Mercedes-AMG shows all-electric future with Vision AMG

AMG has been around for 55 years and has been responsible for some of the most famous performance cars around. It all started with the “Red Sow” - the 1971 6.3l v8 300SEL. After successful years in DTM with W201 AMG was made an official Mercedes partner in 1988. Mercedes eventually acquired AMG in 2005 and the brand became a household name for high performance models, it was responsible for building engines for Pagani Zonda and Huayra, for Aston Martin as well as for Lotus Emira.

We all know and respect the hand built quality of AMG engines and there a few things as nice as the brutal, high revving AMG V8 screaming at the top of its lungs while incinerating a brand new set of tires every time you gently rested your foot on the accelerator. Lifting your foot off was not an option, it would make the exhaust crackle and pop so loud it would send bystanders running for shelter.

All that was accompanied by a widest grin possible on the driver's face, sweaty palms trying to wrangle some sort of control through the steering wheel and at least 20 dinosaurs being burnt every 100 kilometers. But you know what's cooler than driving an AMG? Driving an EV AMG with that instant torque that ICE engines just cannot match.

Enter Vision AMG - the company's first dedicated performance electric car. To say the AMG’s future is riding on it is an understatement. The brand, together with Mercedes-Benz is reinventing itself. The shift to electric propulsion is happening at such a pace that it's bound to cause major shifts in the automotive industry. AMG knows this change is a "live or die" moment and it has no intention of being left behind. With the Vision AMG the company is taking all its experience in building high performance cars and channels it into a new, electric performance vehicle.

There are a lot of design cues from the Mercedes-Benz EQXX, which the AMG helped develop, but the Vision has a much longer wheelbase and it is much wider at the same time. We can clearly see this is a 4 door, most likely 4 seater coupe, the CLS from the future.

The electric drivetrain allowed AMG to push the wheels far out into the corners of the chassis, handling and interior space will be two areas that will benefit from this change. The only sharp lines are at the back where an integrated spoiler direct the airflow up to increase the downforce. The rest of the car is just one, never ending curve without a single edge, side windows are not only painted in the color of the car but they create one surface with the door to minimize any potential disruption to air flowing around the car. Even the mirrors are replaced with cameras on tiny winglets that are seamlessly bonded to the glass. The attention to detail is mind bending.

The font of the Vision AMG is a classic but futuristic take on current AMG styling, the vertical bars in the grille have been replaced with lights and there is more lights around the grille itself. The headlights take on the shape of the three pointed star - a nod to Mercedes-Benz - and are linked by an LED stretching across the entire front of the bonnet.

Looking at the car form the side, we can clearly see the EQXX influence and we can see a smidgen of Porsche Taycan in those lines as well. Porsche’s success with its own performance EV hasn’t gone unnoticed at AMG’s HQ.

The wheels are clearly influenced by Formula 1 and Formula E, to improve aerodynamics even further, they appear to be fully closed. And then we come around the back… and we are faced with a set of the impressive looking rear lights. Simple, effective and sending an incredible message. Six afterburners glowing red at night making the car look as if it was ready to fire them up and take off like a jet. Incredible detail, very clever replacement for AMG’s iconic tailpipes.

Unfortunately AMG didn’t share any technical details for this reincarnation of the hypercar. We can rest assured it will be the most powerful production car AMG has ever released, after all its future depends on it.

Will we see it in this form? Not a chance - this is just a design excercise but a lot depends on the reaction and response AMG gets from the public. Cars like this are inspirational, our relationship with cars have been slowly changing for the past few years. 20 maybe 30 years ago we used to post pictures of cars on bedroom walls, we had dream cars, we talked about specifications. Current generation of youngsters doesn’t have that connection with cars anymore, the car has become just a tool, a solution to transport problems and at the same time the car is blamed for the transport problems. With this Mercedes-AMG is reminding us that our bond with the car goes deeper. It is much more than just 4 wheels and a roof. So much more.

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