30 Minutes With: The 2019 Mercedes-AMG E53 Cabriolet

2019 Mercedes-AMG E53 Cabriolet.

Publisher's note: Normally, the cars you read about here at TireKicker are loaned to us by the press fleets of the various manufacturers for several days. Seven is typical.  Occasionally, we'll get a longer period of time, and sometimes it'll only be three or four days.  Our "30 Minutes With" series features cars we spent half an hour driving during the just-concluded Western Automotive Journalists Media Day in Monterey, California.

Needless to say, these are quick drives and brief impressions that we hope to be able to flesh out with a full review of the vehicle at some point in the near future.

Media Days is a driving program, with journalists taking cars from the staging area at Quail Lodge in Carmel Valley over Laureles Grade and back or off-road on the acclaimed Land Rover Experience on the grounds of Quail Lodge.

My first car of the day was a stunner---the 2019 Mercedes-AMG E53 Cabriolet.

Mercedes-Benz S-Class To Go All-Hybrid?

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Mercedes-Benz, whose parent company is already considering a technology and stock deal with Renault-Nissan to meet European emissions standards, is also under the gun on upcoming fuel economy requirements.

One idea is to make all flagship S-Class models, including the high-performance AMG models, hybrid-only, beginning with the next generation which hits Europe in 2013 and the U.S. in 2014.

But Automotive News says Mercedes-Benz dealers in the U.S. aren't happy with that idea at all.