Jakpro1

I would say this is pretty much the "beginning of the end" for the Benz horsepower wars don't ya think?? Does this sound like New Coke to anyone.

New quotes from head of Benz.

Zetsche said Mercedes will not be trying to be "sporty and cool" to compete more evenly with BMW and Audi. Instead, through new products and marketing, Mercedes-Benz will be emphasizing, style, comfort, and engineering. He summed up the strategy with the word, "appreciation." Said Zetsche, "We want customers to know that we very much appreciate them, and we want them to appreciate Mercedes for what we are and what we can do." As for a sporty image, he says, "I will leave that to the others…Mercedes should stand for and be for people who have arrived, and we shouldn't back away from that." Zetsche, known for his sense of humor, is quick to add. "It all depends on how you define young at heart in this business. We won't take it too far. No one wants to be seen as an old fart."

Bipasha493

"Been a hell of a war E55 gentlemen...

(open thread) but im going to sell my E55."




Thats what i thought i was going to see

C43AMG

I think the "others" are AMG.

oblax4

Great. Hope its not true. I wonder if he consulted with the AMG muckie-mucks before this press release! I can't see how they can completely walk away from their sport models and AMGs. I wonder what percentage of their revenue comes from these models. Can they really afford to, and why would they want to, drop a whole concept / philosopy from their stable? My gut tells me that there is a sizable subgroup of cutomers who stick with MB solely because of these cars - not everybody who has "arrived" wants to drive a standard "S"! Jeesh!!

cte430

This makes no sense. I recently read an article (in EVO I think) that was discussing MB/AMG raising the stakes in the performance dept. Specifically mentioned a more hard edged car. Complete opposite message to this one.

L8Apex

I read the same thing! It sounded like they were going to a club sport package ala Porsche.

E55 KEV

That Zetsche quote seems to mainly refer to Mercedes cars. Nothing to do with AMG cars. Likewise, he is referring to BMW and not M cars. We have nothing to worry about in the AMG department.

JamE55

Mercedes = Kleemann!!!

2QUIK4U

I think that the corporate dynamic at Mercedes Benz is such that AMG runs very independently from the parent company. Hence, when Zetsche makes a statement like that, I think that he is referring to the standard model MBs and not the AMG line.

If he is, this would be totally contradictory to recent comments made by Volker Mornhinweg, who was quoted in a number of publications stating that AMG intends to have more sportier versions that will be dubbed "track sport" or "club sport".

lowphat

I've always thought that Kleemann's "Comfort Power" slogan is a pretty soft approach to marketing their products, but jackpro's quote from Mercedes guy seems to fit in that same genre - obviously that's what Mercedes and Kleemann believe will appeal to their demographic?

Fikse

heh, since when has there been a war, MB has had the upperhand in HP for a long time.... I don't see any 600+HP factory Bimmers out there....

vader

I agree...I talked to an AMG tech at my dealer at length today...he drove an ML63 and said it was a MONSTER.4 wheels smoking with ESP off...and with it on...he said it was unlike anything he has ever experienced.....its going to be just fine down the road...AMG will bring the heat.

DFW01E55

Sorry guys, I have trouble taking this man seriously. I'm thankful that I don't report to him. (No, I am not now, nor was I ever an MB employee.)

cte430

I'm not sure I would necessarily agree with this point. At least up until now. What happens in the future may be different (and I'm hoping it is). I think MB has had a VERY tight control on AMG and they have not been all that independent.

I recall having a discussion with Rob Allen and tweaking him about the lack of "dynamics" in the AMG cars compared to M (I do this every time I talk to him). His response was that AMG would of course, be capable of building a car that handled like a go cart if it wanted to but "sportiness" was not a priority to MB. What they were interested in was: Safety, comfort, and then performance.

It was very clear that MB dictated to AMG that they should not stray too far from the corporate philosophy that was used to develop the MB cars.

I'm hoping it will change. There are some things that they should be able to address fairly easily that could heighten the driving experience without straying to far from their core philosophy.

m52e55

what happend to corporate board oversight and the company charter which stipulates no more than two steins of St. Pauli Girl before speaking to the press? was this guy drunk? ...let's hope.

jangy

Unfortunately, you guys are the ones that have had too many steins. We drive Benzes!!! LOL!! This is how it has been for as far back as I can remember. I hope the SC engine didn't bring a few stragglers into the MB family that would have otherwise gone elsewhere? Maybe AMG will kick out a new TT version of the 63 to keep your business?

RossN

Great Topic!

I think we need to back up a bit and see the context of his answer that he responded to. Since we don't know the question asked of him, his answer could very well be directed at "Mercedes" as a whole and not necessarily AMG. Zetsche is a performance guy so I wouldn't be so quick to discount AMG from improving it butt kicking ability across the board. I believe he was very instrumental in the birth and nurturing of the SRT group within Chrysler and look at those monsters they are creating for peanuts these days.

I read somewhere recently that the HP wars are NOT over. Audi will be coming with TT's soon and Cadillac believe it or not will have something with higher HP than currently offered. Who knows what Maserati might do with Ferrari engines as part of their DNA? The bar will continue to increase as long as we still buy the darn things. The cars are not getting any less safe so the Government stepping in not a reality.

Is the HP race over? I say not yet.

On the Plus Side on continued increases of HP, we still have some interesting technologies on the table.

- Direct Injection for one will allow us to have our cake and eat it to. High HP (10-15%) and 15 to 20 percent increase in economy. Do some research on Audi as this is their baby to date.

- We also have Pneumatically operated valves which F1 has used for quite some time but have not passed durability tests in production vehicles up to this point in time, but they will. That will allow your 7k rpm limited engine to now go to 10k, 12k, 14k, and up. When that happens, engine size will start decreasing as you will get the same performance from a 5L with a 4L engine.

Just to mention one HUGE Negative for HP increases, Rear Tire traction. Look at the rear tire size that the new E63 is coming with, IICR it is no larger than 265 width?? I understand that that reduced wheel width is very important to lessen rolling resistance and reduce excessive high buildup for sustained high speed operation, but the US does not fit inside this limited Design parameter. We would be much better served with a 285 at the minimum with an optional 295 as well.

Another minus could be that we are now reaching such HP levels that Drivers could use additional Training (except for women, they already know how to drive just ask anyone of them, haha). I think an AMG purchase in the US should come with several free High Performance Drivers Event coupons. This would attract more business for sure and also let a large number of AMG owners talk one on one with AMG Reps to tell them what we really would like to see in our cars.

Just my $.02.

SS3E55

...I think an AMG purchase in the US should come with several free High Performance Drivers Event coupons. This would attract more business for sure and also let a large number of AMG owners talk one on one with AMG Reps to tell them what we really would like to see in our cars.....


I second that ! I think offering this education is a win-win...AMG owners would be known for their skills and the cars would be in better hands. Besides the average skill level (as we all see everyday) is appallingly low (like my spelling skills ha,ha).
Seriously the average driver can barely understand the basics of vehicle control - try explaining something like roll axis inclination to someone at dinner to see the typical reaction...yes the physics can be tiresome but knowing the physics and driving with that knowledge is anything but.

IMHO all drivers should complete something like the AMG challenge every 4 years or so just to stay current and sharp...especially the young and the old who might for their own separate reasons, be in need of some extra education from time to time.....thinking about it - cancel that - just make everyone qualify to some basic level - start there and then move up. The accident rate would improve and daily driving might become less of an obstacle course...