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Mercedes launches new sub-brand with C 450 AMG Sport

New family of more accessible high-performance Mercs will sit below core AMG models and feature 4WD as standard

Mercedes is following the example of BMW's M Performance and Audi's S ranges with a new line-up of AMG Sport models, designed to bridge the gap between the standard cars and the full-blooded AMG vehicles. 

And the brand has been launched with two new models, the C 450 AMG Sport (available as a saloon and an estate) and the GLE 450 Coupe AMG Sport, at the Detroit Motor Show

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More models are expected to be added to the range in due course.

Tobias Moers, Chairman of AMG, told Auto Express that “if the C 63 AMG is Batman, then the C 450 AMG Sport is Robin. The dynamics will be completely by AMG - the steering, the front and rear axle, the handling is all us. It’s a way of bringing the brand closer to the customer.”

The C 450 AMG Sport and the GLE 450 Coupe AMG Sport both feature an uprated version of the C 400’s turbocharged 329bhp 3.0-litre V6 engine, with the former getting 367bhp and the latter 369bhp. That still leaves a significant gap to the 469bhp C 63 AMG and 503bhp C 63 AMG S.

As well as upgraded engines, the models use 4MATIC four-wheel drive and suspension technology from the C 63 AMG S.

• Read our in-depth Mercedes C-Class review

The C 450 AMG Sport dispatches 0-62mph in 4.9 seconds – impressive but some way short of the four seconds of the C 63 AMG S. The estate version is a tenth of a second slower, at 5.0 seconds.

Fuel economy is respectable at 37.0mpg, while emissions are 178g/km. (The estate’s figures are 36.6mpg and 180g/km).

Among the styling differences are a single bar across a pin grille, and body coloured bumper nostrils rather than the black of the full-fat AMG model.

"The new Sport models represent a convincing proposition for our customers: genuine sports car technology becomes accessible, appealing to an even broader-ranging clientele worldwide," said Moers. "For all our dynamic growth, we remain true to our brand claim of "Driving Performance"."

There’s no word yet on whether Mercedes will take a leaf out of BMW’s book with high-performance diesel models (such as the BMW X6 M50d) bearing the AMG badge, but it would seem a logical extension of the brand. 

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