Words: Ouseph Chacko
Photography: Gaurav S Thombre
Early morning, Noida expressway. The morning traffic is shuffling its collective way to work. The sky is grey, Delhi’s getting stuffy and there’s nothing to warn the suits heading to another day at the office of the rapidly approaching storm. It starts with a low rumble in the distance. A pair of white lights appear in their rear view mirrors and, before they know it, a red blur moves past with a crackle from its pipes. It’s the AMG Experience Tour and
it’s a carnival of colour and sound, making its way through the sea of grey hatchbacks and diesel saloons.
What is the AMG Experience Tour? It’s AMG’s way of getting people into their cars. It’s a clever, hands-on experience that allows existing and potential Mercedes customers to get behind the wheel and get hooked. This is the second Experience Tour in India and it starts from T&T Motors AMG Experience Center (one of five in India) on Mathura Road. It all starts rather tamely with registrations and an informal briefing session to all the people who have been invited. The showroom is full of excited banter because from the inside, everyone assembled can see a line of AMG’s parked outside. There’s everything from CLA 45 AMG’s, GLA 45 AMG’s, E63 AMG’s and GL 63 AMG’s. They’ve even brought out their ‘dream cars’ line which is an SLK 350 and an E400 Cabriolet.
It’s cloudy when we leave the showroom and the dark setting seems to fit perfectly with the noise of distant thunder that happens when you start about twenty AMG’s together. Mathura road comes to a standstill as the cars pull out of the showroom parking lot. Camera-phones are out and concentrated sonic waves boom through the man-made tunnel that the overhead metro rail has created. The plan is to head to the Jaypee Greens Golf and Spa Resort in Greater Noida and then give customers a free run of whatever AMG they feel like sampling on the Agra Expressway.
My job here is to see and capture their experiences and I must tell you, it was an easy job. By the time we are at Jaypee, there’s just happiness all around. We spoke to a few chaps (and girl) after they had a go in an Affalterbach special and they all went Ah My God. Don’t believe me? Read what they had to say.
“ I drive an ML 250 and this is my first AMG experience. The experience was amazing and it was incredible seeing a convoy of so many AMGs in India. It’s simply not something you see everyday. The power, the sound, I’m hooked. I’d definitely buy an AMG and I wish my dad had come here today. I would have convinced him to get one.”
“T&T Motors were the first to launch an AMG Performance Centre in India last year and so, as part of our anniversary celebrations, we decided to have an AMG experience tour. This is something we do for all our existing customers as well as a few potential customers who are interested in cars. One of the amazing things I have seen at the AMG experience today is the age of the clients who are here. There are lots of young people and I’m happy to see passion start at such an early stage. AMG is a brand which is synonymous worldwide with power and performance, so anyone who is young and likes cars, knows about it. T&T has been in this business for the last seventeen years and we’ve sold over 20,000 cars, so for events like these, we invite people from our family of customers itself.
I’ve seen that people who buy AMGs want a performance car that’s inconspicuous. They don’t want to drive a flashy red car but want a car that looks good, is luxurious and has the power to give sportscars a run for their money. The G63 is currently the most popular AMG in India and it is the iconic AMG that people associate with but that scenario is slowly changing. The AMG portfolio is now much wider so with cars like the CLA45 and the GLA45 we’re seeing the trend moving towards people who want smaller, more usable cars and that’s where the new AMG’s fit in.”
“I love AMG’s for the power they make. They are really fast and while I initially thought the experience of driving one would be hectic, I was surprised to find its actually very smooth. I love the sound, it’s the sound of exhilaration, it’s indescribable and left me speechless and that’s exactly what I experienced when I was driving them.”
“I drive the last-gen C63 right now and I bought it for the performance and the sound. Some time ago, I went to a friend who had one and took his car for a spin. I fell in love with it right away and bought one. Hats off to these guys for holding an event like this. It’s really nice and I’m really happy to be a part of it.”
“I’m in my third year at college in Delhi and I have a huge passion for cars so this event was made for me. The one thing I love about AMG’s is that they are all powered by petrol. It’s just the sporty character every petrohead is looking for and the sound! I’d buy an AMG for the sound and the stability of the CLA 45 AMG I just drove. We had a big bump out on the expressway but the car was amazingly stable, I can’t imagine any other car being so confidence inspiring.”