Mercedes-AMG GT63 reviewed: more polish and performance

Europe’s luxury car makers may have turned their attention to electric vehicles, but one remains committed to producing ballistic V8 performance machines.

The Mercedes-Benz GT63 is more potent yet more comfortable than before. Picture: Supplied.

Mercedes-AMG’s new top dog, the coming GT63, really puts the “grrr” into Gran

Turismo. Let off the leash, the second-generation GT is ferocious.

It’s not only that its quad exhaust pipes bark loudly with every gear shift. This long, low, wide and heavy coupe also has big-time bite. Unlike its predecessor, the new GT is equipped with all-wheel drive, and its big wheels wear very wide rubber.

So there’s plenty of bite to back the bark. On the mountain roads in southern Spain chosen by AMG for the GT63’s international press launch it holds the roads as though it has fangs, not tyres. Nothing its mighty twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 produces ever seems to be wasted as wheel spin. Whether launching from a standing start, or powering out of a tight, slow corner, the GT63’s acceleration is simply ballistic.

The Mercedes-Benz GT63: ballistic acceleration and movie-star looks. Picture: Supplied.

Mercedes-AMG claims, plausibly, a 3.2-second 0-100km/h time for the new GT63.

It’s quicker than anything in the current GT line-up, and as fast as the exotic, $800,000 Black Series sold here in limited numbers.

Because the new GT63 won’t arrive in Australia until sometime late next year its price hasn’t been finalised. Expect it to cost somewhere between $375,000 and $400,000.

While Mercedes-AMG will also produce a less costly and less powerful 55 version of the GT, a decision on whether to bring it to Australia has yet to be made.

The GT63 coupe is closely related to the new Mercedes-AMG SL soft-top that arrived in Australia earlier this year. The open and closed versions were designed and developed as a pair by AMG. Both share the same basic dimensions, chassis structure and mechanical layout. This means there won’t be, as in the past, a roadster version of the GT.

There won’t be a roadster version of the GT63 this time. Picture: Supplied.

Improving comfort and roominess were primary aims with the new GT coupe. The new GT63 is a 2+2, not a strictly two-seat car like the outgoing GT.

According to Mercedes-AMG, people up to 150cm tall will fit in the rear seat of the GT63. It’s very cramped back there, and the one-piece backrest for the pair of rear seats is very upright. Best to think of it as a nicely padded parcel shelf.

But that backrest can be flipped forward, increasing the luggage compartment’s volume from 321 to 675 litres. With the backrest folded there’s room for a roadgoing bicycle with its front wheel removed, apparently. Backrest up, there’s ample space for weekend luggage for two.

Extra practicality makes the new GT a competitor for other costly and classy 2+2s. All-wheel-drive models from the top end of the Porsche 911 line-up, like the Carrera 4 GTS and even, at a stretch, the Turbo, are obvious rivals. So, too, is the rear-drive Ferrari Roma. Then there’s the Aston Martin Vantage Coupe, which, though less costly, uses basically the same engine as the GT63.

Rivals include the Porsche 911 and Ferrari Roma. Picture: Supplied.

What sets the Mercedes-AMG apart from the others, and also its soft-top SL sister, is its suspension technology. Though weighing close to two tonnes, the GT63 changes direction with amazing grace. From the driver’s seat it doesn’t feel like a heavy, pig-headed car.

The agility, incredibly, is achieved without stiff anti-roll bars. In fact, the GT63 doesn’t have any anti-roll bars at all. Instead the coupe’s shock absorbers are all connected by hydraulic pipes. Simply speaking, oil pressure created in a shock absorber on one side of the axle when cornering is transferred to support the shock absorber on the opposite side.

The GT63 is reasonably comfortable for such a focused sports car. Picture: Supplied.

There’s a little more to it than this but the results are very impressive. The GT63 is quite comfortable for a car with elite-grade cornering grip and handling, and that’s something that couldn’t be said about the car it will replace next year.

So the new GT63 marks a real change in direction for Mercedes-AMG’s flagship model. It’s more mature and sophisticated than before.

The first-generation AMG GT was basically a German take on the front-engined Chevrolet Corvette. Some may lament the loss of its raw and rowdy character, but the new GT63 is quicker, calmer and more polished.

MERCEDES-AMG GT63

PRICE $375,000 to $400,000 (est)

ENGINE 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbo; 430kW/800Nm

TRANSMISSION 9-speed auto; AWD 

THIRST 14.1L/100km

0-100KM/H 3.2 secs

Originally published as Mercedes-AMG GT63 reviewed: more polish and performance