A while ago, Mercedes AMG announced that they would only focus on producing high performance sports cars, completely leaving hybrids and electrics out of the equation because they did not go with their lineup. Apparently, the company has reconsidered their little statement. During a recent interview with Autoblog, Ola Källenius, Chairman of the Board of Management at Mercedes-Benz AMG said that the company is now taking under consideration an "electrified" future.
The first model for this greener future will be the SLS AMG E-Cell, which the AMG Division is still working on. Källenius couldn’t confirm the official specs, range, or curb weight because those numbers are still to be determined, but he did say that the sports car’s lithium-ion battery packs will not weigh down the vehicle and that its performance will be "exceptional." Orders will begin in the middle of 2012 and the first deliveries will be made in 2013.
The SLS AMG e-Cell, however, will only be the beginning of AMG’s future technologies. Mercedes performance division is also working on both electric drivetrains and the implementation of some sort of a Kinetic Energy Recovery System (KERS), but Källenius did not offer any details on the models expected to carry this future technology.
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02.24.2012 @ 02:39