How AMG boss Moers is pushing his limits

Menus

• The man with a built-in full throttle guarantee
• Attentions for car enthusiasts
• There are also moments of happiness in the office
• From the tuning cabinet of curiosities
• At the limit through the Fuchsrohre
• The C 63 AMG is a Porsche fright
• Tobias Moers, AMG boss

The man with a built-in full throttle guarantee

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It’s all a question of profile: the 4.55-meter-long Mercedes-AMG GT is a classic beauty with its extremely long bonnet. The pleasant ones …

Source: Daimler

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… Proportions stem from the basic technical concept: the V8 biturbo engine sits at the front, but as far behind the front axle as possible, and the transmission moved towards the rear axle.

Source: Daimler

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In the interior, the very wide center console testifies to the engine that is set far back and which simply needs a bit of space – and the center console is noticeable when driving …warms up.

Source: Daimler

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The most interesting rotary switch is located on the front left of the center console. You can use it to select the driving modes: Comfort, Sport, Sport Plus and Race are available, and if you can …

Source: Daimler

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… If you choose “Individual” from the menu, you can then choose how you want the steering, throttle response, shift times or damper settings to behave.

Source: Daimler

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The various functions are then also displayed on the central monitor above the four ventilation nozzles. It’s all well thought out and nicely done, but the …

Source: Daimler

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… actual music is playing up front, under the hood. The four-liter V8 develops 462 hp in the AMG GT and 510 hp in the GT S tested, with maximum torque being 600 and respectively …650 Newton meters, and the sound is simply unbelievable. Above all …

Source: Daimler

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… In the GT S with its switchable performance exhaust system, a first-class V8 rumble is generated. In the sportier speed levels it is also almost obtrusively loud, and …when switching gears it pops and scoffs from the exhaust pipes that there is some sort of thing.

Source: Daimler

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The hatchback is unusual for a sports car with a star, but refers to the historic SL models, especially the legendary Uhlenhaut Coupe, of which only two are… were built. Under the …

Source: Daimler

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… large tailgate there is 350 liters of storage space. The loading sill is high, but otherwise everything is easily accessible. In return, the AMG GT saved the two emergency seats for …Co-drivers number two and three (which are still there on the Porsche 911), yes …

Source: Daimler

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… We just want to forgive this wonderful driving machine for that. The car will be available from March 2015, with the more powerful GT S initially coming on the market for 134,351 euros, later…ter the GT for 115,430 euros.

Source: Daimler

In Tobias Moers, AMG has a manic car developer at the helm. He prefers to be on the test track. Because here he experiences the greatest feelings of happiness.

E.t is unbelievable how fast the man can switch. Just now, while driving on the test track in Papenburg, Lower Saxony, he talks about challenges, coordination, developments – Tobias Moers is the head of the company. And then suddenly he does something unexpected.

That means dynamic area here, a few hectares of asphalt stretch around the car, Moers looks over at his co-driver, and before you know it, he has put the AMG GT into a controlled drift. Tires screech, smoke rises, it ends in a donut, a kind of pirouette on wheels.

When you meet Tobias Moers, you meet someone who has clearly turned his hobby into a profession. He works twelve to 14 hours a day, he has a family (two small children), what other pastimes can he afford??

Attentions for car enthusiasts

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Warning, optical illusion: Oh, how nice it would be if there wasn’t an old Golf in your own garage, but a Lamborghini. Significantly cheaper than a supercar …are the adhesive films from Style Your Garage. For 199 euros you are the owner of a dream car – you just can’t open the garage. (style-your-garage.com)

Source: styleyourgarage.com

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For athletes: a day in the Alfa Romeo 4C sports car is unforgettable. And also sweaty at a rapid pace. But if you sweat even more if you ride the two-wheeler Alf…a 4C IFD (from 3500 euros) really hits the pedals. (compagniaducale.net)

Source: Alfa Romeo

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For petrolheads: Getting to the bottom of things, who doesn’t want that? What does the combustion chamber look like from the inside? Is there rust in the sills, where does this mysterious cable go? A.…Answers are provided by the Voltcraft BS-25HR endoscope for 79.99 euros. (conrad.de)

Source: VOLTCRAFT

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For Ferraristi: Gunther Raupp pays homage to the myth with garish high-noon photos. The Swabian chooses Florida and places in the region around the Ferrari pilgrimage site of Maran as the backdrop…ello.

