AMG chose the Nurburgring as location of choice for their 50th Anniversary celebrations as the brand has a strong connection with the famous circuit in the German Eifel. ‘Born on the racetrack’ defines the AMG DNA and spirit, AMG is testing no less than 17 weeks a year at the Green Hell – the ultimate proving ground for road and race cars.

In its 50th Anniversary year AMG is doing very well. With a line-up of more than 50 different models they are expected to sell more than 100,000 cars this year. More than 1,600 employees work on developing new models and building the famous AMG engines according to the one-man-one-engine philosophy.

The current highlight in the line-up is without a doubt AMG’s own GT. Currently offered in seven different versions and AMG CEO Tobias Moers promises there is more to come.

So what can we expect from AMG the coming years?

It is no secret that AMG plans to expand it’s model line-up even further. Recent additions like the GLC 63 and the various 43 models shows AMG’s ambition. In the next few years we can expect AMG versions of new compact cars like the Concept A Sedan shown in Shanghai. The Mercedes-AMG GT Concept teased at this year’s Geneva Motor Show with alternative drive train technology and of course the F1-powered AMG Project ONE Hypercar. The alternative drivetrain technology in the AMG GT Concept and AMG Project ONE hypercar is called EQ Power+ and stands for high performance hybrids and possibly even full electric AMG models that are coming in the next few years.

The outlook for AMG is bright but it has a lot to thank for iconic cars produced in the past. AMG was founded in Burgstall in 1967 by Hans-Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher as an “engineering office, design and testing for the development of racing engines”. The letters AMG stand for Aufrecht, Melcher and Großaspach – the birthplace of Aufrecht. It is hard to compress a 50 year history in one article so instead we have selected our five highlights from AMG’s 50 year history.

Top 5 favorite AMG models from the past 50 years

AMG 300 SEL 6.8 – ‘Rote Sau’

The famous red pig put AMG on the map after a heroic class victory at the Spa 24 Hours race in 1972. The original no longer exists but AMG has a replica of the ‘Rote Sau’ in their collection that we were able to experience on the Silvretta Classic Rally last year.

AMG 300E 6.0 – ‘The Hammer’

Dubbed the Hammer by customers in the United States this 6.0 liter 360hp monster took the 1980s by storm.

Mercedes-Benz 190 E 2.5-16 Evolution II

The most iconic AMG DTM car celebrated success in the early 1990s and is somewhat of a personal childhood hero along with other iconic cars like the Ferrari F40.

Mercedes-Benz CLK-GTR

AMG literally owned the FIA GT World Championship in 1998 winning all of the eleven races that season. Following the racing success a group of enthusiasts asked AMG to build a limited number of road going CLK-GTRs – the rest is history. The cockpit of the road-going car has the same dimensions as the race car and I still refer to it as ‘claustrophobia on wheels’.

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG

The first complete car developed as an AMG from the ground up is the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. Inspired by the 300 SL Gullwing from the 1950s it further established AMG’s name as a performance car manufacturer. Several different versions of the SLS AMG were built, for us the most remarkable are the SLS AMG Black Series and the SLS AMG Electric Drive – which set the Nurburgring record for fastest electric car.

We wish AMG a great 50th Anniversary and look forward to what the next decades have to bring!

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