Mercedes-AMG taps Linkin Park to define electrified vehicle sound as hybrids approach production – report

Electric vehicles have never been heavy on sound, and with Mercedes-AMG set to embrace electrification in the coming years, fans who have been used to Affalterbach’s growly V8s will no doubt be feeling numb. It’s no surprise, then, that the company has tapped the expertise of the rockers at Linkin Park to help define the sound of its upcoming hybrid models, according to Wheels.

The much-loved American band may have lost its frontman Chester Bennington to suicide in July, but it’s still at the top of its game when it comes to creating a complex, layered electronic sound. Mercedes-AMG had already built up a partnership with Linkin Park, using the band’s songs in its ads before featuring the lads in videos celebrating its 50th anniversary.

However, the collaboration has gone further than that – Mercedes-AMG chief executive officer Tobias Moers told the Australian publication that Linkin Park was one of several experts in various industries that the company consulted, in order to ensure that even with the electrification of its lineup, the sound made by its vehicles in the end would still excite customers.

“You know Linkin Park? I started to talk with these guys about what is their interpretation of electrified sound,” said Moers. “We’ve had a cooperation with Linkin Park for years. We’re really close.”

Although the scale of the band’s contribution is unclear, it will likely make a small part of a much larger project that will also feature other people from the audio and music industry. “We started off years ago. We established a team doing artificial sound and we worked together with games specialists, we worked together with film artists doing sound for films.

“We sell emotions and sound is really a crucial part of emotion so what we do is work on artificial sounds because you have to,” said Moers. Wheels stated that Mercedes-AMG has yet to decide if an electrified AMG model will have synthesised engine sound as some companies have already done for some turbocharged petrol-powered cars, or if there will be a new sound entirely that will celebrate the electric powertrain.

Be in no doubt, however, that hybrid AMG models are coming – the company has already shown the Project One earlier this year, powered by a V6 hybrid powertrain derived from Formula 1. More mainstream models will follow after, with the four-door AMG GT Concept from the Geneva Motor Show in March pointing to a way forward and putting Mercedes-AMG one step closer to bringing a proper electrified car to market.

Such AMG models won’t arrive until “mid-[2020s] or maybe a little before that,” said Moers, who added that the AMG GT Concept’s plug-in hybrid powertrain hints at the mechanicals of a production hybrid model. “What you have seen in Geneva and the GT Concept with rear-axle hybrid system, is more or less our understanding of how we are going to electrify powertrains in performance cars,” said Moers.

Looking to sell your car? Sell it with Carro.