Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com Autoblog http://www.blogsmithmedia.com/www.autoblog.com/media/feedlogo.gif Autoblog http://www.autoblog.com en-us Copyright 2009 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only. Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/<![CDATA[Drop the Hammer: Getting schooled with AMG Driving Academy at Lime Rock]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/02/drop-the-hammer-getting-schooled-with-amg-driving-academy-at-li/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/02/drop-the-hammer-getting-schooled-with-amg-driving-academy-at-li/http://www.autoblog.com/2009/11/02/drop-the-hammer-getting-schooled-with-amg-driving-academy-at-li/#commentsFiled under: , , , , , ,

AMG Driving Academy at Lime Rock - Click above for high-res image gallery

The world's sickly economy not withstanding, selling luxury vehicles is easy. From the suppleness of a swatch of leather to the exquisite graining on a piece of rare wood veneer to having every electronic gewgaw available at one's fingertips, what defines a luxury car is essentially self-evident. To a substantial degree, everyone knows quality and true luxury when they see and feel it. The same cannot be so easily said when it comes to matters of high performance.

Selling luxury may be easy, but as AMG has figured out, selling high-performance is a heck of a lot more fun.
As one of the globe's premiere aspirational brands, Mercedes-Benz would appear to have the luxury selling routine knocked. But the company's AMG performance division has become an increasingly prominent part of its portfolio and bottom line, and these vehicles attract a different sort of customer and require a different marketing approach. Thankfully, as AMG has become increasingly important to Mercedes, its product line has risen in quality and dynamic performance. But while luxury and quality are easily conveyed, how do you sell four-wheeled thrills?

The thing is, as an automotive marketer, you can preach how great your sports car is until you're blue in the face, but until you're able to really show people how superior your vehicle is, you're never going to win them all over. And if you're like AMG, your offerings have become way too fast and capable to be safely exploited on public roads. So what's Mercedes to do? Why, give current and potential owners the chance to explore the dynamic limits of both their automobiles and themselves in a fun, legal, educational, and most importantly, safe environment. Enter the AMG Driving Academy.

Mercedes has offered its AMG driving program overseas for some time now, but this year is the first time they've brought the experience to the States. With events at Connecticut's storied Lime Rock Park, Florida's Palm Beach International Raceway, and California's legendary Laguna Seca, the venues Mercedes has chosen are certainly top-notch. But what about the experience? We had to find out for ourselves.


Gallery: AMG Driving Academy at Lime Rock Park

Continue reading Drop the Hammer: Getting schooled with AMG Driving Academy at Lime Rock

Drop the Hammer: Getting schooled with AMG Driving Academy at Lime Rock originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 02 Nov 2009 14:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>advanced drivingAdvancedDrivingAffelterbachAMGAMG Driving AcademyAmgDrivingAcademyC63 AMGC63AmgDriving schoolDrivingSchoolE63 AMGE63AmgfeaturedLime RockLimeRockMercedes AMGMercedes-Benz AMGMercedes-benzAmgMercedesAmgracing schoolRacingSchoolSL63 AMGSl63AmgSLK63 AMGSlk63AmgTommy KendallTommyKendallMon, 02 Nov 2009 14:58:00 EST<![CDATA[Mercedes to open 175 AMG Performance Centers worldwide]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/11/26/mercedes-to-open-175-amg-performance-centers-worldwide/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/11/26/mercedes-to-open-175-amg-performance-centers-worldwide/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/11/26/mercedes-to-open-175-amg-performance-centers-worldwide/#commentsFiled under: , ,


Click above for a high-res gallery of the AMG Performance Center

In case there was any doubt that demand for big-displacement, high-output machines continues unabated in the face of calls for environmentally-conscious hybrids and a faltering global economy, Mercedes has announced an ambitious expansion of its AMG performance division. Over the course of the next year, AMG will open a whopping 175 new "performance centers" catering to power-mad consumers around the world.

