Porsche and Ferrari beware - Black is the new black

Porsche, Ferrari and supersport brands take note -- Mercedes-Benz's performance arm AMG is gunning for you with a wider range of racetrack-ready Black Editions and even FIA-approved homologation specials.

So says Volker Mornhinweg, AMG's boss and the man charged with developing the in-house hotshoe brand. According to Mornhinweg, Black Series (which will arrive Down Under soon via a limited edition run of CLK 63 AMG Black coupes) will be an important part of AMG's international product strategy going forward -- along with more opportunities to individualise cars and other services such as an in-house driving academy.

"Customers give us the feedback that they very much appreciate how we define the product characteristics [of our cars], but they have been asking [for more]... They would like something more dedicated for the racetrack," Mornhinweg explained to the Carsales Network during an interview at this month's North American International Auto Show (NAIAS) at Detroit.

"They don't want to take a Porsche or Ferrari and say it would be great if we could offer something that you can really use on the racetrack.

"This [Black Series] was the initial idea which we started in 2006. We [eventually] founded the Performance Studio branch of the organization and there we can really make beautiful stuff for our customers -- special options, one-off individual stuff and also the Black Series.

"At the beginning it wasn't really sure we could satisfy the mindset of the AMG customers or that we could get other [brand's] customers. Now we can say it has been a very successful idea, or product. And therefore it's very clear that we will make more [Black Series models] in the future," Mornhinweg said.

According to the AMG boss the scope and number of Black products will be limited, however.

"Maybe not [a new model] each year. It depends on what sort of car might be the right one. You can imagine a four-seater or a four-door isn't the right [type of vehicle] but two-seaters are perfect," he said.

According to Mornhinweg, all future Black Series models will also be available in right-hand drive.

"With the SLK 55 [the first Black Edition], there I pushed my team very hard. The [development] time was very short… Therefore we had not the chance to make both left and right hand drive versions [of the SLK 55 Black]."

More aggressive aero packages and modifications are also on the agenda, Mornhinweg revealed.

"For Black Series, yes… AMG Driving academy started last year has five programs, the top notch of which is AMG Sports Trophy where in combination with the Black Series we offer for the customer races. Last year we had two races and I think it was a very good start to do more in the future. This year we will do three and I think there is room to do more."

As noted above, to help cater for the wider range of customers needs, the company has established the AMG Performance Studio. In addition to simpler modifications, in larger markets the Performance Studio offers a full-service environment. For Black Series buyers this extends to racetrack modifications -- even to fitting roll cages.

"We were not sure [initially] if AMG customers would do that. But we had very good feedback and therefore for these customers we can offer special options."

And the cars could get even more racetrack focused, says Mornhinweg -- including, eventually,  full FIA homologation models to allow AMG customers to compete against the likes of Porsche, Aston Martin and Ferrari in events like the Le Mans 24 Hour.

"Because the customers have stepped on that ladder, they can go with us and together we can offer more special things for the racetrack and so on.

"Step by step, [Mornhinweg says nodding and signaling yes to intention to make them homologation specials]… The point is we can do things big but our philosophy is, okay, we have a clear target where we would like to be, but try and get your customers with you."