Mercedes AMG is a part of Mercedes-Benz that makes super fast and powerful cars. They take regular Mercedes cars and make them even better for performance.
Racing engines are special types of engines made to go really fast in races. They are built differently than regular car engines to give more power and speed.
The Mercedes S65 AMG is a very expensive and powerful car that offers a lot of luxury features. It's part of the S-Class, which is known for being one of the best luxury sedans.
The suspension is what helps a car ride smoothly and handle turns better. Performance cars like AMGs have special suspensions to make them drive faster and more safely.
The Mercedes-Benz AMG GT is a super-fast sports car that looks amazing and is built for speed. It's made by a special division of Mercedes that focuses on high-performance vehicles, making it a favorite among car lovers.
The Chevrolet Corvette is a fast and stylish sports car made in America. It's famous for being fun to drive and has been around for a long time, making it a popular choice for car enthusiasts.
The BMW M Coupe (E36) is a sporty car that is designed for people who love to drive. It has a powerful engine and handles really well, making it a fun choice for those who enjoy a thrilling ride.
Body kits are special parts added to cars to make them look cooler and sometimes help them go faster. They can change how the car's body looks, like adding new bumpers or side panels.
Engine upgrades are changes made to a car's engine to make it faster or more powerful. This can involve adding new parts or tuning the engine to improve its performance.
The German touring car series is a type of car racing that features regular cars that have been modified for racing. It's very popular and attracts a lot of fans.
HWA is a company started by a man named Hans Werner-Aufrecht. They build race cars, especially for teams that want to compete in races, and they work closely with Mercedes.
Privateer GT racing is when independent teams race cars that they own, rather than being part of a big car company. They often get help from companies like HWA to build and support their race cars.
The Mercedes-Benz S-Class is a very fancy and comfortable car that is often used by people who want the best in luxury. It has strong engines and lots of high-tech features, making it a top choice for those who enjoy a smooth ride.
The Ford Capri is a sporty car made by Ford that was popular in Europe from the late 1960s to the mid-1980s. It was known for its good looks and fun driving experience.
The Chevrolet Camaro is a sporty car that looks cool and goes really fast. It's similar to the Ford Mustang and is popular among people who love cars that are fun to drive.
Car
BMW
BMW is a well-known car brand that makes luxury cars, often recognized for their sporty performance and engineering.
Emissions are the harmful gases that cars produce when they burn fuel. There are rules to keep these gases from polluting the air too much.
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What are the cycles fathers pass down
that sons are left to heal?
What if being a man wasn't about holding it all together
but learning how to let go?
This is a space where men speak truth
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I'm Mike Delarocha.
Welcome to Sacred Lessons.
Listen to Sacred Lessons on the I Heart Radio App,
Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.
There's a lot of things I've talked to you about
over the years and a lot of interviews
and we've talked about a lot of cars
and we've talked about a lot of books.
And I recently came across Mercedes AMG
and I thought, you know, there's something
we've never talked about, you and I.
And we need to discuss it and understand just what is it?
You know, I think of Mercedes-Benz.
A lot of people think of Mercedes-Benz and it's,
well, I'll tell you what, let me bring our guest on
and get started here.
Matt DiLorenzo, he's written a book, Mercedes AMG.
It's available now on Amazon
and we're happy to have him with us here.
Welcome to the car doctor, Matt.
Thanks, Ron, I'm really happy to be here.
So, you know, Mercedes AMG, where do we start, right?
Let's, you know, I think of Mercedes, okay,
if I'm the average consumer and I'm going,
well, it's a status symbol, I drive a Mercedes,
it's a nice, fancy, luxurious car.
But there's a hot rod side to Mercedes-Benz, right?
Yeah, and that's the AMG brand.
And you know, that perception that you talked about,
people considering it just a luxury car,
that's what AMG led to the genesis of AMG
to begin with back in the late 1960s.
There were two engineers, Hans Werner-Aufrecht
and Erhard Melker, and they were young engineers.
They worked within Mercedes, they wanted to go racing.
They developed some racing engines and built a race car
and campaigned it for a year while they were still employed.
And they were told, either you win
or you're gonna lose your job, they won.
They kept their job, but Mercedes stopped racing.
