How the Mercedes-AMG Project One's Wacky Pushrod Suspension Works

The Mercedes hypercar uses two inboard-mounted dampers on each axle. It looks like a crazy setup, but it's got some serious benefits.

Máté Petrány

The Mercedes-AMG Project One brings race-car technology to the road like nothing else before it. Much ink has (justifiably) been spilled over its F1-derived powertrain, but the car's suspension setup is incredibly fascinating too. In the limited time we had with him, AMG boss Tobias Moers told us a bit about it works at the Frankfurt Motor Show. Now, YouTuber KYLE.ENGINEERS takes us even further in-depth.

At each axle, the Project One uses inboard-mounted dampers activated by a pushrod, similar to a Formula 1 car. But interestingly, while an F1 car uses one damper, the Project One uses two—one to control the vertical motions of the wheels, the other to mitigate body roll. Essentially, this allows AMG to offer two separate damper profiles—one to control wheel movement, the other for body motions.

The setup is like what you'd see on an LMP1 car. Moers told us this type of design has never been used on a road car due to packaging reasons—mounting the dampers inboard like this reduces luggage room to almost nothing. Obviously, AMG isn't concerned about Project One customers having a place to put their suitcase.

This video does a great job explaining the advantages of this setup, and gets into the specific function of each component. It's an incredible design.

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