Looking back at AMG’s quiet 1982 UK debut

The UK arrival of AMG in the autumn of 1982 was low-key. Strattons of Wilmslow, Cheshire, became the sole concessionaire, and Autocar dedicated just 50 words to it, buried in the data section, soberly calling AMG “a German styling and tuning firm who produce customizing and performance modifications for Mercedes-Benz cars”.

We had actually already had our first taste of Affalterbach that year: a 500 SEC from Duncan Hamilton & Co, a dealer in Bagshot, Surrey, that sold body and mechanical parts made by various German aftermarket firms, also including Rial (wheels) and Koni (suspension).

With anodised chromework, body-coloured alloys, lowered and beefed-up suspension, side skirts, a chin spoiler and a bootlid spoiler (not to forget an AMG boot badge – £15), the big coupé looked “low, mean and purposeful” in bronze.

Very pleasant to drive too: “The handling was a noticeable improvement. It just ignored corners, exhibiting far less body roll than the standard car and holding on much tighter on its Goodyear NCTs without sacrificing too much of its luxury car ride.” But it wasn’t until 1989 that we really understood AMG, thanks to a six-cylinder 300 CE coupé from Strattons.

By this point, the Affalterbach independent was closely integrated with Mercedes, having “access to vital technical information and a staff of 120 who make full use of AMG’s modern and impressive technical facilities”, which included CNC machines for fabricating bespoke cylinder heads, a wind tunnel and a computerised test facility with a dynamometer.

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However, the conversion of UK customers’ cars was still done by Strattons: “Engines are supplied complete but bodywork, trim and suspension are executed in-house.”

The ‘M103’ six under the bonnet of our AMG 300 CE test car looked entirely stock but in fact: “A longer-throw crankshaft and bored-out block raise the capacity to 3205cc and new lightweight pistons increase the compression ratio from 9.2 to 10 to 1.

Cylinder head breathing is improved while the polished valves open wider and for longer duration thanks to AMG’s own, specially profiled crankshaft. Finally, a performance exhaust system aids the flow of burnt gases without sapping power.”

Consequently power was up from 188bhp at 5700rpm to 245bhp at 5750rpm, and torque from 192lb ft at 4400rpm to 239lb ft at 4500rpm – making this 300 CE almost 5sec quicker from 0-100mph than a regular one.

Meanwhile, “the already taut Mercedes suspension is made less compliant but more responsive with stiffer and shorter coil springs and Bilstein dampers” and “a massive footprint at each corner comes from Dunlop D40 ultra-low-profile rubber”.

“For the first few miles, it is hard to appreciate any benefits of the AMG suspension mods other than increased chassis responsiveness and precision and sharper turn-in. But the AMG demands to be driven hard and fast over the most challenging roads you can find. It will flick through S-bends with a poise and balance that belies its considerable bulk.

“Although the limits of adhesion are very high once the tyres are warm, cold tyres or a wet road can precipitate a tail slide of alarming suddenness – a timely reminder that 245bhp must be treated with the utmost respect. And this is despite the efforts of an [e-LSD].

"And yet the harder you drive it, the better it becomes. On the right road, it can be taken by the scruff of the neck and you know that it won’t bite back. It feels safe and secure, always rock-steady and endowed with a great feeling of integrity.”

We considered AMG’s prices “outrageous”, this test car costing £70k (or £186k now) despite several flaws (poorly fitted plastic spoilers, poorly applied gloss black lacquer inside, the silencer hitting the road through dips and serious brake fade), but so was the car itself.

We could only imagine how insane AMG’s “pièce de résistance”, a W124 saloon fitted with a 400bhp 6.0-litre V8, must have been…