Source: Gunther Raupp

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The highlight is a beautiful blue Ferrari 365 GTB4 Daytona from 1973. From 79.90 euros. (raupp.com)

Source: Gunther Raupp

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For convertible drivers: The woolen hat from East Berlin-based car fashion company Sourkrauts comes in a retro pattern and with a fluffy inner fleece. That should work, of course even without A…uto. 29.90 euros. (sourkrauts.de)

Source: Sourkrauts

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For fans of cool drinks: The metal refrigerator from SMEG in the Fiat 500 look holds around two crates of beer and costs 6,999 euros. (ambientedirect.com)

Source: Fiat

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For ghost hunters: This toy is ideal to either re-enact childhood or to introduce children to the classic movie "Ghostbusters". Lego offers the Kultgeisterjagerau…to Ecto 1 including minifigures for 49.99 euros. (shop.lego.com)

Source: Lego

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For the fashion-conscious: honey, I bought you an AMG! – If the budget is not enough for such expensive gifts, then you should at least have a nail polish set with original …Be inside vehicle paint colors from Mercedes. (shop.mercedes-benz.com)

Source: Daimler

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For ski lovers: sliding around on the glacier in an all-wheel drive Mini in Solden is great fun. Braking and evasive exercises give you a feeling of snow before e…s goes to spin training with the traction aids turned off. 720 euros including food and snowcat ride. (mini.de/driving_experience)

Source: Mini

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For tasty teeth and big Vettel fans: Until the next Formula 1 season starts, you can enjoy a chocolate racing car from Hussel (10.95 euros). (hussel.de)

Source: Hussel

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For those in need of security: Breitling watches and luggage are already available from Bentley, now the British are adding a tailor-made safe. Just the handle of the 115,000 euro pa…nzerschranks weighs 3.5 kilos and takes 16 hours in production. (stockinger.com)

Source: Bentley

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For those who are punctual: watches usually make sense for astronauts and deep divers. The robust 956 rally chronograph is easy to read, but without the graphic weight and mass of an F.…Recumbent watch, smooth, precise and clear and not a silly tachometer copy. From 2590 euros. (sinn.de)

Source: sense

"Every now and then I cut a tree," says Moers, who grew up in the Black Forest and made some extra money as a student with forest work. Preparing a tree so that it tips in exactly the right direction, he can, and he practices it every now and then in his own piece of forest. But otherwise: always only cars, more precisely – fast cars.

He hired AMG in 1994 and has steadily risen there, from project manager to person responsible for vehicle development to chairman of the management board since the end of 2013. The first two AMG sports cars developed in-house are closely linked to Moers‘ career: the gullwing SLS and the GT, which is now replacing the SLS, but is not intended to replace it.

“We thought it over very carefully. The GT shouldn’t be a successor to the SLS, the cars should stand for themselves. ”You can already see that in the fact that the new car is not bigger, stronger and more expensive than the old one, but a little smaller, not quite as powerful and – well yes – cheaper. The 462 PS version costs 115,430 euros, while the GT S with 510 costs 134,351 euros.

There are also moments of happiness in the office

This is the first time that a sports car with a Mercedes star is approaching the price range of the Porsche 911. This segment is “highly competitive”, says Moers, but he is not afraid of the famous competition from Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, and that may be due to the question he was asking asks almost every day: "Do we still have to do something?"

The 30-strong AMG team in Papenburg is currently taking care of the cars that are to come onto the market in the next two years. And it was only in the morning that you had to say very clearly “Yes” to one of these cars when asked whether something still had to be done.

Another model has obviously moved up a notch, boss and team were satisfied. “Those are moments of happiness,” says Moers. “But there are also those in the office.” Even though he is considered a manic car developer and coordination driver, he also enjoys dealing with brand development and strategy, says Moers.

Tobias Moers, the head of AMG, at the world premiere of the Mercedes AMG GT sports car

Source: dpa

At the moment things are going very well: As with the toughest competitor, BMW M GmbH, both model diversity and sales figures are growing at AMG. Moers can look back on a record year in 2013, also because the AMG versions of the A-Class and CLA tapped new groups of buyers.

For 2014 he expects an increase of a further 25 percent. AMG is still a niche manufacturer, however, worldwide sales in 2013 were a good 32,000 cars (neck and neck with M GmbH), and the goal is to soon reach 50,000. The question is: how exclusive does an AMG have to be? When is the arc overstretched??

“The products have to embody the brand essence: Driving performance,” says Moers, “then they will also be accepted. You just can’t put sham packs on the street. ”In order to achieve this goal, you need a lot of gut instinct. "Much more than most outsiders think."

