Unless you're into robot spotting, it doesn't take many factory tours before you punch the 'Been There Done That' card. Of course, there are exceptions, such as when AMG bundles tours of its Affalterbach facilities with excursions like jazz concerts, golf, and driving its growling wares over the rivers and through the mountains of Bavaria and Switzerland... or Hockenheim.
Called the Spirit of AMG – Emotion Tours, there are eight packages that encompass everything from fine wines to the finish line. Each of the three lifestyle packages starts in Affalterbach, then transitions to real drive time, piloting AMG products to other destinations: the Montreaux package takes in jazz in Switzerland, the Golf package goes for links in Munich with Robert Baker and Bernd Schneider, and in case you do want to see a real factory, the Spirit of SLS AMG package will trundle you off to the plant in Sindelfingen.
For hairier-chested adventures, try the DTM or driving packages. The first will put you behind the wheel of an AMG in Affalterbach, then you'll drive to a DTM race in Munich or Hockenheim as a guest of Mercedes. The other three packages are the German equivalents of our own AMG Driving Academy, but instead of Lime Rock and Road Atlanta you'll be throwing SLS GT3s at top-level around European tracks such as Le Castellet, the Nordschleife, the Sachsenring and Spa-Francorchamps.
Prices start at €570 ($828 USD) for Spirit of SLS AMG and go up to €6,280 ($9,122 USD) for Pro Training with a rented SLS AMG. And there's no need to wait until Christmas; tours are underway this month.
