Mercedes-AMG sold 145,000 cars last year, well behind BMW M's record 213,457 units, and CEO Michael Schiebe has announced more than 27 new models arriving over the next 36 months to close that gapDespite the expanding model range, AMG is cutting its engine lineup from ten variants down to just four, built around an upgraded six-cylinder and a new V8Upcoming models include a hardcore Mythos CLE, a G63 Convertible, a new GT Black Series, a six-cylinder C53, and an electric SUV sharing the GT 4-Door's platform BMW's M division has spent fourteen consecutive years getting larger, finishing last year at a record 213,457 units sold. Mercedes-AMG managed 145,000 over the same period. That gap is substantial, and Affalterbach has apparently decided the only acceptable response is launching everything simultaneously. CEO Michael Schiebe used a recent appearance on Bloomberg's Hot Pursuit podcast to confirm more than 27 new models are arriving within the next three years. That number deserves a moment of consideration. Twenty seven models in thirty six months works out to roughly one new AMG product every five or six weeks for three straight years. Most performance brands consider themselves busy launching three or four significant models annually. AMG is apparently planning to operate at nearly ten times that pace. Some of this offensive has already begun. The fully electric GT 4-Door Coupe arrived first, followed by the GLE 63 and GLS 63, both running AMG's new flat-plane-crank V8. That engine architecture, more commonly associated with exotic supercars than SUVs, signals AMG isn't treating this expansion as a box-ticking exercise built around badge engineering. Still ahead is the long-rumored Mythos model, a properly hardcore V8 version of the CLE that's expected to spawn a slightly less extreme CLE 63 variant beneath it. Mercedes is also preparing a G63 Convertible, presumably aimed at customers who've decided the standard G63 isn't quite ostentatious enough without a folding roof. A new GT Black Series is coming too, alongside a six-cylinder C53 mirroring the inline-six setup recently introduced in the GLC 53. An electric SUV built on the GT 4-Door's platform rounds out the announced pipeline so far. Wider range, narrower engine lineup Here's where AMG's strategy gets genuinely interesting rather than just numerically aggressive. While the model count expands dramatically, the underlying engine portfolio is shrinking from ten distinct variants down to just four. The backbone going forward consists of an upgraded six-cylinder unit and the new V8, meaning AMG will mix and match a smaller set of powertrains across a much wider range of body styles rather than developing bespoke engines for every model. Whether four-cylinder AMG models survive this consolidation remains unconfirmed. Given the performance division's target of 200,000 annual sales by decade's end, smaller-displacement engines could still play a meaningful volume role even as the brand's identity leans harder into six and eight-cylinder configurations for its halo products. This approach borrows directly from BMW M's long-running playbook. Rather than chasing aggressive electrification at the expense of combustion variety, AMG is apparently betting that offering something for almost every customer preference, electric, hybrid, and traditional combustion alike, will win back buyers who've drifted toward rivals over recent years. Don't expect a V8 C-Class to return anytime soon, but the broader strategy suggests AMG isn't abandoning combustion enthusiasts the way some predicted a few years ago. One notable absence from the announced lineup is the E63. Mercedes has reportedly already shown dealers in the United States the next-generation E-Class, which arrives first as a fully electric model in early 2028 before combustion variants follow later. Interestingly, despite persistent predictions that wagons are finished as a body style, reports suggest the E-Class is getting a long-roof wagon variant again. If accurate, that opens the door for a new E63 Wagon eventually arriving to challenge the BMW M5 Touring and the upcoming RS6 Avant, assuming AMG decides to build one. European regulators continue tightening emissions requirements that threaten large-displacement performance engines broadly, with Euro 7 standards looming on the horizon. Despite that pressure, AMG's six and eight-cylinder engines appear secure for the foreseeable future, likely surviving well into the next decade based on current planning.AMG has already more than doubled annual sales over the past ten years, and this product blitz is designed to accelerate that trajectory significantly rather than simply maintaining gradual growth. Whether 27-plus new models across three years actually closes the gap with BMW M's 213,457 unit lead remains to be seen, but Affalterbach clearly isn't planning to wait around hoping the gap closes itself. Catching M was always going to require more than incremental improvement. AMG has chosen the nuclear option instead.
