International breakthrough in the 24-hour race in Spa-Francorchamps

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The name AMG stands for the initials of the two founders, Hans Werner Aufrecht and Erhard Melcher; the third letter in the company name derives from Gro�aspach, the town where Aufrecht was born. The official designation of the newly founded company of three was �Engineering Office, Design and Testing for the Development of Race Engines�. The company�s headquarters was an old mill in Burgstall near Affalterbach in south-west Germany. The success story of the Swabian company began with specially prepared Mercedes-Benz cars which were entered in racing. The year 1971 saw the company�s international breakthrough when, to everyone�s complete surprise, a Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.8 AMG finished first in its class and second in the overall ranking in the 24-hour race in Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium), in which drivers Hans Heyer and Clemens Schickendanz had been taking turns at the wheel of the racing sedan � and AMG became famous overnight.

Customers� wishes for dynamic handling and individuality provide for upswing

This success boosted the company�s renown enormously and helped AMG in making Mercedes-Benz cars faster and more attractive. The desire for more dynamic handling and individuality, growing in the 1970s, was responsible for a veritable upswing. Before very long, the company�s headquarters in Burgstall became too small and in 1978, AMG, employing 40 people at the time, moved to Affalterbach.
The first Mercedes-Benz tuner, AMG developed into a pioneer for the entire industry in the course of the years. Right from the start, the transfer of technology from motorsport to series production has been part of AMG�s corporate philosophy and has remained a trademark of AMG to this day. The company�s renown was further enhanced by top-class accomplishments in technology and first-grade quality resulting from AMG�s motorsport commitment.

Prominent Mercedes fans discover AMG

And AMG continued to grow. In 1985 plant no. 2 was opened and the 100th member of staff employed. Affalterbach attracted interested parties from all over the world: prominent AMG fans recruited from the spheres of motorsport, movie-making and music, sports, industry and international royalty. The special and � at times � very special wishes of this demanding clientele time and again gave rise to out-of-the-ordinary one-off cars which AMG designed and built with great innovative drive, outstanding passion and all-encompassing expertise.

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