Mercedes-AMG to give up on rear-wheel drive

Mercedes-AMG has revealed it will abandon the development od traditional rear-wheel drive sedans and supercars, switching to all-wheel drive for its entire range of performance vehicles.

The decision, which means the next-generation AMG GT will be developed as an all-wheel drive supercar, is directly linked to Mercedes-AMG buyers turning their back on powerful rear-drive vehicles, AMG boss Tobias Moers told

"Customers have given us the answer, and most want four-wheel drive," said Moers.

"Back in the days when we have an AMG E-Class as rear-wheel drive and with four-wheel drive as an option, 90 per cent chose 4WD. In the new E 63 with drift mode, you have a rear-wheel drive car but with four-wheel drive also."

Explaining the switch to all-wheel drive for its entire line-up, Moers told the Brit mag even when it came to its most extreme vehicles, buyers favoured the traction-boosting security of four driven wheels.

"When I ask customers about the GT, they ask me about all-wheel drive. Regarding our competition, this is the downside of the AMG in terms of usability. People in Munich, for example, always, always ask for four-wheel drive – I think it's for safety and stability."

Helping back the case for a future all-wheel drive AMG GT is Moers' confirmation that his company's flagship supercar will switch to an advanced hybrid powertrain that will see one of the driven axles powered by an electric motor.

Inspired by the AMG GT 4 Door concept, the next-generation AMG plug-in hybrid powertrain combines the car-maker's twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 with all-wheel drive and a rear axle that can be driven entirely by an electric motor when the combustion engine is not in use and provide torque-boosting assistance when the V8 is under full acceleration.

Combined, Mercedes-AMG claims total power is in excess of 600kW.

As well as extra power and torque, the electric rear axle also allows torque-vectoring to boost agility and enable a drift mode.

During the interview, the AMG boss also confirmed that there would be no more V12-powered AMG models because the current engine would have had to be complete redesigned to meet future emissions legislation.

A question mark also hangs over the future of AMG's V8 being used in smaller models like the C 63 sedan, wagon and coupe.

When asked whetrher the flagship AMG C-Class would switch to a turbocharged six-cylinder engine, Moers reportedly paused and told Autocar that: "There is room for speculation there".

Addressing rumours that the German car-maker's high-performance brand was on the verge to revive the small SLC roadster, Moers shot down any speculation by saying Mercedes-AMG "is not able to do so", effectively ruling out a Porsche Boxster rival.

“I know companies trying to exercise approachable sports cars in that €40,000 ($A50,000) segment – they are not doing so well. It’s a question mark for the future,” he told the Brit mag.

Instead of a Boxster rival, Moers confirmed AMG is focusing its resources on the next-generation replacement for the SL, which will share its platform with the next AMG GT.

“We are focused on SL for the future,” he said. “Totally different car – it’s a sports car. The company has been running at full throttle for two years on that program. It’s a shared platform between GT and SL.”

The Mercedes-AMG boss also added that it would ramp up its electrification strategy but there was no word on whether there would be a battery-powered SL or GT or, even, a follow-up to the limited run, pure-electric SLS.