What's wrong with AMG?

[artypossum]

What is going on with AMG? They make some of the most fabulous and powerful cars in the world and yet they still have no manual option, only automatic with steering wheel buttons. Or is that enough? Would a manual gearbox spoil the whole "AMG experience"? Your opinions would be much appreciated.

[TT]

AMGs ain't sporty cars ;) just fast and powerfull ones.. and their target as said by everso is for sure not really somebody willing to drive the car hard and enjoy heel-and-toe ;)

[st-anger]

what´s wrong...???

IMO only one thing: the weight :?

[TT]

For sure and well considering the amount of AMG cars around, they are right or at least, the market for such cars is at least as big as the one for more driving pleasure focused cars ;)

Of course when you think sporty car you never thing AMG, but still this is their way to go and they are doing very well :D

And everso well... the SL55 is not sporty... or better, when I think sporty I think Peugeot 306 S16, Renault Clio 172 (now 182), Lancer EVO, M3 and so on ;) the SL55 is still to "soft" ;) a sporty car (the sporty I meant) is a car that when driven on roads full of potholes make your spine beg for rest ;)

[SPEEDKILLAR]

Well guys its actually not AMG's fault, I think Merc should try more there best.

AMG can't start making changes to the weight and so on, how much would that cost, it has to come from Merc first.

And yes there is actually a market for it or else they wouldn't sell so much, if I had the chance(maybe later) I would buy me an AMG instantly.

And I agree it would be nice if they offered a manual, and there customer service could be a little bit more friendly and helpful.

How would it be if Brabus would be Mercedes's house tuner......









But still...............Mercedes-Benz for life.

[yg60m]

yeah, and i think there's nothing wrong with having a fast and powerful car without being able to do "heel and toe" techniques


I think this is the point of view of most F1 drivers as until this year, they didn't have to upshift/downshift and that they don't do "heel and toe" anymore :wink:
So the automatic gearbox is not such a problem, the problem is, as st-anger said, the weight but Audi and BMW don't do better :?

[stracing]

and thats why i like old sports cars. if you told engineers in the past to comsider saftey, noise levels, comfort etc betcha they would give you a bewildered look.

TT you want your spine scream out for rest? drive a DC2 integra type-r on some dusty roads.

like others have said, if AMG were to have manual boxes, it would have to come from Merc. doubt AMG will spend squillions to development a new gearbox. especially when they know they have the abilty to get 1200Nm of torque, i think alot more goes into building a strong one

[st-anger]

...hmmmm i wouldn´t add BMW to that list, they´re trying very hard to reduce the weight, especially ///M GmbH because we can´t compare AMG with BMW or Audi, better with ///M and Quattro, but just look at the recent ///M models, CSL, E60 M5....they´re trying...
i´m curious about the weight of to upcomming RS6 with the V10, and then compare it with the E60 M5.... :wink:

[TT]

it's a very hard classification to deem something a "sports car" these days. Have you heard the exhaust off the SL55 AMG? JC was right when he says it sounds like a fighter jet in combat...it's IMMENSE!

in my opinion, there is a miscellaneous element to classifying a sports car these days. there is a certain FEEL that a car should have to be deemed "sporty"....


Well I mean a car that connects you with the action a car that make you feel the road.. the SL55 sorry but lack on this (even if I never driven one, but every reviewer agree on that). A sporty car is a car that let you know when the lateral grip is almost gone.. and I prefer a car with way less lateral G available but with more feeling.. a car able to take corners superfast but that it does it for you it's far from a sporty car.. and that's the SL55 case...
I agree the sound is amazing, but well, not enough to make you feel the road ;)

Oh and BMWs are completely different from Mercs, sorry ;) as said by st-anger, the M department is completely different than the AMG one and aims to different customers ;)

[yg60m]

I think AMG are not conceived to make you feel the road but just to be a confortable, yet sporting, mean of move , and when you drive on both road and city you appreciate to have climate, automatic and comfort :wink:

[SPEEDKILLAR]

Just a side note, I still think Merc AMG's are the most durable and powerful engines around. :wink:

[SPEEDKILLAR]

I agree the sound is amazing, but well, not enough to make you feel the road


And what about the CLK DTM AMG, I bet it makes you fell the road pretty hard :x .

[BADMIHAI]

I don't think there's really anything wrong with them. Their target-market doesn't really include young, crazy people. They're more cruising cars...GTs and such. They're comfy and fast, but not real racers or anything like that.

