Place the pilot and his navigator in a comfortable long-distance seating position, then build the cockpit and vehicle architecture around them. An upright windscreen, teardrop roofline, a stubby hood with fendercrests that help the driver place the front end in corners, primary and secondary controls all easily worked without taking eyes from the road, and that subconscious connection between man and machine, a sensibility that the car is truly an extension of the driver’s mind and body.
Mercedes-AMG has offered a 21st century interpretation of that European automotive art form of Gran Turismo that dates back at least to the late 1930s and subtly seamlessly between the 1940s and early 1970s.
Mercedes-AMG introduced two versions of its GT 63, and I opted for the more sumptuous one for the everyday driver, with +2 booster seats and front seats capable of heating, cooling and massaging; Call it the Gran Turismo for a man and a woman.
Almost all controls, screens, menus and graphics come from Mercedes’ deep container, with touchpoints, logic and capabilities little different from those of a Maybach EQS electric limousine, that the GT 63 is a low-speed weapon, not an SUV deluxe. sheath. Familiar, with another intention.
AMG’s 4. 0-liter twin-turbo V8 is positioned very close to the front of the ship, assembled by a single man at a series of workstations, with the builder conscientiously opting for a component for an ideal fit, which results in the equivalent of a traditional Gerguy hot rod engine, it doesn’t get any bigger than that.
A fashionable couple could tour in this vehicle for a week. One might want to invest the money in … [+] fitted luggage, which I’m sure Mercedes MANUFAKTUR can arrange. Flat floor, neatly boxed up sidewalls. Note speaker of upgrade Burmester audio, which is worth every penny.
Producing 577 horsepower and a walloping 590 lb. ft. of torque available in a broad rev range, this highly evolved V8 delivers enough punch to satisfy both the skilled old hand and those recently arriving in this blessed land of big horsepower.
High up the mountain on a cold sunny morning. The AMG GT has classic European Gran Turismo proportions. Array. . [ ] Thanks to its well-packaged V8 and all-wheel-drive system, it also has a short hood, which helps tremendously when hitting the car in corners. It should be noted that the maximum force must be between 5,500 and 6,500 rpm, so the transition between torque and force is perfect. It’s a pleasure to behold the well-written turbos.
In the existing German V8 style, the turbos are fitted to Vee, like a Man Bun. The merit of the packaging lies in the overall engine dimensions of a tidy hub, which requires no concessions from AMG engineers in alloy frame architecture or front suspension mounting issues. The car is like the engine, a neat package.
I went back down the mountain. Here in Greater Los Angeles, the ideal INDIVIDUAL environment is COMFORT, so that the suspension gently absorbs the brutal hits of LA’s notoriously dreary sidewalks, saving your kidneys and back from bruises. SPORT or SPORT+ for the powertrain provides a competitive feel that responds to gear adjustments while driving.
The GT 63 variant of the Mercedes 9-speed features AMG scripts for quick and elegant gear changes, adding automated and exact downshifts with the throttle. Using this finely programmed semi-automatic gearbox, with limited driving time, a neophyte can effortlessly shift gears with as much skill as any of the greatest sports car racing heroes of the old BeyondArray.
The 4-liter twin-turbo V8 is assembled via a single man who can take the car and manipulate each and every component as he works from the engine block up, installing the crank into the bearings, the pistons into the cylinders , etc. I’m not asking for a bigger engine build than this, making AMG the absolute equivalent of any other performance car maker. The turbos live at the top, in the V of the engine. V12s make excellent sounds, are long and as well packaged as a V8. A high-performance turbocharged V8 remains the most productive strategy for most front-engined GT cars.
If changing the steering wheel is too complicated when driving on busy city highways, choose the COMFORT calibration and be a little lazy, the black boxes take care of the car’s gear settings deftly. With so much torque available between 2,500 and 5,000 rpm, this car is fast even when you’re slacking off.
The engine manufacturer of the control car. Hammer, this engine sounds amazing, it increases sensations and adrenal glands. Symphonic.
In COMFORT the suspension remains taut, but just barely cushy enough to manage the wretched pavement of Downtown LA’s tributary highways, saving both kidneys and the car’s expensive tires from bruising and rupture.
The steering wheel has two of these dials, located under the right- and left-side spokes. Rotate the … [+] wheel to change calibration. For life in LA, the INDIVIDUAL setting is best with SPORT for powertrain and with COMFORT or SPORT for suspension.
To make the GT 63’s day-to-day details even easier, I checked the option box for front lift, and even my own driveway wouldn’t possibly scrape the GT 63’s chin. Consider this a mandatory option.
22 Beautifully sculptured. Note the teardrop-shaped arch of the roofline.
The windscreen is relatively vertical, as it deserves to be in a true GT. One of the main benefits is the lack of reflections at the top of the board, which is a common challenge in some Italian exotics that emphasize taste over function. The only reflected image is at the base of the windshield, where it does not affect the view of the road.
If space can be found in the cluttered center console, AMG may only have push-me/pull-me support for the front lift as an option. In its current form, you press a button on the back of the stack to open an on-screen menu, then press an icon on the screen, then press a graphical car symbol to raise the front, requiring your final check. eyes. the road and the valuable seconds. AMG’s counterargument is a spark on the touchscreen that appears and asks if you want to search for a location on the GPS map and thus automatically interact with the front linkage. But this does not address the challenge of abrupt and unforeseen inputs.
