Badge pics! Who have you got?
Discussion
Ive just been reminded about a topic i thought id start. Over in the US this is a question that has been asked and trawled over and over, but seems to be paid little attention over here.
Who built your engine and have you looked him up? Pics please::
Here is mine from my 2010 PP+ Saloon. Ive read a little about him. Mainly an SLS and PP+ engine builder but has vast experience across the AMG range. He did knock out a couple of engines with porous heads in 2008 but i think that there was a bad batch across the board at that time, as was documented on PH too. I did see his name on Topgear when they tested the SLS Roadster. He was responsible for the little lump in that particular monster!!
Eddie
Who built your engine and have you looked him up? Pics please::
Here is mine from my 2010 PP+ Saloon. Ive read a little about him. Mainly an SLS and PP+ engine builder but has vast experience across the AMG range. He did knock out a couple of engines with porous heads in 2008 but i think that there was a bad batch across the board at that time, as was documented on PH too. I did see his name on Topgear when they tested the SLS Roadster. He was responsible for the little lump in that particular monster!!
Eddie
kryten22uk said:
What do these guys actually do to deserve their name on the block? Surely they're factory production line employees just like any other merc? Its not like they hand-whittle an engine out of an aluminium block.
Agreed. For reference, when you purchase an Aston Martin you get a 'Hand Build in the UK' badge with a person's signature etched into it. That person is the final inspection technician i.e. the person who does the final checks before the car is 'sold' (sold as in sold from the factory, i.e. being cleared to ship). There are a small number of final inspection plate variants, which are then fitted depending on which technicians are working which shift.
Now I've not been to the AMG engine build facility, however from a manufacturing efficiency standpoint, it would be very poor to utilise one man for each engine, rather than passing the engine down a production line.
kryten22uk said:
What do these guys actually do to deserve their name on the block? Surely they're factory production line employees just like any other merc? Its not like they hand-whittle an engine out of an aluminium block.
Responsibility (returns and faults) for each engine he builds, and marketing. They dont make the engine from scratch obviously but the title 'engine builder' only indicates that they build the engine. One man, one engine! They hand build the engine using the parts provided and test the pieces as they go. Computer monitored tools and high tech gadgetry is heavily relied on but with such fine tolerances a man cannot be expected to knock out 3 of these lumps a day only using an eye and an ear as a guide. The organic part of the tool kit is only as good as the sleep he had the previous night. If you want 'hand built' then you need much deeper pockets these days, but these AMG lumps are genuinely only built by one man, not on a production line.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LUlw6Z2p2Tk
Edited by ecain63 on Monday 25th March 20:10
I have been to the AMG factory and each engine is hand built by one person - the chap on the badge. They follow it through from start to finish and make two a day on average. It's very impressive. Every component is marked and scanned before assembly so they know exactly whats in each engine and where it came from etc.
Every so many engines, one is pulled out and tested almost to destruction. This engine is then used in their own cars and not sold to customers.
Every so many engines, one is pulled out and tested almost to destruction. This engine is then used in their own cars and not sold to customers.
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