Deep in the development chambers of Affalterbach, Mercedes-AMG is working to develop a hybrid-electric performance car to go head-to-head with the likes of the Porsche 918 Spyder.
At last week's Los Angeles auto show, Mercedes-AMG brand and marketing director Mario Spitzner confirmed that a hybrid Mercedes-AMG model is on his radar.
"Hybrids, in the long run, [are] the way to go," Spitzner said.
Adamant that a Mercedes-AMG hybrid would be a "high-performance hybrid" with "no downsides in performance," he maintained that the brand's core competence is delivering internal-combustion engines and full-electric models separately.
According to Spitzner, the greatest barrier to bringing a hybridized model to market, until now, was consumer acceptance of the technology.
"Our customers, right now, would not accept hybrids that add weight," Spitzner said, "and the practicality every day is still slightly limited."
The last time there was a battery-powered sports car to wear the Silver Star, it was the 2014 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Electric Drive (shown above), which was an all-electric tour de force that produced upward of 700 horsepower but was never offered for series production.
Spitzner offered no specific timetable for bringing a hybrid model to market, but noted that Mercedes-AMG could have produced the model "two or three years ago."
Right now, he's chuffed by the 503-hp Mercedes-AMG GT S that featured a biturbo V-8 engine, of which he said, "it's kind of difficult not to be satisfied."
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