SLK muscles up

While its aim may be to break records by finding 400 new owners for its musclebound AMG cars in 2005, Mercedes-Benz maintains that sheer sales volume is not the main priority.

With the cheapest AMG tagged at $159,900 and the most expensive topping out at $459,900, it’s clear that, unless the numbers drop spectacularly, annual dollar turnover from AMG product is always going to be high.

And with 367 cars sold locally last year, a drop in AMG sales doesn’t look like a possibility. This is a healthy figure for a luxury market sub-niche which, interestingly, closely approximates the annual sales of Porsche’s 911 models. It illustrates the growth of the AMG brand since it was first launched here in 1995 to the tune of just 14 sales nationally. Since then 1827 AMG cars have gone to Australian owners.

Annual AMG sales continued to rise after the high-performance operation was brought into the Mercedes-Benz fold in 1999, although the company does not see, or necessarily want to see, the figure going much higher than 400 a year in the near future.

Volume is not as important as unit profit. According to DaimlerChrysler public affairs manager Toni Andreevski, "If there’s no new product in a year, we are happy to sell less. We are demand driven, not supply driven." AMG representation in Australia, in fact, is proportionately out of phase with the local penetration by Mercedes-Benz in general.

According to Andreevski, Australia accounts for one per cent of global Mercedes-Benz sales, while local AMG sales represent two per cent of the world market.

All this justifies what at first looks like a huge number of models for relatively few annual sales.

At present Mercedes-AMG offers no less than 12 AMG-badged models, from the C-class based C55 sedan to the SL65 roadster. Just one SL65 AMG sale can bring the dollar equivalent of nine base C-class models.

The AMG role within Mercedes-Benz is to broaden the brand image, to demonstrate there’s genuine fire in the loins of a company that in the past has been accused of being staid, and almost arrogant, in its perceptions of where it belonged in the marketplace.

New Mercedes-AMG product for 2005 includes the long-awaited SLK55, which shoehorns under its bonnet the same 5.5-litre V8 used in other AMG models, from C-class through to S-class, to create an inspirational sports convertible that really has no clear competitor on the local market. It’s a long way from the base, four-cylinder SLK200 and at $161,900 approaches being twice as expensive.

And it asserts clear authority over its predecessor, the SLK32, which was powered by a supercharged version of the 3.2-litre Mercedes V6.

The SLK55 dispenses with the less than positive image that was undeservedly attached to the first series SLK, adding a touch of luxury to underpin its searing performance and justify its price tag. It is also the only member of the AMG crop to use the new Mercedes seven-speed 7G-TRONIC automatic transmission.

Then there’s the even more outrageous slipping of the 1000Nm, twin-turbocharged 6.0-litre V12 – already seen in the SL65 and CL65 - into the S-class. There’s hardly any way of looking at the S65 AMG that brings to mind staid conservatism.

At $435,900 this is an exceedingly expensive S-class. But it’s also among the fastest-accelerating four-door saloons on the market, able to reach 100km/h from a standstill in a brief, head-spinning 4.4 seconds.

The S65 joins an impressive rollup which already included V12 versions of the CL coupe and the SL roadster.

Mercedes says the two-seat SL65, which was launched in October 2004 and has already attracted 20 customers, is the "most powerful roadster in the world." With a claimed ability to accelerate from zero to 100km/h in just 4.2 seconds there’s no real ground for argument.

Of the current AMG range, the supercharged, V8-engined CL55, that was launched here in 2001, is the oldest. It was followed by the SL55 and S55 in 2002, then the CLK55 and E55 in 2003. In addition to the SL65, the C55, CLK55, E55 sedan and estate, and CL65 all arrived in October 2004.

The 5.5-litre, 24-valve V8 comes in normally aspirated 270kW form in C55 and CLK55 and, slightly de-tuned to 265kW, in the SLK55. E-class and S-class, CL coupe and SL roadster all get supercharged versions producing 350kW in E-class, and 368kW in S, CL and SL-class.

The twin-turbo, 6.0-litre V12 produces 450kW and 1000Nm in S65, CL65 and SL65 AMG versions.

At present nearly all AMG cars are built to order, and there’s an average three-month waiting list. Of the 400 or so sales predicted this year, the company expects to sell more than 100 SLK55s, 100-plus C55s and 60 or so CL55s.

Apart from the relatively new SL65 and S65, other AMG models that have already been on the market for a while and are reaching their saturation point, will see a decline in sales. The average tenure for an AMG Benz is around three years.

If all this isn’t enough, keep an eye out for the CLS coupe, shown for the first time locally at this month's Melbourne motor show, that will be introduced in AMG CLS55 form in June this year.

Mercedes-AMG range 2005
C55 AMG $159,900
SLK55 AMG $161,900
CLK55 AMG $194,900
CLK 55 Cabrio AMG $208,900
E55 AMG $225,600
E55 Estate AMG $231,600
S55 AMG $352,900
S65 AMG $435,900
CL 55 AMG $376,900
CL65 AMG $459,900
SL55 AMG $372,900
SL65 AMG $455,900