On a remote mountain road, SPORT or even SPORT+ works best in all contexts and suddenly you are riding a tiger, a truly ferocious animal. Honestly, using all the capabilities of this car on the road will be difficult and will pose a risk to your license.
AMG GT 63 has a smoked glass moonroof that delivers a plausible alternative for moonlight drives for … [+] those who also want a metal roof structure above. Note the large cross members, particularly at the rear, which ensure a very stiff body structure, important in a vehicle with a hatchback rear roof.
Hard to imagine that the range-topping AMG GT 63 S E with hybrid powertrain combining this V8 with an electric motor out back offers considerably more performance. But like all acceleration junkies, I always want ruthless power and thrust up to 100 mph…and perhaps a little beyond.
Regardless of the ride height, the seat position is upright, which is best for both the driver and the front passenger. A true Gran Turismo puts the driver in an upright position that is comfortable over long distances and also allows for good vision. The GT 63 offers transparent perspectives to the front, sides and rear. The satin finish on the center console looks fantastic, but it can be reflected in the bright California sun. A less reflective edge might be a smart choice.
No matter what the spec lackeys say about a car that slightly hits a hundred km/h in 3. 1 seconds, the GT 63 proved to be as fierce and exhilarating as any front-engined GT car available, whether German, Italian or English.
Given my addiction to acceleration, to violent pushes, it is curious to think that driving a GT 63 feeds the preference to spice up the AMG GT 43 with its very complicated 4-cylinder turbo, a car that will be less harsh but will also be much less so. to make it bigger and fully exploit it. And of course, the GT 63 S E Hybrid from Mercedes-AMG, which, with a wink and a wink, may simply be a hybrid hypercar of the 21st century, a cousin of the Uhlenhaut coupe of the 1950s.
The V8’s rat-a-tat-tat sound is especially pronounced at low revs, transforming into a forceful, almost violent tenor howl at high revs. It makes noise at low revs. More strident and assertive in SPORT and SPORT environments. He perfectly sings German opera at high revs. For older guys like me, the force delivered through the motor is perfectly understandable. Even with all that great turbo torque at low revs, it still delivers power in a linear, familiar way. It is understandable that the force increases. The main difference is that in the old days there wasn’t this combination of massive torque at low revs and maximum force. The movement of torque to push between 5,000 and 5,500 rpm is fantastic. You never lack intelligent strength.
Screen choice based on performance. As the revs increase, the red light moves outward until one… [+] reaches the red line. Okay, it’s a video game console button.
And GT 63 is a total car, not just an acceleration sled or a tool for top-speed braggarts. GT 63 is an all-round athlete. Any car that hits 60 in less than three and a half seconds is a lot of car, and every two- or three-tenth second increment constitutes another universe. To brush up against 3-flat is enough to make most passengers squeal, whimper or cry. Most civilians freak when taken on such an acceleration run.
The suspension is AMG multi-link, with steering knuckles, wheel mounts and forged aluminium arms to lighten the weight. The AMG GT 63 features an active RideArray that employs a hydraulic formula to upgrade traditional torsion springs. Also adaptive and interconnected shock absorbers (dampers).
AMG’s SL 63 remains my most beloved car of the current generation, a gentleman’s sport-tourer that allows for the very best en plein air moonlight drives combined with an elegant presence. The Maybach SL 680 variant is another gorgeous piece of equipment. GT 63 is SL 63’s more muscular, more sharply focused brother, sharing many of the same components. Both are handsome classical sculpture, avoiding the teenage fever dream video game designs of most mid-engine supercars and hypercars. Both AMG SL and GT are cars for grown men.
The test car had more sumptuous front seats and +2 leather-trimmed spare seats that could accommodate comfortable luggage or four-foot-tall children. This same car can be supplied with road-facing seats and a rear shelf. See? I really had it: there’s my well-travelled Brooks Brothers bag from the ’90s.
After years of Mercedes-AMG triumph in Formula 1, the complete integration of the once independent AMG tuning space as a Mercedes-Benz functionality department, the production of the AMG One hypercar, which is actually a Formula 1 car for the road and the variety of a partial access to the full diversity of Mercedes subsystems shown, Mercedes-AMG is now a full-fledged manufacturer of high-functional automobiles equivalent to those other two wonderful sports and racing companies. GT, one on the same street in Stuttgart and the other located south of the Alps. And Mercedes’ unrivaled history of high-performance vehicles and motorsport success has extended to the AMG division. AMG just needs time to build and offer more exclusive production cars to convince the skeptics. In terms of engineering capability, Mercedes-AMG is already equivalent, if not much better, than its German and Italian comparators.
In the mountain. The shape of the grille and the vertical bars are an interpretation of the grilles of the three hundred Mercedes SL racing cars of the early 1950s.
One community, many voices. Create a loose account to divide your thoughts.
Our network aims to connect others through open and thoughtful conversations. We need our readers to share their perspectives and exchange concepts and facts in one space.
In order to do so, please follow the posting rules in our site’s Terms of Service. We’ve summarized some of those key rules below. Simply put, keep it civil.
Your message will be rejected if we notice that it appears to contain:
User accounts will be locked if we become aware that users are engaging in:
So, how can you be a power user?
Thank you for reading our Community Standards. Read the full list of posting regulations discovered in our site’s Terms of Use.