Loud and fast, automobiles have always fascinated humankind. Consequently, almost every automaker worldwide has tried to present some form of these aggressive machines to woo its audience.
The automaker from Germany and arguably the first automobile, Mercedes-Benz’s motorsport history started in 1967 when two former Mercedes engineers, Erhard Melcher and Hans Werner Aufrecht, decided to design, test, and produce racing engines under the brand name AMG.
However, up until 1990, AMG produced packages as well as fully customised vehicles.
Cooperation Signed
The year 1990 brought a major change, as Mercedes decided to recognise AMG’s efforts, and a cooperation agreement was signed between the two. This allowed the motorsport hand’s choice and fully-customised cars into Mercedes showrooms, opening up the options to a greater variety of buyers.
By the end of the millennium, Mercedes went all-in with AMG, buying a controlling share of AMG and making its cars part of the official Mercedes-Benz line-up. It is said that some of the legendary model icons such as the 300 SEL 6.9 AMG racing touring car, the 300 E 5.6 “The Hammer”, the CLK DTM and the SLS AMG Electric Drive have been a gamechanger for the brand.
Celebrating Anniversary
This year as the iconic brand marks its 55th anniversary, it adds a new brand campaign with the claim “55 years - changing the game,” pointing to its future goals.
Philipp Schiemer, Chairman of the Board of Management, Mercedes-AMG GmbH, said, “AMG has been reinventing itself again and again for 55 years. As was once the case with our founding fathers, there is a very special spirit of optimism in Affalterbach today. The course is clearly set for an electrified future.”
The current Mercedes-AMG portfolio comprises more than fifty vehicles. The selection ranges from performance vehicles in various body styles to independently developed sports cars such as the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door model and the new Mercedes-AMG SL.
Hypercar
Recently the company launched the AMG One hypercar. Powered by the F1 sourced 1.6-liter V6 internal combustion engine with a single turbocharger and electric assist, the car additionally gets four electric motors powering at each wheel. Two motors are mounted in front, one at each wheel, creating a total of 322 horsepower, while the third motor is connected to the gasoline engine and delivers 161 horsepower (120 kW) to the crankshaft. The fourth motor is linked to a turbocharger, which Mercedes-AMG claims adds an additional 121 horsepower (90 kW) to the mix.
With this, the combined output produced by the vehicle stands at 1,063hp. However, the most exciting part of the technology is that with all that power and pace, the vehicle is capable of doing 8.7 litre /100 km with combined weighted CO2 emissions standing at 198 g/km and combined weighted electrical consumption of 32 kWh/100 km.
The Vision AMG
The Vision AMG, a concept car design study, delivers a peek into the brand’s future. It said that the independent AMG is beneath the shell of the four-door coupé. The EA platform is currently being developed in Affalterbach for all-electric performance models with revolutionary e-drive technology.
In addition, the company is also working on other performance hybrids with an independent drive layout and technology from Formula 1 that will be offered under the E PERFORMANCE label. It said that the portfolio will also include all-electric AMG derivatives based on the Group’s own EVA2 platform. In the near future, completely independent battery-electric AMG models will also follow, based on the new, completely in-house developed electrical architecture, AMG.EA.
Celebrating Milestone
Besides showcasing its future endeavours, the company also started with a 360-degree social media campaign with authentic stories of people and vehicles as video clips and stills to celebrate its glorious 55 years. The implementation contains numerous mutually complementary elements, including AMG employees communicating their statements on “changing the game” via their social channels while the Brand Ambassadors will.i.am, Susie Wolff, David Coulthard, and Lewis Hamilton underline the core message with their statements and build the bridge from tradition to the future.
In addition, editorial contributions on the official Mercedes-AMG website, a special exhibition in the Mercedes-Benz Museum, a temporary exhibition in the AMG Private Lounge in Affalterbach, as well as a special episode “Inside AMG” on YouTube were also made to pay tribute to the 55th anniversary of AMG from different perspectives.
“As in all the past years, our standards for future projects are extremely high. I am proud that we can rely on the best employees at our location. Because they are real gamechangers that make AMG so special. And we want to emphasise that just as much with our campaign,” Schiemer concluded.