[schnell318]

Did someone watch the Tsukuba Battle where there´s a CSL and an SL55 AMG among several other cars (Miata, S2000, Elise MkII, RX8), the CSL came about 13 seconds ahead of the SL55, with 140 bhp less i guess that just about explains the difference between AMG and ///M. 8)

[Chingachgook]

the philosophy. they don' build sports cars, but only GT for the retirement. Auto Gearbox, all the electronic it's possible to fit, all the weight it's possible to add...no no, if you want a real GT don't take the SL or the CL, buy a Quattroporte or a 575 :wink:

[SPEEDKILLAR]

Did someone watch the Tsukuba Battle where there´s a CSL and an SL55 AMG among several other cars (Miata, S2000, Elise MkII, RX8), the CSL came about 13 seconds ahead of the SL55, with 140 bhp less i guess that just about explains the difference between AMG and ///M. 8)


You're forgetting the important matter of weight difference.

[schnell318]

Did someone watch the Tsukuba Battle where there´s a CSL and an SL55 AMG among several other cars (Miata, S2000, Elise MkII, RX8), the CSL came about 13 seconds ahead of the SL55, with 140 bhp less i guess that just about explains the difference between AMG and ///M. 8)


You're forgetting the important matter of weight difference.No, I´m not, as everyone said, that just tells you what a different aproach each brand has.

[yslee]

yeah i wish AMG had manual gear box and an option to turn off traction control.

[MercedeSChink]

hey guys, after reviewing all the post, i must say something...first off, AMG is doing perfectly fine when choosing to stick with the automatic gearbox...although it is true that most of the owners of AMG cars are in the older ages, it is not the main reason...a manual gearbox maybe fun and sportier, but if you are going for speed and fast acceleration, a well tuned automatic gearbox is the way to go, many drag racers have an automatic gearbox for its quick and precise shifts...as for the CSL vs the SL55, you gotta look at the weight issue! and the body style, if you are gonna compare a CSL to a Merc vehicle it mite as well be the CLK DTM, cause of its weight and all the necessities in both are stripped out...bottom line AMG still rules and one of the best tuners in the world...

[MercedeSChink]

btw, traction control can be turned off but in higher speeds exceeding 40km/h i believe...

[amanthapar]

DrijF360... weight well thats not a problem.. it would be a problem if they lose some weight because then all the detailed stlyling and comfort would go etc etc etc etc.. then the point of a old man buying a sports car is lost...

[jpatino03]

TT you want your spine scream out for rest? drive a DC2 integra type-r on some dusty roads.



LOL! when my grandfather rode in my car, he asked if there was something wrong with the shocks, but the tradeoff is brilliant handling from a front driver!

[HeilSvenska]

AMG cars are not focused like say...the Motorsport division of BMW.

[crazyxzer0]

you are comparing a CSL vs a SL55? They are not in the same class for a chance. One is a race-bred limited edition car vs a more luxurious powerhouse city cruiser.

[WhiteP]

AMG doesn't build driver car IMO... all they built are powerful cruiser for rich guys!!

[sikx5]

i want AMG to make 6 speed mauals

[lappies]

Did someone watch the Tsukuba Battle where there´s a CSL and an SL55 AMG among several other cars (Miata, S2000, Elise MkII, RX8), the CSL came about 13 seconds ahead of the SL55, with 140 bhp less i guess that just about explains the difference between AMG and ///M. 8) :?

OK, so the csl gave the SL a bit of a pounding, but it is two totally different cars!! The csl is a modified m3 that underwent massive weight reductions, the car probably weighs as much as a vw golf! The car is only the bare minimum! Then, the SL is 100% pure german beef!! The car is heavy, it's a cabrio, which makes it even heavier. It's got all kinds of gadgets and so on in the car, and is comfortable to drive! I drove both, and if i had to travel more than 20 miles in the csl at a time, i would defenetly need a pair of new kidneys! Really, the two cars cant be compared at all! I bet if Merc shaved a few hundered kilo's (and comfort) of the C32 AMG, and put a rediculous pricetag on it (like the csl) it would probably give the csl a proper go!!

[SPEEDKILLAR]

^^^^^good explanation, couldn't have said it better myself. :wink:

[schnell318]

I bet if Merc shaved a few hundered kilo's (and comfort) of the C32 AMG, and put a rediculous pricetag on it (like the csl) it would probably give the csl a proper go!!

But they don´t, that´s all I´m saying, that shows what a different approach each brand has. Mercedes simply do NOT build drivers´cars in general. :wink:

[sentra_dude]

hey guys, after reviewing all the post, i must say something...first off, AMG is doing perfectly fine when choosing to stick with the automatic gearbox...although it is true that most of the owners of AMG cars are in the older ages, it is not the main reason...a manual gearbox maybe fun and sportier, but if you are going for speed and fast acceleration, a well tuned automatic gearbox is the way to go, many drag racers have an automatic gearbox for its quick and precise shifts...as for the CSL vs the SL55, you gotta look at the weight issue! and the body style, if you are gonna compare a CSL to a Merc vehicle it mite as well be the CLK DTM, cause of its weight and all the necessities in both are stripped out...bottom line AMG still rules and one of the best tuners in the world...

