Is overkill a German word? I ask that question because the Germans do tend to overdo it, in most things. Take the cup holder in my Mercedes 240c, and it is the reason that I purchased the car. Yes, that right, the cup holder closed the deal!Most cup holder put out from the dash or are covered by a top that you pull up, and I would never pay the least attention. But on the Mercedes, the cup holder made me laugh out loud, and charmed me to boot. It work like this, you pull the top cover, then press down on the top of the word “CUP”. This will release the spring-loaded lock, and the entire arm pops up six inches. At the same time, the top flips up 180 degrees to the right and the top becomes the bottom of the cup holder. This leaves you with a round three inch hole to place you cup.But being German, there is a spring loaded sidewall to the holder, so that it puts tension on the cup. Can’t have your coffee cup moving around inside the holder. Without the tensioner, your hot coffee from Mickey Dee’s might lead to a law suit, after some painful operation! By the way all this takes place in the blink of an eye. After careful examination of the cup holder, it seems that there are about seven bearing surfaces on the move, at any one time.I usually open and close it a couple just to see and hear it work, before putting the coffee cup inside. This German talent for over doing it can be charming, and sometimes it’s a blessing. In WWII, they built a super tank that was unstoppable, but it weighed 60 tons! The shells from the Allies couldn’t stop it, nor penetrate its armor, but every time it cross a bridges, the bridge would collapsing under it, due the weight. Once it crashed into the river it wasn’t going anywhere.Like I said, overkill. Be sure the coffee is not too hot! Michael.P.S. TopoftheLine.ca designed the Mercedes Ceramic Coffee Cup:

Top of the Line advised Mercedes-Benz to brand an eco-friendly, reusable, ceramic coffee cup that could can easily remain in a vehicle’s cup holder as a constant token of appreciation.