San Antonio Mercedes Dealer

Mercedes continues its’ almost 80 tradition of producing special protection vehicles by way of the Mercedes S 600 Guard.

The S Guard provides the ultimate level of protection against attacks and other acts of terrorism.

The B6/B7 rated armor, together with the other protective measures such as a special protected fuel tank that re-seals itself if perforated by bullets or shrapnel, an optional emergency fresh-air system which is capable of counteracting dangerous gaseous substances, a fire-extinguishing system that can be triggered either automatically or manually, sensors that detect smoke and/or tear gas and the Michelin PAX run flat-tire system are factory installed.

Since armoring is integrated in the production system, customers can be assured that all the required body structure reinforcements made necessary due to the extra weight of the protective systems are properly installed as opposed to post production armoring wherein the armor plates and defensive systems are retrofitted into the finished vehicle.

It also goes without saying that the Mercedes S 600 Guard comes with the same hi-tech innovations as its unarmored S 600 brethren.

These include:
• Brake Assist Plus
• Pre-Safe Brake
• Enhanced Pre-safe anticipatory occupant protection system
• Distronic Plus
• Night View Assist

In cases of stop and go traffic, Brake assist Plus and Distronic Proximity Control can maintain the distance between your car and the vehicle in front of you.

Distronic Proximity Control is a radar based system that can also slow the car at a rate of up to 4 m/s2 and if necessary, to a complete stop and accelerate again to a speed as programmed or set by the driver.

The MSRP of a standard or regular S 600 is $147,450.Total Cost to Own is $177,551.

As of this time, I have yet to find a quote for the S 600 Guard.

I have been told though that depending on the customer’s specific needs, you can expect to pay anything between $700,000 and $1,200,000.

Did I mention the US Army’s Stryker, an armored combat vehicle costs $1.4 million?

But you won’t find one of those at your San Antonio Mercedes Dealership.

Horsepower (hôrs’pou’ər)-A unit that is used to measure the power of engines and motors. One unit of horsepower is equal to the power needed to lift 550 pounds one foot in one second. This unit has been widely replaced by the watt in scientific usage; one horsepower is equal to 745.7 watts.
Coined or invented by Engineer James Watt, it’s basically the work that a single horse can do in minute. The term “horsepower” itself is used to measure output of engines, machines and electric motors among other things. It sounds simple but not really. It doesn’t necessarily follow that the higher the horsepower the faster the car. An Abrams tank has a Honeywell AGT1500 C multi-fuel turbine 1500 hp engine yet has a top speed of only 45mph while a Mercedes CLK 550 has a 5.5L V8, 32 valve, 382hp and is electronically limited to 155 mph.
So what gives? This is known as power to weight ratio which is the power output of the engine divided by the car’s curb weight. So going back to the example above, though the Abrams has a 1500hp engine, it weighs 61.4 metric tons while the CLK 550 with its 382hp engine weighs a mere 3720 lbs. Mercedes has invested a lot in R&D to maximize the power to weight ratio. Due to this, Mercedes has some of the best performing vehicles on the road today. So before you go off to see your General Dynamics dealer, you may want to think about this. By the way, MSRP of an Abrams? $4.35 million.

The other day a friend of mind emailed asking for help in choosing a vehicle. He already decided on the brand- Mercedes. I replied asking him the following:
1. Where do you plan to use it? City? Off road? Cross country?
2. Do you plan to haul cargo or bulky stuff in it?
3. Will your decision be function over form or the other way around?
4. What’s your budget like?
5. Are you particular about mileage and the cost of maintenance?
6. How long do you intend to keep it?
7. Will this be for the family or just for you most of the time?
As he mentioned, he isn’t much of a techie so I listed the above KISS simple guidelines to help him decide. If for example the answers to items 1 and 7 were city and primarily just for him, I’d suggest a sedan, coupe, a convertible or a roadster.
Mercedes has a good line of sedans starting with their “entry” level C Class (MSRP starts at $32,900) all the way up to their S Class (MSRP Starts at $89,350). Engines and naturally power varies from model to model. The C300 series (Sport sedan, Luxury sedan and 4Matic sedan) come equipped with the 3.0 liter V6 24 valve engine, producing 228 hp. Only the C350 and C63 AMG come with bigger engines-The C350 has a 3.5 liter V6 24 valve engine and the C63 has a whopping 6.3 liter, 32 valve V8 that pumps out 451hp, 0-60 in 4.3 seconds! Not bad for a sedan. Later on, I’ll discuss the other body styles.

I’m in Hong Kong and was driven around in a fire opal Mercedes SLK 55 AMG driven most probably by Schumi’s long lost sister.
65mph isn’t too fast but on a two-lane, two way winding road? (on the wrong side of the road even)!

My back was pinned to the Flamenco Red, Nappa leather, upholstery all the way to Stanley Market a famous tourist attraction.

Times like these are when you really appreciate Mercedes Benz’s attention to detail. T

he SLK 55 comes with Active Body Control System.

What happens is hydraulics eliminate excess body motion thereby improving the SLK 55s’ cornering performance.

Thanks to the great suspension, I barely noticed the bumps (or were we simply flying over them?).

On the way back, we brought the top out. It’s stored in a section of the boot or trunk which if I may add is quite spacious for a convertible.

With the top up, it was extremely quiet with barely little road and/or wind noise.

According to my friend, Mercedes Benz is doing a lot of business here.

In an area of only 415 square miles there are 8 Mercedes Benz dealers.

Great choice! Who wouldn’t want one?

The Mercedes SL600 Roadster is a turbocharged 5.5 liter, v12, 36 valve engine, 0-60mph in 4.4 seconds plant-you-firmly-in-your-seat rocket!

Though it may be slower (155mph) as compared to the Mercedes Benz McLaren (202mph), fact is how many times have you ever put the pedal all the way down to see how fast your car can go (and not getting written up for it)?

It may not be the McLaren Roadster but are you really willing to shell out another 370,000 clams for .6 seconds?

The MSRP is listed at 139,975 but with the market the way it is nowadays there’s a good chance you can get a better deal if not off the price but on the accessories and trimmings.

Leather seats, multi adjustable power seats for the driver and passenger and Tele Aid Vehicle Location System are just some of the standard goodies that come with it.

Take it for a test drive at the San Antonio Mercedes Dealership