The new outlets will allow an increased level of involvement for AMG customers as Mercedes moves to distinguish the tuning house's offerings as their own brand. Each outlet will be outfitted with matching décor and whatnot, but more importantly, will offer customers a direct line to AMG's performance Mecca in Affalterbach, Germany, and act as a local home base for the AMG Performance Roadshow. The expansion will focus on 15 key markets, including the United States, Japan, China, and of course, its home market of Germany. As if customers needed any more coercion to fall for a fire-breathing Teutonic masterpiece of engineering. Hit the jump for the details.

Gallery: Mercedes-Benz AMG Performance Center

Continue reading Mercedes to open 175 AMG Performance Centers worldwide

Mercedes to open 175 AMG Performance Centers worldwide originally appeared on Autoblog on Wed, 26 Nov 2008 19:01:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>amgamg dealershipamg franchiseamg performance centeramg performance centreamg performance roadshowAmgDealershipAmgFranchiseAmgPerformanceCenterAmgPerformanceCentreAmgPerformanceRoadshowmercedesmercedes amgmercedes-benzmercedes-benz amgMercedes-benzAmgMercedesAmgWed, 26 Nov 2008 19:01:00 EST<![CDATA[Mercedes launching AMG awareness campaign]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2008/02/04/mercedes-launching-amg-awareness-campaign/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/02/04/mercedes-launching-amg-awareness-campaign/http://www.autoblog.com/2008/02/04/mercedes-launching-amg-awareness-campaign/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Stand anywhere near where an AMG Mercedes is driving and you'd have to be deaf not to hear it. But Mercedes-Benz is convinced that too few potential customers have heard of its performance range, so it's launching an awareness campaign around the United States that seeks to raise the profile of its top shelf performance models.

The project involves the establishment of AMG Performance Centers, a focused advertising campaign and a product-demonstration road show. An initial pilot project will involve seven dealers in California, Florida and New York, but by the end of the year, Mercedes expects that its top 30 dealerships - representing 80% of AMG sales in the US - will sign on to the program. Mercedes will subsidize dealerships on the cost of setting up separate AMG areas within their dealerships and training service personnel, as well as bringing the road show to town, which will demonstrate limited edition AMG models - we're thinking Black Series here - to select customers.

[Source: Automotive News - sub. req'd]

Gallery: AMG CLK63 "Black Edition"

Mercedes launching AMG awareness campaign originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 04 Feb 2008 19:41:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>amg awareness campaignamg performance centersamg road showamg salesAmgAwarenessCampaignAmgPerformanceCentersAmgRoadShowAmgSalesmercedes amgmercedes-benz amgMercedes-benzAmgMercedesAmgMon, 04 Feb 2008 19:41:00 EST<![CDATA[New York Preview: AMG debuting mystery model]]>http://www.autoblog.com/2007/03/23/new-york-preview-amg-debuting-mystery-model/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/03/23/new-york-preview-amg-debuting-mystery-model/http://www.autoblog.com/2007/03/23/new-york-preview-amg-debuting-mystery-model/#commentsFiled under: , ,



Owners of a Mercedes-Benz AMG model who have access to the brand's Private Lounge website have been notified that a mystery model from AMG will make its world debut at the New York Auto Show in a couple of weeks. The only hint as to what model it might be are a few detail pics and a profile shot of the car cloaked in a sheet. As for what model it could be, World Car Fans suggests that it's likely the AMG C 63, the high-performance version of the new Mercedes-Benz C-Class that was only officially debuted earlier this month in Geneva. We tend to agree, although the profile shot shows the contour of a door handle that belongs to the front passenger door, but not a corresponding handle for the rear passenger door. All questions will be answered in early April when we're on hand as the cover's pulled.

[Source: World Car Fans]

New York Preview: AMG debuting mystery model originally appeared on Autoblog on Fri, 23 Mar 2007 17:34:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Read | Permalink | Email this | Comments]]>AMGmercedes-benzmercedes-benz amgMercedes-benzAmgnew york auto showNewYorkAutoShowFri, 23 Mar 2007 17:34:00 EST