- The Concept AMG XX will take the brand into its next chapter
- Three axial flux motors can propel the slippery shape to 224mph
- An LED light panel at the rear is one of many futuristic features
Mercedes-Benz has lifted the lid on the future of its revered tuning arm with the all-electric AMG GT XX concept, which eschews thundering V8 petrol engines for an all-electric powertrain.
Where customers once flocked to the hand-built, naturally aspirated monsters that lurked under the hood, Mercedes-AMG has been trapped between a rock and a hard place of late, dabbling with smaller capacity turbocharged engines and hybrid powertrains that have failed to hit the mark with Affalterbach aficionados.
“The heart of an AMG was always the motor, we’re delivering a revolutionary new drive that is unparalleled in terms of power density, weight and packaging,” says Mercedes-AMG CEO Michael Schiebe.
The new motor that Schiebe hopes will once again stir emotions is actually three axial flux electric motors that are around two-thirds lighter and 67% smaller than traditional radial flux motors that appear on most of today’s EVs.
Often referred to as ‘pancake motors’, axial flux drive units are made up of components that look like slim discs and, when stacked, can almost fit inside a pizza box, meaning they can be placed nearer the wheels for improved packaging.
Innovative rectangular copper wiring is then packed into tight coils, allowing for more copper per slot in the stator, creating an energy density that is almost three-times that of conventional, sausage roll-shaped radial motors, yet they take up just one third of the space.
To continue the food analogy, Mercedes-AMG likens the use of rectangular wiring to the Italian’s use of tagliatelle, rather than spaghetti, when cooking up a hearty Ragu, because “its flatter, broader surface carries more of the sauce”.
The Concept AMG GT XX uses three of these motors packed into two High Performance Electric Drive Units, one at the front that uses a single axial motor and a unit in the rear that features two.
Combined with all-new, cylindrical Nickel Cobalt Manganese Aluminum (NCMA) battery cells, the powertrain delivers staggering performance figures: 1,360hp, a top speed of 224mph and a top-up time of under five minutes thanks to 850kW charging capabilities.
Mercedes teamed up with charging experts Alpitronic to produce a prototype charging station that is capable of transmitting such a high current via a standard CCS connector.
It says it hopes to roll out its own 10,000-strong super-fast charging network using the technology by the next decade, although it wouldn’t say how many of those would be able to reach the 850kW output.
Aero everywhere
Taking inspiration from the ultra-slippery Vision One-Eleven concept car, the AMG GT XX has a drag coefficient of 0.198 – about the same as a soaring eagle or a dolphin at full speed, according to AMG engineers.
Specially-designed contours under the body help channel airflow, while active cooling flaps open and close in the front bumper to either reduce drag or funnel cold air to the battery packs and electric drivetrain.
In another world-first, the all-wheel-drive AMG GT XX also features active aero in the wheels, which feature electronically actuated blades that open when the brakes require cooling but then close again to reduce drag.
Cleverly, the wheels act as giant dynamos that charge the system so it doesn’t rely on the EV’s batteries. However, Mercedes wouldn’t go into detail about how much each wheel might cost if you accidentally curb it.
The overall fastback design is low and wide, the window steeply raked to help channel air over the car, with motorsport-inspired air outlets in the bonnet helping to dissipate warm air that is then funneled into the cooling system.
At the rear, there’s a monster diffuser that is finished in naked carbon fibre and a 3D pixel light panel that can display a variety of messages and graphics. During presentations, it gaudily flashed an animated AMG logo, the vehicle’s charge status or a series of naff messages.
I might not the be the target audience for this vehicle, but to me, it doesn’t feel very AMG. But that’s the point, right? This is the new AMG for the kids.
The concept vehicle is also finished in what Mercedes calls its “Fluid Light Paint”. This new-fangled pigment sees painted sections emit light in response to an electric current.
The result is an exterior light array, which runs along the flanks of the concept and visibility glows at nighttime.
It can even ‘communicate’ its battery level status when hooked up to a charging outlet, like a robotic vacuum cleaner or any other rechargeable electrical appliance, for that matter.
LEDs and loudspeakers
The headlights don’t escape innovation either, as these house a loud speaker that will emit driving sounds and audible signals for pedestrian protection. Passive membrane technology embedded into the soundbar can emit more powerful bass notes, for more realistic, guttural AMG noises.
Inside, Mercedes has replaced the traditional steering wheel with a yoke, which alludes to the fact that the production version of the AMG GT XX Concept could be among the first to sport the German marque’s steer-by-wire system.
The interior features plenty of exposed elements that make it feel like a GT racer, with 3D-printed seat pads that can be tailored to fit the driver and swapped out with ease.
These are clad in a Labfiber Biotech leather alternative material that is made from recycled GT3 racing tires, vegetable proteins and biopolymers.
It is an incredibly complex and scientific undertaking that results in a very hardy, leather-like substance, but there’s no information on how energy intense the process is compared to, say, raising a cow.
Twin LED displays make up the infotainment package, with a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster and a 14-inch multimedia touchscreen integrated into the dash and angled towards the driver for that race car ambience.
Mercedes says its MB.UX operating system will underpin the entire digital offering, bringing the latest infotainment features, despite the racy ambience.
Head designer Gordon Wagener said the entire design process was much shorter than a typical car (around a year, compared with three) and CTO Markus Schäfer claims that much of the technology revealed today is production-ready.
In fact, there is a tentative release date for the road-going car of sometime in 2026, despite the fact we are yet to glean information on total power output, battery range and, perhaps more importantly, price.
Schäfer says that “hardcore AMG V8 fans” have already driven the car and were very positive about the performance. Similarly, he says the sheer weight of technology on the car will help protect residual values.
Whether or not combustion engine fans will be convinced by pixel panels and fake engine noises is yet to be seen, while poor resale values continue to blight high-performance, luxury EVs.
Mercedes only has to look at its recent electrified G-Wagon for proof that its current customer base perhaps isn’t quite ready for the future.
