http://www.carmagazine.co.uk/S...story/



Car (UK) -

CAR Online has obtained the best info yet on Mercedes’ new AMG ‘Gullwing’ supercar. Depicted in our artist’s impression, the super coupe is codenamed C197 and will make its debut at the 2010 Geneva motor show; a roadster tagged R197 follows a year later.

The new two-seater will be badged an AMG, not as a Mercedes (our artist’s impression still displays the Merc star). It’s thus the first standalone product of the go-faster department – and it probably won’t be the last.

The coupe and roadster will cost around the same as a well-equipped Porsche 911 Turbo – the target is €150,000 (Ł105,000) – and in size they are closer to the SLR than the SL.

How big’s the new Gullwing, then?

CAR Online has seen documents spelling out the pair’s dimensions:

• Length 4650mm
• Width 1950mm
• Height 1250mm
• Wheelbase 2700mm
• Luggage capacity 200 liters (coupe), 175 liters (roadster)

That’s quite a big car, then, but it will, intriguingly, be even lighter than the SLR. The target weight for the engineers is 1650kg – 45 kilos less than an SLR and 235kg less than an SL55.

How do they do it?

By introducing a brand-new advanced aluminum space frame technology which is allegedly even more rigid than that carbon fiber tub designed in Woking.

AMG Gullwing’s tech details

Perhaps even more remarkable than the Gullwing’s breakthrough body architecture is the transaxle chassis, which achieves a 48:52 percent front-to-rear weight distribution. Featuring a double-wishbone suspension designed from scratch, the first proper sports car from Stuttgart for decades has a fixed spring/damper calibration and a fixed steering ratio.

There are no gimmicks here. Perhaps the C63 did actually mark a turning point for AMG…

And what can we expect in the looks department?

The design is a mix of retro and modern: there are large, roof-hinged gullwing doors, almost upright bi-xenon headlamps, a classic SL grille, a tapered plan view, LED tail lamps, a motorized rear spoiler and a pair of downforce-producing front and rear aprons. The wheels are 19-inch in the front and 20-inch in the back.

It’s not the most aerodynamic of shapes, apparently, our engineering sources claiming a drag coefficient of 0.35. The electrical architecture is shared with the next E-class; six airbags will be standard in all markets. This car will be – for Mercedes – a relatively niche player, with sales of just 6000 of each body style and a production run scheduled to stop in 2013, the year after the next-generation SL arrives.

An AMG supercar… they don’t do slow, do they?

Too right. As the pinnacle of AMG’s expertise, the C/R197 is going to be warp-speed fast. True to the AMG moniker, the engine is of course a version of the high-revving 6.3-liter V8 mated to the new Sportshift box.

The final numbers have yet to be confirmed, but conservative estimates suggest 550bhp and 445lb ft of twist action. Okay, so on paper the Gullwing is less potent than the Black Series SL, but that light weight means it should out-accelerate it on the road.

Early data indicates 3.8sec for the sprint from 0-62mph, a top speed of 185mph and an average consumption of 14litres/100km (20.1mpg). The 911 Turbo may be a little more economical and it may have better traction thanks to 4WD. But it won’t be faster than the AMG hotshot.
And will the Gullwing brake as fast as it goes?

You bet. AMG is ushering in its new composite brake system, which is said to be lighter, stronger and notably less fade-prone than a conventional set-up. How much stronger? According to an engineer, the stopping distance from 100kph/62mph to zero is a time-warp 34 metres. We hope the seatbelts are usefully strong.

 

That pic looks cool, hopefully it end up looking something like that. It's still WAY too heavy though, I have no idea why these 2 seaters from Mercedes have to be that heavy

 

Almost has the Lamborghini Reventon front bumper and lip. I like it

 

What would be cool if is they made a small, lightweight, not so powerful but an overall fun sporty coupe gullwing in around the Caymen S's price range and focus on handling, agility and fun factor instead of outright brute power and massive heavy cars.

 

For a company like Mercedes there shouldn't have to be a choice between lightweight/(relatively) low power and heavy/tons of power. Especially in this price range (and especially since it only has to seat 2 people) they should be able to make an agile, great-handling, extremely powerful car. If you're paying over $100,000 for a car, you should be able to have your cake and eat it too, that's not too much to ask

 

What is Mercedes' recent trends with those UGLY front headlights. They have been doing this for a while now, WAY too angular....not a fan here

 

1650kg is 3600lbs - given how big it is likely to be and that it will have gull wing doors, that's hardly 'WAY too heavy'. I think a GT-R is around that too.

 

That is some artist's IDEA, not an official MB picture.

 

^Bit

I looked up an 08 Benz. Don't know what model this is, but its got similar style headlights:


What happened to the classic styling headlights like this:


Or even this S-Class Style:


I dunno, personally I like those headlight stylings more.

 

but the GT-R is a 4 seater and its all wheel drive...
when you think of a 2 seater you don't think of a 3,600 car...you think of a car more like 3,000

 

That would be the new C class you're referring to.

Don't worry, Mercedes tends to be playing in circles in regards to the shape of its products' headlights. Back in the 70s, the lights were circular. Then 80s came and the lights became angular. In the mid 90s, circles came back again but until now, the kids who grew up liking the headlights back in the 80s have finally graduated from the designing school. Hence the new angular shaped lights.

The circles will be back in another 10 years or so.

Jon

 

Exactly, and I would say even the GT-R is too heavy, although its weight doesn't seem to dampen its performance.

There is no reason for a 2-seater to be closer to 4000lbs than 3000lbs

 

There's no reason for a street car to go 200mph either, but they're available.

I bet this 2 seater is pretty heavy too...

 

 

As the new GT-R has proven, you can be heavy and still have your cake and eat it too. If the new AMG Gullwing handles, performes and is agile, it could weight over 2 tons for all I care. It is about safety and maximum performance at speed!

As for AMG, hire this artist, I like his rendering! (Better than the 09 SL!)