Mercedes-AMG electric ‘super-SUV’ announced

Mercedes-Benz’s sporty subdivision Mercedes-AMG wants to develop a full-size electric SUV from the ground up. The model will be the second vehicle based on the all-electric AMG.EA platform. Development vehicles are due to start their first test drives this winter.

The AMG.EA platform, short for AMG Electric Architecture, is designed for Mercedes-AMG’s future performance models. It is already the basis for the Vision EQXX technology platform, which Mercedes-Benz presented for the first time at CES 2022.

The EQXX is not a concrete harbinger of a production model – but is intended to provide a preview of a whole range of technologies that can make production vehicles more economical.

First SUV

The e-SUV now announced with the working title ‘Born in Affalterbach’ (where AMG headquarters are situated)  is a different story: it is the first “SUV built from the ground up” in the 57-year performance and sports car brand history.

The full-size off-roader will be the second model on the AMG.EA platform and the sixth vehicle created entirely by the performance specialists in Affalterbach (in addition to the first AMG.EA model already being trialed and after the current GT, the SL, and the previous generation of the GT and the SLS).

So, the full-size electric SUV will be its second EV based on the AMG.EA platform, following the 4-door GT coupe. Mercedes-AMG gave us a closer look at the electric GT after previewing the model for the first time in March.

“SUVs have been among our most popular models for many years,” says Michael Schiebe, Chairman of the Board of Management of Mercedes-AMG GmbH and Head of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class & Mercedes-Maybach divisions.

“We are now recognizing this development for the first time with an SUV ‘Born in Affalterbach.’ In the future, we will offer our customers an absolutely fascinating high-performance off-roader based on the AMG.EA.”

“The motto for our new high-performance platform is: ‘AMG First, EV Second’. This means that the vehicles will not only be outstanding EVs but will also impress above all with classic AMG virtues such as emotion and performance,” Schiebe underlined.

‘Pioneering technology’

Details of the AMG.EA platform are not yet known. In previous statements, Mercedes-Benz has only stated that the future architecture will take on a pioneering technological role in many aspects and bring numerous innovations to the road.

“For example, the AMG.EA drive concept is based on axial-flow engine technology (from Yasa, now Mercedes-owned, editors note), which is unrivaled in terms of power density, size, and weight,” says the press release. “The innovative drive works in conjunction with a new high-performance high-voltage battery.”

Yasa claims its technology provides four times more torque and double the power of nearly all current EV technology. It also claims it’s 50% lighter, enabling more power and efficiency.

The new super electric SUV is expected to rival upcoming Porsche and BMW models like the Cayenne EV and the BMW XM. Porsche is also developing a new flagship electric SUV to sit above the Cayenne, which will likely be more competitive with this AMG model.