Mercedes-AMG brand beat an annual delivery target four years early in 2013 as the manufacturer of high-performance cars expanded into smaller models.

AMG sold about 32,200 autos last year, the Affalterbach, Germany-based unit of Daimler AG said today in a statement. That exceeds a 30,000-vehicle goal set for 2017 that the company outlined in mid-2012, when it indicated that annual deliveries were averaging 20,000.

The 47-year-old business, known for its hand-built performance engines and sporty exterior design features, started to offer Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz compact cars under the AMG badge in 2013. The A 45 AMG hatchback and CLA 45 AMG coupe went on sale last year and will be complemented by the GLA 45 AMG sport-utility vehicle in 2014.

“We are looking back on the company’s strongest year ever,” and the brand will “continue to build on” its growth strategy, Tobias Moers, who took over as head of AMG in October, said today in a statement.

Moers succeeded Ola Kaellenius who was promoted to become the head of sales and marketing at Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler’s Mercedes division, the world’s third-biggest maker of luxury vehicles.

Manufacturers are pushing into high-performance vehicles that yield bigger margins to capitalize on the willingness of buyers to spend more money on vehicles with a more dynamic image. AMG’s expansion into the compact segment opened the brand to younger customers who previously couldn’t afford a new performance vehicle.

Sales in the U.S., AMG’s biggest market, rose 20 percent, while demand surged 40 percent in the U.K. and 10 percent in Germany. Deliveries were also boosted by the introduction of all-wheel-drive versions of the updated Mercedes E-Class sedan and CLS coupe. The company doesn’t regularly specify yearly delivery figures.

AMG has sold more than 10,000 of the high-end SLS sports car since its introduction in 2010. (Bloomberg)