And at the time, people were thinking,
well, there was nothing wrong with Mercedes,
the ultimate luxury car performances
and part of the thing.
They went off and started their own company, AMG.
And they started building hot rod Mercedes for racers.
And they were very successful.
And so the AMG is Aufrecht, Melker,
and then the G is Grossadspach,
which is the small German town where Aufrecht was from.
Where, yeah.
So, you know, is it that I would go into it,
not to make this about how do I get one,
but is it that I would go into a Mercedes dealer
and I wanna buy an AMG or they already have them now.
Their relationship with Mercedes is so that
the dealers just stock these vehicles, so to speak.
Right, right.
Well, what happened was at first,
Mercedes wanted nothing to do with these
so-called garage tinkers.
And they kept a fairly arms length relationship with them
up and through the 1980s.
And then they introduced this car called the Hammer
that got everybody's attention.
It was putting a big V8 in a mid-sized Mercedes.
And then they started helping Mercedes
with their German touring car racing
and they were very successful there.
And then all of a sudden Mercedes goes,
well, why don't we let them sell our cars through our dealers?
And that happened in 1990.
And then about nine years later,
they bought half the company.
And then six years later in 2005,
they bought the rest of the company
and they turned it into the Mercedes AMG division,
which is the performance division of Mercedes.
The late Don Imus, the radio host,
was once interviewing and I'm quoting
from the introduction in the book by Sam Posey.
And the book is phenomenal, by the way.
I can't tell you enough, the color pictures and the detail
and the way you feel like you're at the racetrack
driving in some of these cars, right?
The late Don Imus was talking to Bo Deedle,
the former New York City detective
and they were talking about a Mercedes
in which when the buy in Don Imus said,
buy a Mercedes S65 AMG and his reasoning was,
that's just the most expensive one.
But that's not necessarily the only reason, right?
Mercedes AMG is a real performance car then as now.
Right, right.
And I think that that's the perception
of Mercedes being a luxury brand was around
and that you had to have the most expensive one
to have the best one.
And AMGs, since they were, they have hand built engines,
their engines are built by one technician
and then they're exclusive to the AMG car.
So that's why they were sold at a premium
to other Mercedes.
But as you say, there's a lot more to it.
I mean, the suspensions are different.
The engine tuning is different.
They have different interiors in different styling
and there are actually now bespoke AMG models
like the AMG GT, which is a sports car
that actually competes with the Porsche 911.
And in your book, when you wrote this, Matt,
for those of you just tuning in, we're talking to Matt DiLorenzo.
He's written a book, Mercedes AMG,
and we're discussing it at length here on the car doctor.
You know, Matt, when you wrote the book,
how do I attack this question?
Is Mercedes your car?
I mean, is this your passion?
What do you normally write about?
Did you just wake up one day and say,
I'm gonna write about Mercedes' beds?
You know, where did this come from?
I've been writing about cars since the late 70s, actually.
So, and I've written a couple of other books.
I did a 100 year anniversary of Dodge.
I did a book on Corvettes.
I did a Mustang book.
So I've been writing again, sort of across the industry.
I do like performance cars.
And about a year and a half ago,
I was talking to my publisher and I said,
you know, I'd like to do something different.
And he said, we wanna do an AMG book.
They had done a book on BMW M,
which is somewhat analogous to AMG.
You know, it's a performance motor sports division of BMW.
And the publisher found that nobody has really done
a comprehensive history of AMG.
So I looked at that as a great opportunity.
And I knew quite a bit about AMG,
especially since AMG had bought,
or Mercedes had bought AMG.
And I actually traveled to Germany
when I was at Rodentrack
and saw some of the early development on the SLS Gullwing,
which was the first pure AMG product.
So I was familiar with that.
I wasn't familiar with the history.
And when I went down the internet research rabbit hole,
I was absolutely fascinated by Aufrecht and Melker
and what they were able to accomplish.
You know, chapter six,
the title from road back to track.
The chapter seems to cover that we're taking everyday cars
and we're taking them to the racetrack.
Right, and you know, that's kind of a recurring theme
with AMG because in the beginning,
they made race cars and the racers would come to them
and said, well, we want to have you work on our road cars.
So they started doing road cars.
Well, during the seventies
with the energy crises and all that other stuff,
motor sports kind of went into a little bit of decline
and AMG concentrated more on road cars.