Can you improve your grammar a bit...I don't mean to sound rude, or insult you if your first language is not English; but a little capitalization and some periods here and there would make reading your posts a lot easier.

AMG is doing perfectly fine when choosing to stick with the automatic gearbox...although it is true that most of the owners of AMG cars are in the older ages, it is not the main reason...

You show your ignorance very plainly here. Yes, they are doing fine, selling lots of cars, but what about people who at least want the option of getting a manual?

Of course the fact that most of their owners are older is the reason they put autos on their cars...it has nothing to do with on track performance, and you are foolish to think so.

but if you are going for speed and fast acceleration, a well tuned automatic gearbox is the way to go

WTF?! You need to learn some stuff about cars dude. It is not the way to go! On average, torque converters bleed off at least 20-25% of your power, and more in some cases; while a manual will only take ~15% of your power. Man you don't know what you are talking about...

many drag racers have an automatic gearbox for its quick and precise shifts

LOL! That's completely different...those drag racers are running 9sec 1/4miles and have upwards of 800hp in a car that weighs 2500lbs...not 500hp in a 4500lb car that runs high 12sec 1/4miles. They use autos because they can do power shifting, they don't break as easily, and when you get past a certain 1/4mi time it makes more sense to use an auto.

All that to say, autos do not have benefits until you are well into the territory of full-on drag racer, and they hurt you on a road course.

[Ziploc]

IMO the new gen beemers have lost there "drivers-car" appeal to me. what kind of a sporty driver wants to fiddle with idrive? or sctive steering? or EBD? etc

the new 5 is to soft adn full of useless things if your in it for the driving experience

7 used to be a good full size performer ( transporter anyone? ) but now look at it! it looks like a gloob that would rather consume a gaurdrail then actually stay within its boundaries!

also auto only cars are creeping into the bmw range (7) and instead of smooth quock manuals they are pushing for SMGs. bah! what happeend to the simple yet luxurious bimmers with manual boxes for the wealthy with some driving skills?!

[ahmedgiyab]

What is going on with AMG? They make some of the most fabulous and powerful cars in the world and yet they still have no manual option, only automatic with steering wheel buttons. Or is that enough? Would a manual gearbox spoil the whole "AMG experience"? Your opinions would be much appreciated.

What's wrong with you?

Its OK like this....

Ppl who say that its ain't sporty.....(they NEVER drove a true AMG....)

:wink: :D

[amanthapar]

SOrry for quoting u but i would have said the same thing...

my opinion is the Mercedes/AMG is after a *certain* segment of car buyers. The segment that Mercedes is most popular with is the older male (estimate from 40 to 60 years old) and an AMG Mercedes is pretty much a sports car built for an older generation. It's not to say that older people aren't able to drive manual transmissions, but i think some of them just wanna CHILLLL in luxury and know that they have a heaping amount of power under the bonnet if they need it.

that being said, i love AMG Benz cars. If i was 45, i would certainly consider an E55 AMG or an SL55/65 AMG!!!!

[schnell318]

also auto only cars are creeping into the bmw range (7) and instead of smooth quock manuals they are pushing for SMGs. bah! what happeend to the simple yet luxurious bimmers with manual boxes for the wealthy with some driving skills?!

Times are changing, I think manual transmissions are bound to disappear. Even Ferrari doesn´t offer one in their flagship model and in my opinion is that it´s just a matter of time before all the others don´t :( sad but true.

[ludwig14]

Amg in my opinion is there to give bmw a run for its money, what the m did for bmw, amg is doing for mb... i wouldnt say that the m5 is a sports/exotic car or even the new m6, as i wouldn't say the sl55 or the slr are but the new 65 line will deff give lambo and the rest a good run. imagine your at a light in your 360 and a s65 pulls next to you, wow. you wouldn't know what happened to you, but sorry to say you lost. with that said amg is just there to show the world that you can drink you espresso and do 0-60 in under 4sec

[veilsidebr]

humm ya i've already thought about it, i just like manual gearboxed cars, not automatic, so i wouldn't buy an AMG Mercedes...

this is really an ignorant point of view of mercedes and AMG, because NOT every 60 years old man just likes auto gears...they just think about luxury, confort, and not performance...

[Ford Capri 2.8i]

Firstly AMG have got standarised a certain kind of client which any AMG car is designed for, this client normally likes cars as fast as any BMW rival at least, but with the usual confort, and cars easy to drive fast as well(engine with a lot of power in low revs, and car with progressive reactions in general)...and authomatic gearbox as well....and AMG goes straight to design a certain car for this kind of client.....the point that surprises me most nonetheless is that there is non any AMG version with a manual gearbox package as a option, whereas 90% authomatic cars has the option of a manual gearbox