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Survey highlights increased consumer appetite for in-car technology

Spanish telecommunications firm Telefonica has issued its second annual report on connected car technologies. Its study looked at public expectations of in-car tech in the cars of today and tomorrow. Participants were queried about such technologies as social media, telematics, on-board diagnostics and early warning systems, revealing that connected car tech was already influencing purchasing decisions.

Mercedes S63 gets new 5.5 litre V8

The Mercedes S63 AMG is the firts to get the new AMG 5.5 litre V8 Bi-Turbo Mercedes’ top end AMG engine has changed over the last few years. It’s gone from a 5.5 litre supercharged lump to the now ubiquitous 6.2 litre normally aspirated engine, which anomalously gets badged ’63′ throughout the cars that sit at the top of each of Mercedes big-engined ranges. But now we go back to the future with the return of a 5.5 litre V8 – admittedly a completely new engine (M571) – which this time round sports a pair of turbochargers and delivers 554 hp and 590lbs/ft of torque.

Toyota and Mercedes-Benz are top global car brands

Toyota & Mercedes-Benz are the Top Global Automotive Brands 2011 Interbrand, a branding consultancy, delivers a report on the world’s brands every year, and in 2011, despite recall woes and the devastation of the Japanese Tsunami, Toyota leads the automotive brands, with luxury car maker Mercedes-Benz just behind. Interbrand uses three measures to gauge how effective a brand is – performance of branded product, the brands ability to secure earnings and the role of the brand in purchasing decisions – to come up with a chart of the top 100 world brands. At the top of the tree are companies like Coca Cola, IBM, Microsoft and Google, but car brands do well with Toyota, Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Honda, VW, and Ford all making it in to the top 50.