Mercedes-Benz has furthered its partnership with the organic farm run by former Formula One star Jody Scheckter by providing a zero emission smart car to be used on his 1,500-acre site.

Scheckter’s Laverstoke Park Farm already supplies meat and mozzarella to the Gullwing Restaurant at Mercedes-Benz World and he will receive the new vehicle later this summer.

The smart electric vehicle that Scheckter will gain will help him save money on his farm and reduce his carbon footprint, while he is to also drive a model from the low-emission Mercedes-Benz BlueEFFICIENCY range.

Wilfried Steffen, President and Chief Executive of Mercedes-Benz UK Ltd, explained: "What Jody Scheckter has created at Laverstoke Park Farm is remarkable. His farm approaches environmental responsibility in an intelligent way, and does so throughout the entire food chain.

"At every step, his produce considers what the best way of providing sustainable food is, while minimises its impact on the environment. The links with our fully electric smart are obvious, and the new Mercedes-Benz BlueEFFICIENCY technology also fits perfectly."

The Gullwing Restaurant is the elegant offering for those looking to eat at Mercedes-Benz World, with those needing a snack can visit the Café 1886 bar.

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As smart continues to pioneer the way forward to make cars more environmentally-friendly, the company has received £2.5 million to fund this incentive.

The Technology Strategy Board has put forward the grant to help smart create further electric car trials and create a vehicle that can be used in the future by UK motorists.

smart is now encouraging individuals to take part in two research trials in the UK, which offer them a chance to give their input towards product development and the overall design process.

One of these trials will take place in London and the South East, with smart being a lead partner to a larger consortium.

Meanwhile, the other will occur in the West Midlands, with a number of other organisations also sharing the lead.

Dermot Kelly, Managing Director at Mercedes-Benz, said: “smart has been conducting real-life trials of 100 electric cars with partner companies across the country since 2007. The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.

“We’re delighted that smart has been awarded this funding. It means we can offer electric smarts with state of the art lithium-ion battery technology at affordable monthly lease rates to participants.”

The Technology Strategy Board was established by the government to promote and support research into the development of innovation and technology to benefit UK business.

Discover all the big benefits of the smart at thesmart.co.uk

The low costs associated with the smart fortwo electric drive is one of the chief reasons why the vehicle has been so successful during its trials, it has been stated.

Dermot Kelly, Managing Director at Mercedes-Benz UK, believes that the zero-emission vehicle is ideal for many parties due to the amount it costs to run and the positive exemptions it receives.

The vehicle is set to go into small-scale production after being positively trialled in recent months by groups including local councils, energy companies and the Metropolitan Police.

Mr Kelly said: "The smart electric drive is exempt from vehicle excise duty and the London congestion charge and this, underlined with incredibly low operating costs, means that companies taking part in the trial are finding it makes perfect fiscal sense."

He added that smart is "delighted" that the trials have been so successful and that the company will continue to lead the way when looking at supporting the environment in the future.

Among the features of the vehicle are that it has no exhaust, spark plugs or oil filter, which means that buyers will benefit from lower servicing costs.

Meanwhile, the vehicle can also reach 30 miles per hour in 6.5 seconds and has a top speed of 60 miles per hour, with drivers not needing to perform a gear change.

Discover all the big benefits of the smart at thesmart.co.uk

Motorists in the UK will be able to get their hands on the zero-emission smart fortwo next year following a successful trial of the vehicle.

The Metropolitan Police, universities, local councils, architects and energy companies have all trialled the iconic vehicle with positive results.

This has led to the car going into small scale production to be unleashed onto the UK market in 2010.

Meanwhile, the vehicle, which is powered by a lithium-ion battery, is also set to take part in projects in locations such as Rome, Paris and Milan.

London mayor Boris Johnson said: "It is absolutely fantastic to see manufacturers like smart leading the way to make the electric vehicle an easy choice for Londoners.

"The move to electric vehicles, which emit zero pollution on London’s streets, will have a massive impact on cutting carbon emissions to curb climate change whilst improving air quality and noise levels for our citizens."

The Metropolitan Police previously revealed that they thought that the smart fortwo was the ideal vehicle of choice in London as 70 miles could be completed on one charge and a top speed of 55 miles per hour could be reached.

Discover all the big benefits of the smart at thesmart.co.uk

Motorists looking for a vehicle that could substantially cut their driving costs may wish to consider the latest smart fortwo cdi.

Returning 85.6 miles per gallon of fuel, the vehicle may prove to be the profitable choice for those racking up the miles in the city.

Meanwhile, the vehicle is also exempt from road tax, while generating just 88g/km of carbon dioxide, which may please the environmentally-conscious motorist.

Dermot Kelly, Managing Director of Mercedes-Benz, said: "The new smart cdi is not only the greenest production car on the road but it also benefits from the same class-leading safety features and cavernous boot space as the rest of the smart fortwo range.

"Add this to the phenomenal fuel economy and it’s clear that the smart cdi is the ultimate eco-solution for today’s driver."

Further benefits of the new model over older offerings include a larger boot and generally more space in the cabin, while the ventilation system is said to be more efficient.

Meanwhile, over 700 safety test scenarios were carried out on the smart fortwo to ensure that motorists would remain safe on the road in the vehicle.

