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History Of AMG - Facts About Mercedes-Benz's Performance Division
Just a mention of the acronym "AMG" is enough to send shivers down the chassis of other ‘mortal' automobiles. Mercedes-Benz AMG cars are known to be brutally fast with unabashedly aggressive styling - performance figures usually step into supercar territory. If you thought Mercedes-Benz cars were highly desirable, AMG sport sedans and SUVs take it to the next level.
Also read: Mercedes ML 63 AMG Launch, Third AMG Outlet For India Opens In Bangalore
How AMG came about is an interesting tale. In 1965, Mercedes-Benz decided to pull out from motorsports, deeply disappointing two engineers Hans-Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher. They however, managed to acquire a 300 SE and boost its power from the stock 170 bhp to 238 bhp. The car did exceedingly well, and ended up with 10 race victories in the 1965 German Touring Car Championship.
The story continues in the next section. Click through the slides for more:
Click further for more on the history of AMG:
The company AMG was founded in 1967 under the name AMG Motorenbau und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH (AMG Engine Production and Development, Ltd.), by Alfrecht and Melcher in Burgstall an der Murr, near Stuttgart. The acronym "AMG" stands for Aufrecht, Melcher and Großaspach (Aufrecht's town of birth).
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AMG's first motorsports milestone was achieved in 1971 at the Spa 24 Hours when the AMG Mercedes 300 SEL 6.8 became the champion in its class and second place overall. This was a stellar victory, with the ‘red cathedral' on the track pipping cars much lighter that itself, solidly establishing AMG's brand around the world.
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In the 1970s, demand for customization grew, and AMG now offered custom-made interiors in addition to engines. In 1976, AMG, and its now-dozen employees, moved to Affalterbach into a purpose-built workshop and office (The plant today is seen alongside). 1986 saw AMG install an all-new 5.0-litre V8 powerplant with Melcher's completely independent, four-valved cylinder head into an E-Class Coupe. This car remains an icon to this day - it was nicknamed ‘The Hammer'.
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In the late 1980s, Daimler Benz and AMG began working together with AMG being the racing partner. The biggest success story of this association was the 190 racecar, which racked up a total of 50 DTM victories between 1988 and 1993.
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1990 was another milestone year for AMG, as this was when they signed a cooperation agreement with Daimler Benz AG. AMG products could now be sold through Mercedes-Benz's extensive worldwide network of dealerships and sales and service outlets, and Mercedes and AMG were now to work together on product design.
The first product of the cooperation agreement was the 276-bhp Mercedes-Benz C36 AMG, revealed in 1993. The new car managed to come close to rivalling BMW's E36 M3, and formed an initial template for future AMG models. The rest of the 1990s saw the cooperation launching a slew of AMG models based on the Mercedes portfolio, including the wildchild CLK-GTR supercar.
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The early-2000s saw Mercedes and AMG focusing on supercharged V8 and V6 engines till AMG brought out their independently-developed, naturally-aspirated 6.2-litre V8 mill (seen alongside) in 2006. In the same year, AMG announced that turbocharging would be employed for power gains - a trend that carries on to this day.
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Today, Mercedes-AMG has a portfolio of more than 20 models, each offering ‘sledgehammer performance' and exclusivity like only a Mercedes-AMG car can, with proud traditions like ‘one man, one engine', where a single engineer handcrafts an entire engine and personalises every car with his nameplate on the engine.
This story wouldn't be complete without mention of the 2014 Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 team, with drivers Lewis Hamilton and Nico Rosberg utterly dominating the rest of the field in this year's championship. This sort of success has never been seen before in F1 history, and is only getting harder and harder for other teams to emulate in the future. 2014 has truly sealed the Mercedes-AMG name hard and fast in the psyche of motorsport and Mercedes fans alike, and it seems the company's glorious heritage is set to see several more memorable chapters added.
Do send in your comments, a Mercedes-AMG car anecdote or perhaps your thoughts on AMG's history. We would love to hear from you.