They were doing body kits and wheels and engine upgrades
and primarily for road cars for the public.
The eighties things shifted back towards competition.
And that's when they got involved
with the German touring car series,
which was wildly popular.
Over 150 million people around the world
would watch these races.
And AMG took the Baby Benz, the 190 Mercedes
and won the championship, was very successful in there.
And that caught a lot of people's attention to that.
You know, AMG is Mercedes
or very closely alive with Mercedes.
Or vice versa.
You know, what we're really saying here,
in a sense is AMG is a factory hot rod.
It's a factory race car.
You can go out and buy something, drive it to the track,
race it around the track and then drive it home.
Exactly, they have a lot of track specials
and they still compete heavily in sports car racing.
So the AMG GT has competed very well.
It's one of its class at Le Mans, one at Daytona 24.
It really, the two are interrelated.
The performance aspect on the road
and still their ability to do really well in motor sports.
And incidentally, one of the guys
who's helping Mercedes with that is Hans Werner-Aufrecht.
And after he had sold the company to Mercedes,
he formed his own company called HWA,
his initials, Hans Werner-Aufrecht.
And he actually builds a lot of the privateer GT racing cars
for Mercedes and his shop is located
right where AMG kind of grew up in a Falterbach,
which is north of Mercedes headquarters in Schuttgart.
Wow, a grassroots effort and liquid it became.
Hey Matt, let's take a pause.
I'll tell you what, stay right where you are.
When we come back, I want to talk about the flying pig.
Don't say anything else.
Okay. I want to give it away to the listeners.
And I want to get that out there.
And I'm Ron Ananey in the car doctor.
We're here today with Matthew Lorenzo
and we'll both be back right after this.
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I'm Stefan Curry and this is Gentleman's Cut.
I think what makes Gentleman's Cut different
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With every sip, you get a little something different.
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Have you ever listened to those true crime shows
and found yourself with more questions than answers?
And what is this?
How is that not a story we all know?
What's this?
Where is that?
Why is it wet?
Boy, do we have a show for you.
From smartless media, campsite media
and big money players comes crime lists.
Join me, Josh Dean, investigative journalist.
And me, Roy Scoville, comedian,
as we celebrate the amazing creativity
of the world's dumbest criminals.
We'll look into some of the silliest ways
folks have broken the laws.
Honestly, it feels more like a high level prank than a crime.
Who catfishes a city?
And meets some memorable anti-heroes.
There are thousands of angry horny monkeys.
Clap if you think she's a witch.
And it freaks you out.
He has X-ray vision.
How could I not follow her?
Honestly, I gotta follow him.
He can see right through me.
Listen to Crime List on the iHeart Radio app,
Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.
For 25 years, I've explored what it means to heal,
not just for myself, but alongside others.
I'm Mike Del Rocha.
This is Sacred Lessons,
a space for reflection, growth, and collective healing.
What do you tell men that are hurting right now?
Everything's gonna be okay on the other side.
Just push through it.
And ironically, the root of the word spirit is breath.
Wow.
Which is why one of the most revolutionary acts
that we can do as people is just breathe.
Next to the wound is their gifts.
You can't even find your gifts
unless you go through the wound.
That's the hard thing.
You think, well, I'm gonna get my gifts.
I don't wanna go through all that.
You gotta go through the wounds of your life.
Listening to other people's near-death experiences,
and that's all they say.
In conclusion, love is the answer.
Listen to Sacred Lessons as part
of the Mike Gutura Podcast Network,
available on the iHeart Radio app,
Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.
On the podcast Health Stuff,
we are tackling all the health questions
that keep you up at night.
Yes, I'm Dr. Priyanka Wally,
a double board certified physician.
And I'm Hari Kondibolu,
a comedian and someone who once Googled,
do I have scurvy at 3 a.m.
On Health Stuff, we're talking about health
in a different way.
It's not only about what we can do to improve our health.
But also what our health says about us
and the way we're living.
Like our episode where we look at diabetes.
In the United States,
I mean, 50% of Americans are pre-diabetic.
How preventable is type two?
Extremely.
Or our in-depth analysis
of how incredible mangoes are.
Oh, it's hard to explain to rest of the world
that your mangoes are fine
because mangoes are incredible,
but you don't even know.
