Fletcher Jones Imports

Fletcher Jones Imports is pleased to announce the recent promotion of Marcela Patricio-Damian to the Internet Sales Team at Fletcher Jones Imports.

Marcela has been part of the Fletcher Jones Imports team for several years serving in such positions as Service Coordinator; Delivery Specialist; and Warranty Specialist.   She brings a wealth of Mercedes-Benz product information and service savvy to her new position. She is Master-Certified with Mercedes-Benz and speaks fluent Spanish.  She is also Certified for Mercedes-Benz Fleet Sales, and is our resident expert on all things fleet.

She can be reached via email at mpatricio-damian@fletcherjones.com or by calling her directly at 702-738-2002.

Congratulations Marcela!

Mercedes-Benz has issued notification for an impending recall on certain C-Class and E-Class models.  This information is intended for anyone concerned about the recall or has questions. 

• NOT ALL 2010/2011 C and E-Classes are affected.

• The actual recall will commence in mid to late October - (Service depts. are waiting for the go-ahead and necessary tools from Mercedes-Benz)

• Customers will be notified by Mercedes-Benz within the month to determine if their vehicle is affected. Fletcher Jones Imports will also follow up via email and phone as details become available.

• Once customers are notified that their vehicle is affected they may schedule a service appointment.

• If a loss of power steering fluid occurs, it will result in difficulty of steering, but normally would not cause a sudden loss of steering ability.

• If customers are currently experiencing steering issues, they should contact our service department for further evaluation.

• This was a voluntary recall.

 
The new CLS - the new design icon from Mercedes-Benz

A generation ahead: The CLS-Class created a new vehicle category in 2003 by combining the elegance and expressiveness of a coup? with the comfort and functionality of a sedan. The CLS delighted the public, astounded the competi-tion and created a new style icon: for years the CLS has endured as the only four-door coup? in its class, and since October 2004 it has been the car?

The National Highway Transportation Safety Administration came out today with the newest safety ratings for 2011 vehicles. They have upgraded their 5-Star Ratings to test side pole crashes and crash prevention technology. Although they did not evaluate a Mercedes-Benz for 2011, they did evaluate the 2010 E-Class sedan (which received 4 stars for frontal crashes, and 5 stars for side passenger impact and rollovers.  It is interesting the the NHTSA are now evaluating crash prevention technology, Mercedes-Benz has always been at the forefront of safety technology, most recently with features such as Driver Attention Assist, Lane Keeping Assist, Distronic with Pre-SAFE, Blind Spot Assist- as described below:

DISTRONIC PLUS with PRE-SAFE(R) Brake system (Optional Equipment)This advanced, radar-based cruise control monitors the vehicle ahead and adjusts your speed to help maintain a chosen following distance. On long trips, DISTRONIC PLUS reduces the need to repeatedly adjust the cruise control setting. It offers true stop-and-go functionality, as it can bring the car to a halt if it senses stopped traffic, then resume automatically.(*1) Should the car ahead suddenly slow down or stop, the PRE-SAFE Brake system automatically engages up to 40% of available braking power and primes the brakes to deliver full power the moment you step on the brake pedal. If the brakes have not been applied within 0.6 seconds of a calculated impact, PRE-SAFE Brake will automatically engage them at 100% power. As an added safety precaution, a Proximity Warning System will issue an audiovisual warning if the calculated closing speed indicates that insufficient braking power has been applied by the driver.(*2)
Disclaimer
1. Distronic Adaptive Cruise Control is no substitute for active driving involvement. It does not react to stationary objects, nor recognize or predict the curvature and lane layout of the road or the movement of the vehicles ahead. It is the driver's responsibility at all times to be attentive to traffic and road conditions, and to provide the steering, braking and other driving inputs necessary to retain control of the vehicle. After braking the car for stopped traffic ahead, the system resumes automatically only if traffic pauses for less than 3 seconds.
2. Drivers are cautioned not to wait for the DISTRONIC Proximity Warning System before braking, as that may not afford sufficient time and distance to brake safety.

Active Lane Keeping Assist (Optional Equipment)
With technology that monitors ordinary road markings, Lane Keeping Assist helps detect unintended drifting off-course,and alerts the driver by vibrating the steering wheel. If the driver continues to drift, it can apply the brake to a single rear wheel to help guide the car back into its lane.

Active Blind Spot Assist (Optional Equipment)
When traveling at speeds above approximately 20 mph, this system can alert the driver to some unseen vehicles in the next lane. When radar sensors in the rear bumper detect a vehicle in the "blind spot" area to either side, an indicator illuminates in the appropriate side mirror. If the driver activates a turn signal while the system is sensing an adjacent vehicle, an audible warning will sound. Should the driver disregard the alerts and begin to change lanes, new active technology for 2011 can apply the brake to a single rear wheel, to help guide the car back into its lane.

Attention Assist
The ATTENTION ASSIST system includes highly sensitive sensors that continuously monitor and observe the driver's steering behavior across 70 different parameters which prove to be a very strong measure of the driver's condition. Among the monitors is a highly sensitive steering angle sensor that recognizes patterns of minor steering corrections. Once the system recognizes a drowsy driving pattern it emits an audible and visible warning - - in the form of an espresso cup icon in the instrument cluster.

 

Here's the press release and some info from the NHTSA:

NHTSA 13-10
Tuesday, October 5, 2010

WASHINGTON -- U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) Administrator David Strickland today unveiled an enhanced 5-Star Safety Ratings System for new vehicles and released the safety ratings for the first model year 2011 vehicles tested under the program. The upgraded ratings system will now evaluate side pole crash testing and crash prevention-technologies. And, for the first time, it will use female crash test dummies to simulate crash scenarios involving women, not just men.

