Mercedes-AMG has been celebrating its 55th anniversary for months now. The premium German brand took the party to the racetrack as well and had David Coulthard and Lewis Hamilton drive two iconic AMG cars, the so-called Red Pig and the One.
TV host and former F1 racing driver David Coulthard had a chance to talk to Mercedes-AMG Ambassador will.i.am and to the former racing driver Bernd Schneider, aka "Mr. DTM," who is a long-service AMG test and development driver. The latter arrived on the track in the new Mercedes-AMG GT Track Series, a limited edition of only 55 units, meanwhile will.i.am discussed the creative process of his Will.I.AMG car, The Flip.
Coulthard revealed that he is a customer of the Mercedes-AMG One, which made him feel like a "Grand Prix driver again." He is no longer racing in Formula One, but the almost 18-minute video does star a current Formula One driver: Lewis Hamilton.
The British seven-time World Champion got a chance to drive the One and test its limits on the track at the Circuito del Jarama in Spain, alongside Coulthard. The latter got behind the wheel of the iconic "Red Pig", the Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.8 AMG, which represented the start of AMG's involvement in motorsport, with a second overall result at the 24-Hour race in Spa Francorchamps in 1971.
Not long ago, Hamilton and fellow Mercedes-AMG Petronas F1 driver George Russell did some promotional pictures for the One, but Hamilton also got a chance to press the gas pedal and test out its limits on the track, sharing that "it feels great."
The Mercedes-AMG One has a mid-mounted 1.6-liter V6 engine sourced from the company’s Formula One car, which produces 566 horsepower alone, working alongside four other electric motors. One of them is integrated into the turbocharger, one mounted on the crankshaft, and the other two are driving the front wheels, for a total output of 1,048 horsepower (1,063 ps).
Performance-wise, the hypercar can hit 62 mph (100 kph) from zero in only 2.9 seconds, with a top speed of 219 mph (352 kph) and a zero-emission range of 11.2 miles (18.1 km).
And it didn’t take long for Hamilton to overtake the Red Pig and do what he does best.
Imagine a Wenn diagram for cars and celebrities. At the intersection you'll find Monica, putting her passion for these fields and English-Spanish double major to work. She's been doing for the past seven years, most recently at autoevolution. Full profile
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