You don't know, you don't know.
It's going to be a fun ride, so tune in.
Listen to Health Stuff on the iHeart Radio app,
Apple Podcast, or wherever you get your podcasts.
The social media trend
that's landing some genziers in jail.
Ah!
Oh, my God!
The progressive media darling
whose public meltdown got her fired.
I'm going to take Francesco off the network entirely.
The massive TikTok boycott against Target
that makes no actual sense.
I will continue getting stuff from Target
and I will continue to not pay for it.
And the MAGA influencers whose trip
to the White House ended in embarrassment.
So refreshing to have the press secretary
after the last few years
who's both intelligent and articulate.
You won't hear about these online stories
in the mainstream media,
but you can keep up with them
and all the other entertaining and outrageous things
happening online, in media, and in politics,
with the Brad vs. Everyone Podcast,
hosted by me, Brad Palumbo.
Every day of the week,
I bring you on a wild ride
who the most Dalulu takes on the internet,
criticizing the extremes of both sides
from an independent perspective.
Join in on the insanity
and listen to the Brad vs. Everyone Podcast
on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Do Pigs Really Fly?
Hey, Ronanini McCardock here with Matt DiLorenzo.
He's the author of Mercedes AMG,
a brand new book that's available out there on Amazon.
It comes to us from Cordo Publishing.
And we're just sitting here chatting about Mercedes and AMG
and the performance side of it and the book.
And great book.
I can't say enough good things about it.
Nice big color pictures, a lot of history on Mercedes.
First chapter, Matt, this pig can fly.
Yes.
What are we talking about?
Yes, indeed.
What, flying pigs in a car book?
What are we talking about there?
Yeah, we're talking about how AMG really got on the map
in the first place.
Off-Rect and Melker had left the company
and they were tuning race cars
and they were doing some road cars for people.
Mercedes had put a V8 engine in their S-Class.
It had originally been used only in the big 600 limos.
And they wanted, there were some engineers
inside the company who wanted to take it racing
and they tried to take it racing
and management kind of put the kibosh on it.
They tried to run at Spa in 1969 in a 24 hour race.
So AMG took up the challenge
and they bought a Rect SEL with the 6.2 liter V8 in it,
punched it out to 6.8 liters, painted it red
and took it to Spa in 1971.
Well, you had this big luxury car
roaring around the track with a V8 engine, open pipes
and people said, that looks like a big red pig.
But the crowd loved it.
And actually they finished second overall
of Ford Capri one, but the red pig came in second overall
and first in class.
And they actually, they were racing
a couple of other V8 cars.
It was a Camaro that had sat on the pole
and a Mustang in the race
and the red pig beat them both
and almost won the race overall.
But it was a big sensation.
So if I sit to say you pull up to a traffic light
and there's a Mercedes in front of you
and it says AMG on the back,
that's just not fancy interior and better carpeting.
No, it's a faster car.
And that was the thing about those, the big luxury cars.
And again, the hammer that they did later,
they were sort of, they were luxury cars
but they had these hot rod engines in them
that would shut down 911s and BMWs.
So they really brought it when it came to performance.
The name of the book is Mercedes AMG.
Matt, inside one of the chapters,
is it AMG one story in our final two minutes?
They talk about, you talk about,
they made an F1 engine into a Mercedes
and it was a hand-built prototype car, some kind of.
Yeah, they did a hypercar for the streets
and they actually adapted the same Formula One engine
that's used by the racing team.
Now the racing team has actually run out of England
and has minimal, it's more of a badging thing
between AMG F1 and AMG road cars.
But they did develop this car together
and they made a street car that uses
a current F1 technology, very difficult to do
because it's a hybrid, it has a battery
that the kinetic energy recovery system occurs system.
And it's like a, it's a $2 million car.
It's really amazing.
But you talk to the engineers and they're like,
yeah, we'll never be able to do this again.
Because of the emissions.
They had noise regulations, emissions.
Even just starting the car,
it takes 10 guys to start an F1 car.
This car, you go in and you appreciate what it starts.
And it took a lot of engineering.
Took a lot of technology, I'm sure.
Hey Matt, in your closing thoughts,
where can the listeners go get this?
20 seconds or less, what should they look for in the book?
What are they gonna get out of it?
