Auto News 5

I'm amused to see cooled and heated cup holders in this German car. It took years for the German automakers to deign to provide cup holders in their vehicles, because they were perplexed as to why we silly Americans wanted them (because you're supposed to drive, not drink beverages, when you're in a car, was their view). They've come full circle and now Mercedes-Benz not only provides lots of cup holders but they're heated and cooled! It's quite rich. It's also rich that the cooled function is something that Mercedes clearly borrowed from their former colleagues in Auburn Hills, because that was a Chrysler idea.

"This is a fairly agricultural piece of kit, isn't it?" remarked photographer Colin Curwood as we examined details -- such as the front compartment foot-level vents -- of the Continental R Mulliner coupe that had been pulled out of the Bentley factory's design display for our use. By today's standards, yes, it probably is. But when the R-type Continental came to market in 1952, it was the fastest four-passenger car on sale anywhere in the world, and it was far, far above any contemporary farm equipment in design terms, whether in quality of manufacture or in aesthetic value. It was also better made and better to drive than almost any early '50s mass-production car, which is why the remaining examples of the 208 Continental Rs built are worth so much -- between $400,000 and $800,000 is the going rate for an "average" Continental R with H. J. Mulliner fastback bodywork.