Mercedes-AMG is developing an all-new, all-electric, zero emissions, SLS AMG super-sports car – in a blatant attempt to prove that going green needn’t be boring.

The SLS AMG will have four electric motors, one for each individual wheel – producing a cumulative (hold your breath) 525 horsepower and 650 lb/ft of torque. This innovative drive system will mean that the SLS AMG will effectively be a four-wheel drive supercar. This level of power and grip is expected to translate to a 0-100 acceleration time of around 4 seconds. And while this innovative system ensures targeted acceleration of individual wheels, it remains to be seen how Mercedes has addressed the potential problem of a differential in power being transmitted to a given wheel. The four electric motors are positioned near the wheels, and low down in the vehicle. In addition, the liquid-cooled high-voltage, lithium-ion battery and power electronics have also been positioned so as to ensure balanced weight distribution and a low center of gravity – all of which should guarantee AMG levels of handling. The 400-volt battery is charged by means of targeted recuperation during braking while the car’s on the move.

“With the SLS AMG with electric drive, we wanted to redefine the super-sports car. For us, it is not just about responsibility. We attach just as much importance to excitement and classic AMG performance,” says Volker Mornhinweg, Chief Executive Officer of Mercedes-AMG GmbH. The SLS AMG is expected to hit the roads by end 2010 – and, by the looks of it, all its IC (internal combustion) engined rivals should be sweating some precious petrol.

While the Toyota Prius and Honda Insight battle it out for best selling hybrid crown in the present day, both companies are planning plenty more hybrid offenses in the near future.

Honda’s new CEO, Takanobu Ito, announced that the CR-Z sports hybrid, which made its concept car debut at the Tokyo motor show in 2007, will make it into production, and be in Japanese showrooms as early as February 2010. The CR-Z will join the ranks of the current Insight and Civic Hybrid. Moreover, as a result of the great initial demand for the Insight, Honda has begun producing its latest hybrid on another production line at its Suzuka factory in Japan. Furthermore, the Honda Jazz, which was recently launched in India, is also expected to go the hybrid route by the end of 2010. Honda is also working on developing a new two-motor hybrid system for mid-to-large vehicles.

The leader in hybrid technology, Toyota, isn’t exactly sitting pretty either. Toyota recently launched the very first hybrid-only Lexus luxury sedan, the HS250h, in the Japanese market. By September, the car will be launched in the all-important US market as well. Toyota Motor Europe, meanwhile, announced that it plans to manufacture a full hybrid version of its compact hatchback, the Auris, in the UK. Production of Toyota’s first European built hybrid will begin by mid-2010.