Mercedes-Benz, through its AMG division, makes some of the best large-displacement engines in the world, and if you were wondering how long they were going to keep at it, in the face of increasingly-stringent emissions laws, we now have an answer for you directly from the AMG Chairman himself, Ola Källenius.
In a talk with Edmunds, the AMG boss said that we can expect to see the firm’s V12 engines in action for “a minimum of five or six year,” after which they will be replaced with something considerably greener. This means that if you want an AMG V12, the hourglass has already been turned and the countdown has begun…
AMG says that the 355 hp turbocharged four-pot unit found under the bonnet of the CLA45 AMG and the A45 AMG is currently “the absolute limit of what’s possible from a 2.0-liter engine with today’s technology.”
On the matter of hybrids, Källenius states that he does see a future for the tech powering sporty cars, but its time is not yet upon us. “Hybrid is going to be in the future of even sports cars. We will do the hybrid when the market is ready for it and in markets due to their regulations. We can act and react relatively quickly if we see a change. We can use Mercedes-Benz technology in the cars very fast,” he concluded.
Currently, the main cited reason for not using hybrid tech is the extra weight brought about by batteries. Another thing that will force AMG to go green(er) would be for these hybrids to become law-mandated, in which case they will be left with no choice – but that really is a long way into the future…
Finally, despite the fact that both BMW and Audi now have very hot diesel versions of some of their cars (BMW even used its M badge on a few) AMG will not do an oil-burner. Quoting Källenius again, he makes it very clear in the interview with Edmunds: “We should never say never to a diesel or anything else, but I cannot see a circumstance that would change that possibility for us — what the diesel cannot do compared to a direct-injection gasoline engine is the aggressiveness and pure delivery and sound. And the advantage a diesel has in economy is growing smaller all the time. We are not changing the AMG brand to accommodate diesels.”
By Andrei Nedelea
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