These days almost everyone knows what AMG represents. To us, they’re specially modified higher trim Mercedes-Benz. To the company itself, “an AMG automobile represents the seamless intersection of high-tech engineering and handcrafted excellence.” It’s odd then that so few people, myself included, actually know what the acronym stands for.
Luckily I didn’t have to go too far to find out as AMG management, engineers and racing drivers, had come to town for their annual Performance Tour and they’d invited me to the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi (where Mercedes AMG Petronas had recently wrapped up their victory of the Formula One championship) to sample their full range of road cars.
“Getting behind the wheel of a Mercedes-AMG car is something that is as exhilarating the first time as it is for the 1,000th time,” said Dirk Fetzer, Director of Sales and Marketing at Daimler Middle East & Levant, during his opening address. “To have the chance to drive every model in the AMG portfolio though, takes this exhilaration to a new level. Each AMG vehicle is an engineering masterpiece, beautifully crafted to deliver the best driving performance, and the AMG Performance Tour provides the perfect environment to demonstrate this.”
As I soon learned, AMG began in 1967 when two Mercedes-Benz mechanics, Hans-Werner Aufrecht (A) and Erhard Melcher (M), left the company to found their own tuning and race-preparation firm, adding Aufrecht’s birthplace of Grossaspach (G) as the third and final letter in their start-up’s name.
Thanks to some exceptional products, the two men quickly earned their new company an internationally renowned reputation and in 1990, their work was recognised by Mercedes-Benz when they were awarded a cooperation agreement that would allow them to sell directly through the official global network of Mercedes dealers. This recognition was further consolidated nine years later when Daimler-Chrysler (the then parent company of Mercedes-Benz) bought a majority stake in AMG and finally in 2005 the original founders were bought out completely, thereby vesting full control to Daimler.
Nowadays, rather than retroactively working on models, AMG designs and develops its products in parallel with the cars on which they are based. They even, on occasion, receive carte blanche to design and build their own cars, as evidenced by the now-discontinued SLS and the new AMG GT, the latter of which was present in Abu Dhabi as part of the 15,300 horsepower of cars they had brought along for us to play with.
Apart from the grand unveiling of the new C63 AMG, there were three main parts to the Performance Tour event. The first was lapping the large circuit in some big guns like the SL63 (which I found to be too mushy for a circuit but would be my weapon of choice if I wanted to cruise some coastal highways in style), the S63 Coupé (surprisingly superior to the SL on track but again, better suited to some ultra-luxurious continent crossing) and the new AMG GTS (a track day dream). Then it was over to a smaller mobility course to try out the A45 (front-wheel drive but heaps of fun), CLA45 (pretty much the same car as the A45, but with a boot) and the C63 (which was an unexpectedly capable track day toy). Finally the last part of the event was perhaps the most unexpected as we were told to do drag-and-brake tests with each of the Mercedes-Benz SUV’s. It’s funny that after all the challenges we had faced throughout the day, perfecting your stopping distances after belting it down a straight piece of asphalt proved to be one of the most tricky (and amusing) trials. I mean, who would have known that the G63 could stop on a dime, or that the GL63 is their fastest accelerating SUV?
Sadly the day had to come to an end and after calling it a wrap I was left under no illusion that AMG stands for some impressive engineering. Their cars may not be track focussed but they’re not totally out of place on one either. With impressive versatility, diverse capabilities and noteworthy levels of comfort, it’s easy to see why they’re so popular here in the Middle East – a point further substantiated by the fact sales grew by 25 per cent last year alone. Then again, with one in ten Mercedes-Benz cars sold in the region being an AMG, maybe it’s about time everyone knows what those three letters stand for.