From the tuning cabinet of curiosities

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Roadster with wings: with such add-on parts from the Mercedes tuner Koenig Specials, SL drivers can be sure of undivided attention.

Source: picture alliance / dpa tmn

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Breitbau: This classic golf car drifting through the curve is also conspicuous through and through. Abt once installed a turbo engine with 163 hp under the hood of the GTI.

Source: picture alliance / dpa tmn

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It all started with the red pig: Mercedes tuner AMG caused a sensation among tuning fans with this motorsport conversion of the S-Class. The Affalterbacher are considered to be one of the most renowned…test factory forges in the world.

Source: picture alliance / dpa tmn

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Boah-ey-factor: Imposing spoiler brand "French fries counter" at the rear of this Mercedes, also from Koenig Specials.

Source: picture alliance / dpa tmn

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A converted VW Beetle with exposed wheels.

Source: picture alliance / dpa

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This Opel Manta has also been badly alienated.

Source: picture alliance / gms

Moers remembers the AMG version of the new S-Class. "We threw out the front axle a year before the sales start." That is a rather short-term action with such a crucial component, but it was about the icing on the cake, perfection.

For the boss, such actions are part of what he calls the "spirit". AMG has been owned by Daimler AG since 2005, and the group has held 51 percent since 1999, but it is important for Moers to maintain the spirit of a medium-sized company. The remote location in Affalterbach, about an hour’s drive from Daimler headquarters, helps with this – and a party every now and then.

At the limit through the Fuchsrohre

After the GT was unveiled, Moers invited the entire workforce, more than 1200 employees, as well as their partners. “They sit at home while their men and women are in Sweden or in Papenburg. We have engineers who are regularly gone for four or six weeks at a time. It is important to me that that is valued. "

The GT should not be a successor to the SLS, the cars should stand for themselves.

Tobias Moers, AMG boss

Moers knows, however, that people who do not make voting trips every day can hardly tell what he and his team are actually doing. Doesn’t every car turn a corner when you turn the steering wheel? Why do you have to know something about avoiding "two-phase" steering?

Why can the storage of the engine and transmission in the car be such a full-length topic? “If the car is agile and precise on the racetrack,” says Moers, “then the customer benefits from it in their everyday life. The customer should have a grin on their face every morning. "

And best of all when starting the engine. “Sound is an extremely important topic.” One could ask the question whether this is even possible with a biturbo like the one used in the GT. Naturally aspirated engines, i.e. those without a turbocharger, are often more convincing acoustically. According to what you hear in Papenburg, AMG is on the right track, although the car, which is still provided with camouflage stickers, is not the measure of all things. Too loud overall, says Moers, and when idling the V8 sounds too much like a "fishing cutter".

The C 63 AMG is a Porsche fright

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If the current C-Class is too conservative for you, you should think about the C 63 AMG. The souped-up variant not only has a strongly contoured bonnet, but …

Source: Daimler

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… also a lot more power. With the 4.0-liter V8 engine with twin turbo, the car has 476 hp and 650 Nm, as the C 63 S even 510 hp and 700 Nm are in the data sheet.

Source: Daimler

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The tuned C-Class accelerates from zero to 100 km / h in 4.0 or 4.2 seconds. That has nothing to do with the down-to-earth attitude of a normal C-Class …do, this vehicle clearly plays in the Porsche league.

Source: Daimler

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Those who not only want to be fast but also want a little more space can buy the C 63 AMG as a T-model.

Source: Daimler

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Like the sedan, the power station wagon has a sports suspension, adjustable dampers, a seven-speed gearbox with different shift programs and even ceramic brake discs.

Source: Daimler

The AMG boss is very good at naming things. As an employee, you don’t make him happy if you mess around. That may have something to do with the fact that he can’t think twice about the test drives on the Nurburgring’s Nordschleife.

Decide, steer, accelerate. As the boss, Moers doesn’t sit in the car that much anymore, but still often enough to get to know each of the 73 corners so well that he has to think long and hard about which one is his favorite.

In the end, he opts for the Fuchsrohre, that famous depression into which you throw yourself with a good 250 things in order to expose people and cars to extreme pressure for about a second. The guardrail is so close, nothing should go wrong here. “It’s fun to be at the limit, both dynamically and technically. For me, it’s about exploring limits, sometimes personal ones too. "

Tobias Moers, AMG boss

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