Wednesday 9th October 2013

AMG top brass: PH Meets

As AMG boss Ola Kallenius hands over the reins to Tobias Moers PH talks exclusively to both

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The Frankfurt show last month was full of significant birthday celebrations, amazingly not all of them 911-shaped. The C36 debuted at Frankfurt in 1993; 20 years on to the day PH spoke with outgoing boss Ola Kallenius and his incoming replacement Tobias Moers. And then we went out and drove the two cars that book-end this significant anniversary...

Kallenius very much the corporate player

It's an odd situation, given the outgoing boss is new-school Mercedes-AMG while his replacement very much represents the old-school era, having started at AMG in 1994.

As expected Kallenius plays a straight corporate bat, deflecting questions about his proudest personal achievement at AMG - "I haven't reflected yet" - by pointing to the bigger picture and increased "brand recognition" within Mercedes. He's slick though, smoothly segueing into how proud he is that over half of the 1,200 people working at AMG are engineers like Moers, who nods in agreement at the significance of this.

OK then, as a marketing man how does he balance the need to increase awareness of AMG without diluting the status of the products? Or, to put it another way, can the brand be both a supplier of branded for Mercedes owners at large and a credible builder of top dollar, 500hp-plus mega Mercs?

Replacement Moers comes from development side

It's probably not the first time he's been asked this...

"We should go out and look at some cars!" he says. "For the AMG out and out performance car the styling is more clearly differentiated. If you look at the front of the new E-Class it has this very unique styling element what we call the A-wing - whether it's in your face or subliminally it tells you it's an AMG. The AMG Line, previously known as the Sports Package, offers the Mercedes buyer who wants a sporty look also a very distinct appearance but it's a very different look from the AMG. As we launch new models you will see this change and this natural differentiation between models - now we do the styling in the concept stage with our colleagues in Sindelfingen; we are at the table so it's not that they start the car and then throw it over the wall to us."

Moers agrees. "This is how it was the days before - the car was finished by Mercedes styling and we would then start with our styling and then we had some compromise. This is past."

20 years is a long time in AMG

If there's one car that blurs this distinction it's the A-Class and CLA, both of which can be had 'Engineered by AMG' in a halfway house between traditional sports packages and the full-blown AMG model. "The suspension on that car and the driving dynamics is by us, which is why that is Engineered by AMG," says Moers, "but the A45 has more than 100hp more and is totally different."

Back to Kallenius. "If you take the C63 below the skin there is almost more different than the same, the E63 has a complete new front axle, the suspension arms are different, the ESP system is unique for AMG so it's almost it's own car."

Clear then?

Moving on, can AMG really continue its big engine, big power thing in the eco conscious modern age? And 20 years down the line will we still have V8s?

Turbos here to stay, so are big V8s - phew

"The trend is clear," says Kallenius, with news that the 5.5-litre turbo V8 will soon be phased out. "Downsizing and turbocharging is where the future is, we love our naturally aspirated engines and they're still out there for you to have but in the medium to long term I think there is no way around different kind of charging systems to get to the combination of power, torque and efficiency."

Moers reckons big engines haven't quite had their day yet either. "There is room for more [efficiency] with bigger displacement and you can imagine how big it could be and there are some good competitor engines now on the market with 4.0, 4.4-litre engines and the behaviours of those engines is close to naturally aspirated and they show what is possible."

A generous appraisal of efforts by BMW and Audi there, Kallenius quick to assert AMG's expertise in the field though. "You can see with the 5.5 engine that replaced the 6.2 - you now have a torque advantage and you still have that unique AMG sound so the engineers were able to do their magic and sprinkle a little bit of AMG dust," he grins. "As a matter of fact you won't find an S63 driver or an E63 driver saying 'oh my goodness I want to go back', it was a very smooth transition so I think we can protect the AMG DNA and at the same time lead the technological front."

A45 shows a broadening of AMG's horizons

Speaking of the brand DNA, how does he think that will impact on that of Aston Martin, shortly to be taking engines from AMG? "They sought a premium technical partnership and came to us to see if we had any interest," says Kallenius. "We came to the conclusion we could find common ground and means we will be the technical partner, the supplier of engines on the one hand, and electronic components on the other so when they develop their next platform for Aston Martin they have access to great technology and as part of that deal we are receiving up to five per cent of the equity of Aston Martin without cash changing hands so to speak. Aston Martin is a great brand and AMG is a great brand and I think we can share the cost of future engine development. So I think there is a benefit from a business point of view for both parties and we will definitely make sure that the character of the vehicles stay true to their DNA."

Baby SLS on the way? Not denied...

Kallenius departs AMG with some exciting products for Moers to see through to fruition too. He doesn't mention the much-discussed 'baby SLS' by name but hints, "it's not like it's the end of the fireworks - we're in the middle of it so next year we're going to have even more press launches and 2015 looks like it's going to be a very exciting year. We have a few more cars up our sleeves to make sure that the PistonHeads readers are very satisfied!"

 

 

 

 

 

 

[loudlashadjuster]

Usual good noises coming from Affalterbach, but A-Wing? Ugh.



Edit: I presume he's talking about this:



No need for tacky and contrived names, AMG is better than that.

Edited by loudlashadjuster on Wednesday 9th October 14:23

[dublet]

loudlashadjuster said:

No need for tacky and contrived names, AMG is better than that.

I agree, Aufrecht, Melcher and Großaspach Motorenbau und Entwicklungsgesellschaft mbH is better than that!

[smilo996]

All they need to do is leave Aston Martin Alone but they won't of course.

[Veeayt]

smilo996 said:

All they need to do is leave Aston Martin Alone but they won't of course.

...so that Aston will be certainly out of business.

Good reading, many things make sense now. Although this DNA thing isn't properly explained, like how those two regard 4-banger AMGs, and what is exactly the reason why they've shifted.

[bobberz]

Very interesting article. Looking forward to seeing how AMG will reconcile "preserving Aston's DNA" with the turbocharging and downsizing going on at AMG. Assuming future AMGs will have four liter twin-turbo V8s, I'd imagine (hope) that the engines used by Aston will be bespoke, rather than simply re-branded versions of AMG engines found in Mercedes models.

I feel that, as good as modern turbo engines are, part of "Aston's DNA" is the large displacement, naturally aspirated engine, much as Ferrari and Lamborghini's V12s are integral to their lineup and image (more so with Lamborghini).

[loudlashadjuster]

bobberz said:

Very interesting article. Looking forward to seeing how AMG will reconcile "preserving Aston's DNA" with the turbocharging and downsizing going on at AMG. Assuming future AMGs will have four liter twin-turbo V8s, I'd imagine (hope) that the engines used by Aston will be bespoke, rather than simply re-branded versions of AMG engines found in Mercedes models.

I feel that, as good as modern turbo engines are, part of "Aston's DNA" is the large displacement, naturally aspirated engine, much as Ferrari and Lamborghini's V12s are integral to their lineup and image (more so with Lamborghini).

Like I mentioned on another thread, I think V12s are the key to this deal.

For now, Mercedes-Benz require V12s but the cost to keep them as a halo option in the range spirals with every new emissions round.

As a Mercedes/AMG customer, Aston Martin is maybe the only company in the world who could take V12s in any significant volume, amortising M-B development costs across a much larger production.

[DeepBlueDrive]

Developing bespoke V8 engines was the key of the Aston Martin - AMG deal.
And it's not like AMG will now ruin Aston's business with downsizing and turbos - Aston was looking for partner with ideal technology for their project. Because Aston is bounded with emission rules as any other car producer, they have to lower emissions of their cars, too. So AMG just give them what they ask for...