It was here. It was gone and now it is back! Download the latest Mercedes-Benz Mixed Tape release. The Mercedes-Benz promo includes music tracks by international newcomers; nice variety of rock, pop and jazz music you likely have not heard before.

Here is the newsletter content I rec'd earlier today (it includes a link to download the free mp3 files/Mixed Tape CD):

The Mercedes-Benz promo has included hundreds of songs during the marketing campaign. The program will provide 10 free music tracks (mp3 files) every two months. Subscribe to this blog and you'll receive the notices. I'm glad it is back. Enjoy! 

A word of caution, there are numerous scams connected to buying and selling automobiles. The crooks aren't the smartest people in the world, but as it turns out several unsuspecting people have been taken by these scams.

To help protect our site visitors, here are a few resources to check if you are purchasing or selling a Mercedes-Benz in the near future:

• U.S. Department of Justice: Contact the Internet Fraud Division if you've been victimized.
• Automotive Scam Alert - Buzz Trader
• Top Ten Car Scams - Car Buying Tips 
• Car Buying Advice – Cars.com
• European Anti-Fraud Office: Help if you're a victim of fraud in Europe.
• Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.: Advice on how to avoid being the victim of a scam or counterfeit check issue.
• Federal Trade Commission's Bureau of Consumer Protection: Contact this agency if you've been victimized by fraud.
• SL Market News: Get current values for Mercedes-Benz SL cars from the newsletter (subscription required).
• Hemmings Motor News: Values for special-interest or collectible cars.
• National Association of Attorneys General: List of all 50 state attorney general offices; contact the consumer protection division to report fraud.
• National Automobile Dealers Association: Retail used-car values.
• National Consumers League: Tips for using escrow services online.
• National Fraud Information Center: Info about Internet and telemarketing fraud.
• U.S. Postal Service: Mail Fraud Complaint Form, report frauds committed via U.S. mail.
• U.S. Secret Service: Get information on check and currency scams from the Counterfeit Division.

AMG Market/PR News, Los Angeles, Nov. 16, 2007: A car with extended, elegant lines which can change its form at the touch of a button and adapt to the requirements of its owners at any time – this is the automotive vision that Mercedes-Benz is presenting at the Los Angeles Design Challenge taking place at the 2007 L.A. Auto Show. When required, this Mercedes of the future can take on the form of a fast highway cruiser, quickly metamorphose into a compact city car, or become a roomy one-seater or economical two-seater, depending on the transport capacity needed. This is made possible by the magnetic control elements of the SilverFlow, a futuristic study by Mercedes-Benz, which take just seconds to configure the car required from tiny metallic particles.

Design Challenge is a competition where eight car design studios in southern California are challenged to create the "Robocar 2057" as a combination of vehicle technology and artificial intelligence. The Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Center of North America (Irvine, CA) looked 50 years into the future and came up with the shimmering silver and gold Vision SilverFlow car. With its long, flowing lines and narrow, exposed wheels, this vision of the future is highly reminiscent of the golden years in motor racing during the 1930s.

In fact the physical characteristics of the SilverFlow are even more exciting than its shape. It consists of billions of microscopically tiny metallic particles which are formed into variable but stable configurations by magnetic fields. This means that the driver can theoretically adapt the vehicle to its intended purpose. The one-seater highway configuration is aerodynamic, while the city version is short and spacious. The pre-programmed vehicle variants can be selected at any time at the touch of a button, whereupon the assembler electronics reshape the car from one form to another within a few seconds – specialists refer to this as morphing. Any desired shape is conceivable in principle. As a particularly convenient feature when parking, the intelligent control system completely disassembles the vehicle structure and compacts the ferro-magnetic particles into a small, space-saving configuration. And thanks to these flexible metallic particles, dents and paint damage are also a thing of the past.

The disadvantage of the Mercedes-Benz SilverFlow is that so far, it only exists as a two-dimensional graphic design.The SilverFlow study, which – if at all – will only be realizable decades into the future, clearly shows that while car designers certainly live in the present, their working environment is the future.