I think they're gonna get a great background history
on where AMG came from and kind of where it's headed
with their next round of products.
And you can find it on Amazon.
Cool beans.
Matt DiLorenzo, we appreciate you taking the time
and spending it with us here on The Car Doctor.
We'll, we'll have you on again real soon and you be well.
All right?
Thanks so much, Ron.
It was great being here.
You're very welcome.
I'm Ron Anini in The Car Doctor.
We're back right after this.
I'm Stefan Curry and this is Gentleman's Cut.
I think what makes Gentleman's Cut different
is me being a part of, you know,
developing the profile of this beautiful finished product
with every sip you get a little something different.
Visit Gentleman'sCutBurban.com
or your nearest Total Wines or Bevmo.
This message is intended for audiences 21 and older.
Gentleman'sCutBurban Boone County, Kentucky.
For more on Gentleman'sCutBurban,
please visit Gentleman'sCutBurban.com.
Please enjoy responsibly.
Greatness doesn't just show up.
It's built one shot, one choice, one moment at a time.
From NBA champion Stefan Curry comes Shot Ready,
a powerful never before seen look at the mindset
that changed the game.
I fell in love with the grind.
You have to find joy in the work you do
when no one else is around.
Success is not an accident.
I'm passing the ball to you.
Let's go.
Stefan Curry redefined basketball.
Now he's rewriting what it means to succeed.
Shot Ready isn't just a memoir.
It's a playbook for anyone chasing their potential,
discover stories, strategies,
and over 100 never before seen photos.
Order Shot Ready now at StefanCurryBook.com.
Don't miss Stefan Curry's New York Times bestseller,
Shot Ready, available now.
What are the cycles fathers pass down
that sons are left to heal?
What if being a man wasn't about holding it all together
but learning how to let go?
This is a space where men speak truth
and find the power to heal and transform.
I'm Mike Del Rocha.
Welcome to Sacred Lettons.
Listen to Sacred Lettons on the I Heart Radio Apple Podcast
or wherever you get your podcasts.
I didn't really have an interest in being on air.
I kind of was up there to just try and infiltrate the building
from the underground clubs that shaped global music
to the pastors and creatives who built the cultural empire.
The Atlanta Ears podcast uncovers the stories
behind one of the most influential cities in the world.
The thing I love about Atlanta is that it's a city of hustlers,
each episode explores a different chapter of Atlanta's rise
featuring conversations with Ludacris, Will Packer,
Pastor Jamal Bryant, DJ Drama and more.
The full series is available to listen to now.
Listen to Atlanta Ears on the I Heart Radio Apple Podcast
or wherever you get your podcasts.
Social media trend is landing some Gen Zers in jail.
The progressive media darling whose public meltdown
got her fired and the massive TikTok boycott against Target
that actually makes no sense.
You won't hear about these online stories
in the mainstream media, but you can keep up with them
and all the other entertaining and outrageous things
happening online, in media and in politics
with the Brad vs. Everyone podcast.
Listen to the Brad vs. Everyone podcast
on the I Heart Radio App, Apple Podcast
or wherever you get your podcasts.
This is an I Heart Podcast.
Guaranteed human.
About this episode
Ron Ananian interviews Matt DiLorenzo, author of 'Mercedes AMG,' diving into the history and performance legacy of the AMG brand. They discuss how AMG transformed from a garage operation into a powerhouse within Mercedes, highlighting key models and innovations like the iconic 'Red Pig' and the AMG GT. The conversation explores the blend of luxury and high performance that defines AMG vehicles, as well as the unique engineering behind their bespoke models. DiLorenzo shares insights from his research and the significance of AMG in motorsports and consumer markets.
This week, Ron talks with automotive journalist Matt DeLorenzo, author of Mercedes AMG, about how two German engineers turned a luxury car brand into a racing powerhouse. From the birth of AMG in a small town workshop to the legendary “Flying Pig” that stunned the racing world, Matt shares how Mercedes’ high-performance division grew into one of motorsport’s most dominant forces. Hear the story behind the initials A-M-G, why each engine is hand-built by a single craftsman, and how today’s AMG hypercars still carry that racing DNA. Whether you’re a Benz fan or just love great car stories, this deep dive into performance history is one you won’t want to miss.
