AMG's 805 horsepower hybrid V8s will make it to production... one day
Tobias Moers envisions a bright, exciting and at least partly electric future for Mercedes-AMG.
Do you remember the 2017 Geneva Motor Show, where Mercedes-AMG showed off the concept that would become the AMG GT 4-Door Coupe? Well, just in case you forgot, that concept had a hybrid variant of AMG's much-loved 4.0-liter turbocharged V8 that produced 805 horsepower. Unfortunately, that motor didn't make it into the production 4-Door, but AMG boss Tobias Moers says it will enter production at some point.
Just think about that number: 805 horsepower. That's nearly as much as a Dodge Demon, from an engine that is two-thirds the size, smaller if you don't count the massive positive-displacement supercharger. It's really, really hard not to love AMG, you know?
This sexy concept, which debuted at Geneva in 2017, had an 805 horsepower hybrid V8.
According to the interview with Moers, AMG will design its own battery pack to make sure it's as light as possible. The chassis for this new, semi-hypothetical hybrid will utilize lots of carbon fiber to increase stiffness and keep weight down. These are good things, since we almost always love the way a hybrid system affects power delivery in a performance vehicle, but detest the effects of added weight.
Moers went on to state that in addition to hybrid systems and fully-electric cars -- which we've reported on previously -- AMG is in the process of developing electric turbochargers for its gasoline engines. Now, when you think electric turbocharger, please don't think of the As Seen On TV things that get shoved into your Corolla's intake tube. These electric turbos are often used to preload the exhaust-driven turbochargers to help improve response time. Several production cars are already using the technology like the Audi SQ7.
Mercedes-AMG's Project One has the heart of an F1 car and is starting to trickle its tech down to the rest of the lineup.
Much of this advanced powertrain technology is working its way down from AMG's nutty Project One hypercar which boasts a hybrid drivetrain and a Formula 1-derived turbocharged V6 engine making more than 1,000 hp, you know, in case you forgot that we were living in a golden age of automotive engineering or something.