Discover all the big benefits of the smart at thesmart.co.uk

Mercedes Benz Car sales continue to remain strong in various markets worldwide despite the continuing global climate and negativity in the motoring industry, it has been revealed.

During May, some 97,300 vehicles from Mercedes-Benz, smart, AMG and Maybach were delivered worldwide, taking the figure for the year-to-date to 433,100.

However, last month, sales rose by 67.5 per cent compared to last May in China, while a 7.8 per cent increase was noted in the Asia/Pacific region and a 12.2 per cent rise was registered in Germany.

In Germany, strong sales were registered in both Mercedes-Benz A-Class and B-Class models, but it was the launch of the E-Class that significantly aided the results.

Dr Klaus Maier, Executive Vice President Sales and Marketing Mercedes-Benz Cars, said: "The new E-Class has met with an outstanding customer response.

"We expect sales to receive a further boost in the coming months from the introduction of the new E-Class to other important markets such as China and the US, as well as from the launch of the new E-Class Coupe and the face lifted S-Class."

Among the positives of the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe, which is to be launched at Mercedes-Benz retailers in the UK on June 12th, are that it features standard equipment including a heated windscreen wash system, chrome window highlights and full LED rear taillights.

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Staff at the Sheffield Chamber of Commerce are to be able to profit from the benefits of the new smart fortwo cdi following a recent agreement.

A fleet of eight diesel smart cars have been delivered to the organisation, with the deal being one of the first corporate orders for the smart fortwo cdi model.

smart of Sheffield has supplied the coupe vehicles, which are to be used by the Sheffield Chamber’s Business Development Executives as they travel across South Yorkshire supporting member companies.

The vehicles will be run on two-year leases, with smart beating 20 other local motor retailers to secure the deal.

Stephen Mitchell, Sheffield Chamber Corporate Partnerships Director, said: "It was a priority that the cars we chose displayed outstanding environmental credentials but were cheap to run too.

"However, we also require them to be highly visible and, once liveried, the smarts will certainly provide a good look for us as they travel around the city."

Among the many positives of the smart fortwo is that drivers can benefit from a fuel consumption of 85.6 miles to the gallon on the combined cycle, while only generating 88g/km of carbon dioxide.

Discover all the big benefits of the smart at thesmart.co.uk

Daimler AG has boosted its position in the electric car market by acquiring an equity stake of almost ten per cent in Tesla Motors.

The move will help the two companies work together more closely in the development of battery systems for cars, with Tesla currently being the only production car maker to be selling electric vehicles in Europe.

Daimler has already been trying to integrate Tesla’s lithium-ion battery packs on some of the vehicles in its smart car range, which have been undergoing trials in London since 2007 through fleet operators and private customers.

Dr Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Daimler AG, responsible for Group Research and Mercedes-Benz Cars Development, said: "Our strategic partnership is an important step to accelerate the commercialisation of electric drives globally.

"This marks another important milestone in Daimler’s strategy for sustainable mobility."

The Metropolitan Police has also remarked that the electric vehicles from the smart range could be an ideal choice to be used in central London.

This is because they can run for 70 miles on one charge, while also being able to reach a top speed of 55 miles per hour.

Discover all the big benefits of the smart at thesmart.co.uk

Sales of Mercedes-Benz vehicles in China were one of the standout features of the manufacturer’s recently released results.

Mercedes-Benz vehicles sold 80,700 cars worldwide during April, with this figure jumping to 90,900 when sales from smart, AMG and Maybach vehicles are included.

However, despite the Mercedes-Benz figure being down 23 per cent compared with April 2008, there were still grounds for optimism.

Dr Klaus Maier, Executive Vice President for Sales and Marketing at Mercedes-Benz Cars, explained that the Mercedes-Benz E-Class was still to be rolled out in some markets.

He said: "Thanks to the E-Class, we achieved first positive sales effects in April. The new E-Class is being very well received by our customers and in April it was the market leader in its segment in Germany.

"Following its introduction in important markets such as the U.S. and China, we expect the vehicle’s greater availability to generate an additional sales boost in the coming months."

Meanwhile, in China, Mercedes-Benz sold more vehicles than ever before with deliveries rising by 59 per cent compared to last April.

Among the vehicles that can be bought under the Mercedes-Benz E-Class umbrella are the E-Class Saloon and the E-Class Coupe.

View the current Mercedes-Benz offers available for your sound investment

Vehicles from the smart range such as the smart fortwo could be the ideal choice for police officers to use on their daily excursions around London, it has been stated.

After Scotland Yard recently revealed that the police could trade in half of their current cars over the next four years in exchange for vehicles powered by alternative fuels, it has been suggested that smart cars could be the way forward.

The Metropolitan Police is already testing smart cars at Heathrow and in central London and Nigel Jakubowski, director of transport services for the Met, believes the vehicles are "perfect".

He said: "London is perfect for alternative fuels such as electric or hybrid vehicles. The smart car can travel up to 70 miles on one charge and be powered using a three-pin plug.

"For central London the top speed of 55mph isn’t a problem. The uniformed officers who have driven them say they are very quick. We have installed charging points at the stations the cars are based in, and they work very well."

Meanwhile, it was also recently announced that some of the vehicles from the smart range will be available to customers taking part on the government scrapping scheme.

Among these is the low-CO2 generating smart fortwo cdi cabrio, which gives off just 88g/km of carbon dioxide.

Read more about the scrappage scheme on the smart website