintail, the 300SEL 6.3 (marking the "birth of the AMG series"), the ultra-luxurious 600S, and the 450SEL, which Mercedes claims as the first car to ever offer anti-lock brakes.

The video posted below shows how far the S-Class has evolved over the years while also staying pretty close to its roots. Just check out all of those two-spoke steering wheels and you'll see what we mean.

View the original article here

Mercedes gives a crash course in S-Class history

The new S-Class might be the latest and greatest from Mercedes-Benz, but the groundwork for its emergence at the forefront of automotive development was laid back in the 1950s with the Type 300 – also known as the Adenauer. Mercedes chose the Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance to showcase the 2014 S-Class alongside some of its predecessors, and earlier this month it released an interesting look at this luxury sedan's pedigree.

Following the Adenauer, the S-Class made huge advancements in luxury, safety and performance on cars like the 220SEB Fintail, the 300SEL 6.3 (marking the "birth of the AMG series"), the ultra-luxurious 600S, and the 450SEL, which Mercedes claims as the first car to ever offer anti-lock brakes.

The video posted below shows how far the S-Class has evolved over the years while also staying pretty close to its roots. Just check out all of those two-spoke steering wheels and you'll see what we mean.

View the original article here

Crash courses in Holland — all European languages for adults and kids

Would you like to learn or develop your language skills in a short time frame? Do you have an extremely busy schedule and cannot commit to regular classes every week? If yes, than take a crash week at one of the language schools of Holland and enjoy incredible results!

A crash course is an intensive programme aimed at improving your level of language proficiency within a short period of time. Various language schools in the Netherlands and other European countries offer intensive crash weeks in Dutch, English, German, Spanish, Italian, and French.

The programme of such course is tailor-made to meet your needs and is developed on the individual basis by the team of highly-qualified native speakers.

A typical crash week runs from Monday to Friday over a minimum of 5 weekdays. A six to eight hour-per-day schedule makes you learn through active involvement and start thinking in the language you learn. If you wish to combine learning a foreign language with various extra-curricular activities, you can go for the semi-intensive crash course. It lasts for a minimum of 2 weeks and runs three to four hours per day.

Immersion courses are suitable not only for adults, but also for kids. A team of dedicated professionals will work closely with your children to ensure they increase the level of language proficiency and enjoy their stay.

Are you planning to sit for IELTS and searching for an intensive course to improve your skills? Why not considering a crash course in Holland? Immersion is #1 method to learn a foreign language for specific purpose (for example, mastering your business negotiation skills or preparing for IELTS or any other international exam) and progress up to 2 levels of proficiency according to the European Proficiency Scale.

Find more information about these and other types of courses in the 'language schools' section.

View the original article here

Report: 'World's Most Expensive Car Crash' results in 10 charged [w/video]

Justice is slowly being served to those drivers who were involved in a 10-car pile up in Japan last year that saw eight Ferrari models, one Lamborghini and three Mercedes-Benz vehicles hauled off for scrap. As you may recall, the lead driver lost control of his machine, pin balling into those following behind and doing some $4 million in damage in the process. Now the 61-year-old lead driver and nine others have had their cases sent to prosecutors.

The group are currently being charged with suspicion of violating traffic laws. We'll take a moment to wait for the laughter to die down before continuing.

Prosecutors claim the drivers were exceeding the speed limit and not paying attention to the road when the incident happened. Six people were injured in the dust up, but everyone survived. The group was on their way to a supercar event in Hiroshima. Feel free to watch the original news reports below.

View the original article here

Report: Corvette driver escapes decapitation in crash by ducking

You wouldn't believe it by looking at the Corvette in these pictures, but the driver of the Chevrolet that slammed into the back of this moving truck survived with only non-life threatening injuries. The crash occurred near Los Angeles on the southbound 405 Freeway on Monday, March 4. Fire crews reportedly had to raise the moving truck in order to extricate the driver, who escaped perhaps the worst possible death imaginable – decapitation – by simply ducking prior to impact.

What's supposed to prevent a crash like this from becoming lethal is a Mansfield Bar, so named because the low-hanging bar affixed to the rear of semi truck trailers became mandated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration after the death of popular movie actress Jayne Mansfield in 1967 from a rear-end collision with a tractor trailer.

The Mansfield Bar is designed to prevent under-riding, and in 1998, the rules governing them were revised to lower the bar to 22 inches off the ground. Even at the height, some vehicles, including sports cars like the Corvette, have leading edges that are low enough to clear them. That's particularly true when the car in question is braking hard and its weight is pitched forward, lowering the nose even more).

As we reported earlier today, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has conducted tests on currently sold tractor trailors and found that while all of the examples tested prevented under-riding during a full-width crash, their effectiveness fell sharply when the overlap of vehicle and bar was reduced to 50 percent and 30 percent. In the latter case, only one trailer managed to prevent under-riding, despite all of the trailers passing current US and Canadian crash standards.

Fortunately for this man, the combination of the crash-worthiness of the Corvette, the Mansfield Bar on the truck – and the fact that he had enough wits about him to duck at the last minute – all combined to save his life.

View the original article here