"More stars equal safer cars," said Secretary LaHood. "With our upgraded Five-Star Safety Ratings System, we're raising the bar on safety. Through new tests, better crash data, and higher standards, we are making the safety ratings tougher and more meaningful for consumers."

Vehicle safety ratings range from 1 to 5 stars, with 1 star being the lowest and 5 stars the highest. Because so many vehicles had reached the highest rating under the old rating criteria, and because the new standards are much more rigorous, not all previously rated 5-star vehicles will remain at 5 stars.

The new 5-Star Safety Ratings System evaluates the safety of passenger cars, SUVs, vans and pickup trucks in three broad areas - frontal crash, side crash, and rollover resistance. For model year 2011, NHTSA will rate 24 passenger cars, 20 sport utility vehicles, two vans and nine pickups under the new ratings system.

"We want consumers to embrace these new safety technologies as a way to make vehicles safer," said National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator David Strickland. "We believe electronic stability control, lane departure warning, and forward collision warning offer significant safety benefits and consumers should consider them when buying a new car."

One of the most significant changes to the ratings program for consumers is the addition of an Overall Vehicle Score for each vehicle tested. The Overall Vehicle Score combines the results of a frontal crash test, side crash tests and rollover resistance tests and compares those results to the average risk of injury and potential for vehicle rollover of other vehicles.

NHTSA recommends consumers consider vehicles with crash avoidance technologies that meet the 5-Star Safety Ratings minimum performance tests, such as forward collision warning (FCW), lane departure warning (LDW), and electronic stability control (ESC). All of the 2011 model year vehicles currently rated have ESC as standard, except for the Nissan Versa, in which it is optional.

More information, including the full list of newly-rated vehicles is available at the official website for the Federal government's 5-Star Safety Ratings Program, www.safercar.gov. At Safercar.gov, consumers can also find comprehensive information about safe driving, vehicle defects, safety recalls, and passenger safety.

 

 

 

Make	Model	Overall Frontal Crash Rating	Overall Side Crash Rating	Rollover Rating	Overall Vehicle Score
Audi	A4 Avant Wagon	4	5	5	4
Audi	A4 FWD	4	5	5	4
Audi	S4 FWD	4	5	5	4
BMW	5 Series 4 DR RWD	4	5	5	5
Cadillac	Escalade 4WD	5	5	3	4
Cadillac	Escalade Hybrid 4WD	5	5	3	4
Cadillac	Escalade RWD	5	5	3	4
Cadillac	Escalde Hybrid RWD	5	5	3	4
Chevrolet	Malibu FWD	4	5	4	4
Chevrolet	Tahoe 4WD	5	5	3	4
Chevrolet	Tahoe RWD	5	5	3	4
Ford	Fiesta	4	5	4	4
Ford	Taurus AWD	4	5	4	4
Ford	Taurus FWD	4	5	4	4
GMC	Yukon RWD	5	5	3	4
GMC	Yukon 4WD	5	5	3	4
Honda	Pilot 4WD	4	5	4	4
Honda	Pilot FWD	4	5	4	4
Hyundai	Sonata (early release)	3	5	5	4
Hyundai	Sonata (later release)	4	5	5	5
Infiniti	M37	4	5	4	4
Infiniti	M56	4	5	4	4
Jeep	Grand Cherokee 4WD	4	5	4	4
Jeep	Grand Cherokee RWD	4	5	3	4
Kia	Sorento AWD	4	4	4	4
Kia	Sorento FWD	4	4	4	4
Nissan	Versa	3	2	4	2
Subaru	Legacy	4	4	5	4
Subaru	Outback	4	4	4	4
Toyota	Camry	3	3	4	3
Toyota	Camry HV	3	3	4	3
Toyota	Sienna AWD	3	5	4	4
Toyota	Sienna FWD	3	5	4	4

 

 

 

 

 

2010 Ratings

 

Save Vhcl	Vehicle	Frontal Driver Rating	Frontal Passenger Rating	Side Driver Rating	Side Rear Passenger Rating	Rollover 2 Wheel Drive Rating	Rollover 4 Wheel Drive Rating
	2010 Mercedes-Benz C-Class 4-DR. w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz CL-Class 2-DR w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz CLS 4-DR. w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class 2-DR. w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class 4-DR. w/SAB
	2010 Mercedes-Benz Maybach 4-DR w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz S-Class 4-DR w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class Convertible w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested
	2010 Mercedes-Benz SLK-Class - Convertible w/SAB	Not Tested	Not Tested		Not Tested	Not Tested

From Mercedes-Benz at the Paris Motor Show 2010:

"With the debuts of three new vehicles at the Paris Motor Show 2010, Mercedes-Benz has pledged to make an emphatic statement about the power of its innovation to marry "automotive fascination with the highest levels of efficiency and environmental compatibility".

The manufacturer observed that the new models - the Mercedes-Benz CLS four-door coupe, the A-Class E-CELL and the new S 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY - represent the intelligent drive mix created as the basis for individually tailored 'green' mobility.

The new models are being debuted in advance of the 125th anniversary of the automobile.

"We…

Mercedes is bringing to the public their full line up of fuel efficient vehicles. But they are not jumping on the "Green" bandwagon. Instead, Mercedes-Benz is going Blue - with the Mercedes-Benz S320 BlueEfficiency drive vehicle.

This S class luxury sedan will be the first to include a fuel efficient engine and better handling, more controlled steering and even more aerodynamic designs.

According to Mercedes-Benz, some advanced technological advances have lowered the fuel consumption and CO2 emissions of new model variants by some ten per cent compared to its predecessor.

17 inch alloy wheels add to comfort at any speed, adding…