Mercedes-Benz's AMG Division Posts Record Sales of 32,000 Cars in 2013

AMG has gone from a two-man operation that was founded in n 1967 by Hans Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher, to a fully incorporated Mercedes-Benz subsidiary employing 1,200 workers and selling a record-breaking 32,000 cars in 2013.

"We are looking back on the company’s strongest year ever,” said Tobias Moers, Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-AMG GmbH. “This extraordinary growth has exceeded even our own expectations."

The German brand attributed its sales success to several factors including the broad introduction of the AMG-developed version of its all-wheel drive 4MATIC system on a number of models, including the E63 and CLS 63 AMG, as well as the arrival of the most affordable models in its range, the compact A 45 and CLA 45 AMG.

Mercedes noted that after its introduction, around 90 percent (!) of buyers of the new E 63 AMG chose the all-wheel drive 4MATIC technology.

AMG posted an overall growth of around 20 percent, with its two main European markets, Germany recording a 10 percent increase with the UK being up 40 percent. The company added that in China, 2013 sales were up around a quarter on the previous year, even though the new entry-level A 45 AMG and CLA 45 AMG models, as well as the new S 63 AMG 4MATIC, were not available there.

As for the future, AMG said it plans to enter a new segment with "a sports car it has fully developed itself" - it is likely referring to the SLC or GT AMG, a more affordable model aimed at the likes of the Porsche 911.

Mercedes' AMG Says Each Burnout is a Fashion Statement

This has to be one of the most unusual ideas we’ve seen lately: Mercedes-AMG and the Destroy vs. Beauty clothing line have decided that burnouts – more specifically, the shape left by rubber on the asphalt – have something artsy about them.

The two partners say each burnout is unique and thus worthy of being printed on fashion items. Participants at the AMG Driving Academy use AMG vehicles to perform the burnouts, which are reproduced with the help of a special material that goes under the rear wheels. The burnout prints are then used to adorn handbags and T-shirts.

The products can be then purchased at selected AMG Driving Academy events and will also be available in the AMG Showroom in Affalterbach soon. Confused? Well, scroll down to see what this is all about in the video demonstration with a Mercedes CLS 63 AMG.

Look at this 60-Something-Year Old Woman Go on the Drag Strip!

A slightly tuned 2009 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG with 475-horses completing the quarter mile in 11.7 seconds is nothing to get excited about, but seeing it done by a 60-something-year old woman with grandma-style glasses is something that's defiantly worth your attention.
Meet drag racer extraordinaire Kathy Countiss who has been doing the sport since she was a teenager and does not intend to stop any time soon.

You will find the videos right after the jump.

It’s Official: Mercedes-Benz Unveils Hot C63 AMG Coupe Black Series

Well, it was no big secret (not after some tell-tales spilled the beans facing the Germans’ wrath) that Mercedes-Benz was planning to unveil the Black Series edition of its C63 AMG Coupe during the German Grand Prix at Nürburgring.

Now the company has gone ahead as planned and revealed the C63AMG Coupe’s hardcore sibling, the C63 AMG Coupe Black Series. The most potent version of the C-Class Coupe does not stray away from the successful formula of the models that carried the Black Series tag before it.

The Black Series is powered by the “regular” C63 Coupe’s naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V8 but thanks to AMG’s modifications that include forged pistons, conrods and crankshaft, a 50% bigger oil cooler and a new ECU, it churns out 517HP (60HP more than the standard model) and, more importantly, 620 Nm (457 lb-ft)of tarmac-tearing torque.

All this power is channeled to the 19-inch rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch AMG Speedshift transmission. The gearbox has four modes and its fastest gear change time, in Sport or Manual, is just 100 milliseconds. Performance is, of course, exceptional: the C63 AMG Black Series accelerates from a standstill to 62 mph (100 km/h) in just 4.2 seconds.

The C63 AMG Coupe Black Series has a standard limited-slip differential. The novelty is that it’s electronically controlled and linked to the ESP stability control system, which itself has three settings, and unusually for a Mercedes, in its sportiest one is completely deactivated.

AMG’s engineers widened the front and rear tracks by 40 mm and 70 mm respectively, and also fitted stiffer anti-roll bars along with an adjustable coil-over sports suspension. The braking system comprises of 390 mm front and 360 mm rear discs, with six and four-piston calipers respectively.

Visually, the newest member of the Black Series clan gains a different front bumper with huge air intakes, bloated wheel arches, chunkier side sills and a redesigned rear bumper with quad exhausts.

Inside, the C63 AMG Black Series comes with a two-seat configuration, though Mercedes does offers a four-seat layout as an option. The car also gets red seat belts, a sport steering wheel covered in nappa leather and high-gloss black piano inserts on the dashboard along with the Black Series logo.

Mercedes-Benz offers two optional packages with self-explanatory names: the Track package, which features special Dunlop tires and a differential cooler, and the Aerodynamic package with carbonfibre aerodynamic aids on the front bumper and a carbonfibre rear spoiler.

Sales of the new C6 AMG Coupe Black Series are expected to commence in January, with a starting price in Germany of €115,430 ($165,722).

On a side note, Mercedes-Benz also announced that former McLaren-Mercedes F1 driver David Coulthard is the AMG divisions new ambassador. The 40-year old Scot will aid the AMG development team in testing and also take part in customer and press events starting with the campaign for the new, 557HP V8 biturbo E63 AMG.

Jay Leno Visits Mercedes’ AMG HQ, Drives SLS Roadster and E-Cell

As we all know, Jay Leno is a car fanatic. So when he had the chance to visit the AMG division of Mercedes-Benz at Affalterbach and drive two of its most exclusive models in its test track, he couldn’t resist. The Chairman of Mercedes-AMG GmbH himself, Ola Kallenius, accompanied Leno on his factory tour.

The host of the Tonight Show, who had worked for Mercedes Benz in America when he was 18 years old, drove the new SLS AMG Roadster as well as the pure-electric SLS AMG E-CELL.

“The power delivery from standstill is fantastic. It’s unbelievable how the 392 kW and 880 Nm catapult the gullwing down the track,” said Leno on the SLS AMG E-CELL.

“And thanks to four-wheel drive, the SLS AMG E-CELL has no problem in bringing its enormous power onto the road. The performance and handling are every bit the equal of the SLS AMG with the V8 engine. This is the future! I have a Baker Electric dating from 1909 in my collection. It’s unbelievable how electric drive technologyhas developed over 100 years or so!”

Leno also visited the factory’s engine shop and assisted in the assembly of a 6.3-liter V8 for an SLS by hand, following the AMG philosophy in which every man is responsible for each engine.