After the launch of the 2015 Cadillac ATS Coupe and the BMW 4-Series Gran Coupe, it’s pretty clear that 2015 will be the year of the luxury performance coupe. Mercedes has revealed its two-door luxury stunner, the 2015 Mercedes S-Class Coupe. The new S-Class will be officially unveiled in-the-flesh at the Frankfurt Motor Show next month, but it has been exposed to the web in all its glory a month early.
The new Mercedes S-Class Coupe may be the most powerful of the recent debuts, boasting 449 horsepower thanks to a 4.7-liter, twin-turbocharged V8 under the hood. Unlike the ATS and the 4-series, however, this S-Class Coupe is a top tier model for Mercedes, while the others are designed as mid-sized models for entrants to the luxury class. That explains why Mercedes has spared no expense with this devilish new engine.
A coupe of any kind is built for driving enjoyment, not for getting groceries or dropping the kids at soccer practice. The twin-turbo V8 gets the S-Class Coupe going, but a special new handling system gives this one an added benefit on the street. It features a pair of cameras in the front corners that detect incoming corners and, if the driver is going to make that turn, the car will shift on its axis to the left or the right like a motorcycle does when cornering. It’s a minimal shift, but enough to provide even greater handling for such a powerful automobile. It’d be nice to see how that kind of technology handles on a professional circuit, let alone the streets of our own city.
The new 2015 Mercedes S-Class Coupe will begin shipping this fall. It’ll be first revealed in Frankfurt in early March, and pricing information will likely begin to materialize around that date. For now, it’s just more evidence that this coming model year is the year of the coupe. And we’re perfectly fine with that.
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2015 Mercedes S-Class Coupe | Gallery
Technology has long been the driving force behind musical evolution. This newest gadget fuses old world instrumentation with new technology, namely 3D printing. It’s the world’s first 3D-printed violin, and it’s modeled after the most sought after violins in existence: the Stradivarius. The 3Dvarius is a 3D printed violin with an electric pickup for amplified playback. It’s not intended to sound quite like the violin that inspired it, but we can’t fault 3Dvarius for their ambition.
The 3Dvarius is an electric violin that’s produced with 3D printed plastic parts and conventional strings. It takes some of its shape from scans of a real Stradivarius violin, giving it quite the pedigree for quality. Despite feeling (and looking) a bit strange, it’s played just like any violin you could buy elsewhere. Place the bow on the strings and make this baby sing.
Check out the 3Dvarius in action:
3Dvarius 3D Printed Violin Demo
Sure, purists may scoff at a plastic violin made with computer-assisted technology. A key factor in traditional violin performance is the resonance from the wood and interior cavities. With a plastic violin, you just don’t get the same kind of sound.
The 3Dvarius isn’t intended to replace a wooden violin, however. It should be seen (and used) as its own kind of instrument. In that sense, this is an electric violin — specifically an electric violin with a very interesting back story.
The 3Dvarius 3D printed violin is still a prototype project and is not yet planned for wider production. The concept has a lot of promise, and it’s already being used to make some pretty funky music.
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3Dvarius 3D Printed Violin | Gallery
