In recent years, Mercedes-AMG has copped a lot of flak from the media and customers for moving away from V8 engines in some of its most popular models.
The C63 lost its twin-turbo V8 in favour of a plug-in hybrid four-cylinder, which was more potent on paper, but lamented for its lack of theatre compared to its predecessor.
Among the wider AMG range, a handful of other models downscaled to six-cylinder engines with hybrid assistance, again with more impressive statistics and greater capability behind them, though customers have still called for the return of the V8 to more of the lineup.
Speaking to the UK’s Car magazine, AMG CEO Michael Scheibe said the return of the V8 in a greater array of vehicles is just around the corner.
“At the end of the year, you’ll see the V8 coming back to AMG,” said Scheibe.
“We will launch it again with SUVs, but other cars will get it too.”
It’s understood the new V8 will be a more potent version of the M177 Evo, the twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 which recently debuted in the S-Class with a flat-plane crank, marking a point of difference to the non-Evo cross-plane crank version.
The cross-plane M177 has featured extensively in the AMG lineup, from the pre-PHEV C63 to the GLC and GLS.
It’s expected the new AMG V8 will debut in the GLS63, before featuring in other models including the CLE-based ‘Mythos’ series vehicle teased earlier this year.
AMG has previously said the likes of the C63 and other similarly sized models will move away from the four-cylinder plug-in hybrid powertrains they’ve only recently adopted, and instead go to six-cylinder layouts, though at the demise of their existing ‘63’ nameplates.
“[We’re] doubling down on our internal combustion engine cars again, but at the same time we’ll put equal emphasis on our great EV line-up,” Scheibe added in his interview with Car.
In August last year, the executive said AMG will continue to offer V8s for as long as possible.
“AMG’s main objective is serving our customers; if there are continuous demands for V8s, then producing them within regulations should be our engineering target,” Schiebe told the publication.
However, with EVs also in the works at AMG, Schiebe admitted the carmaker is having to transfer some of its emotional selling points to the engineless cars.
“[…]sound is becoming more and more important as customers are not just buying cars because they accelerate fast – they are interested in a car that gives them emotions.
“You’ll see we will have different trigger elements in this regard in our future series-production cars.”
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