AMG just turned 50: Here's what the next 50 may bring
Mercedes performance brand's director explains expansion, from line-built engines to the Hypercar.
AMG - a car tuner company founded by (and named for) Hans Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher, and for Aufrecht's German hometown of Großaspach. AMG just celebrated its 50th birthday.
The company made a big splash early on in 1971 with its 6.8-liter "Red
Pig" Mercedes-Benz S-Class-based racecar, which won its class at Spa and
placed second overall. Their "Hammer" E-Class of the mid-1980s was the
fastest sedan on the market and could smoke contemporary Corvettes and
Countaches. And the bored-out 12-cylinder AMGs of the Aughties created
outrageously effortless cruising in S, CL, and SL classes.
But AMG's modern cars put all of these achievements to shame. Today's
AMGs demonstrate remarkable enhancements in potency and performance -
the one-off "Red Pig" racecar made 420 horsepower; the company will soon
routinely build self-driving station wagons that produce in excess of
600 hp and rocket to 60 mph in just over 3 seconds. And as a wholly
owned go-fast subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, they're enthusiastically
spreading driving pleasure across the Mercedes product line. There are
now over 40 separate AMG models.
(AutoBlog.com)
No comments:
Post a Comment