REVIEW | Mercedes-AMG GT 63 is a racer dressed as a luxury car
Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance four-door coupe is savage and smooth in equal measure
03 October 2024 - 19:08
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The four-door coupé projects a visual blitzkrieg with its low-slung stance and black wheels. Picture: DENIS DROPPA
There is something entertainingly discordant about a racing car dressed up as a luxury sedan, which the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance essentially is.
Priced at R4,464,871, the four-door coupé is one of the triple-pointed star’s most expensive models and the most powerful Benz you can buy in SA. It is absurdly fast for a car weighing 2.4 tonnes. We took it to the Gerotek test track, and the hulk blazed the 0-100km/h sprint in a supercar-like 3.02 seconds, which is just short of the sea-level 2.9 seconds claimed by Mercedes.
The clinical-sounding figure doesn’t explain how fast that feels, and how the blood drains from your head as you get slammed into your seat as the big Benz explodes off the line. With all-wheel drive, the car just grips and goes with the barest chirp of wheelspin instead of a smoking getaway.
Getting such a hulk off the line so quickly takes a lot of grunt, and the 4.0l biturbo V8 engine and electric motor generate a combined 620kW of power and 1,470Nm of torque. Stupendous.
The big car has excellent directional stability as it soars to supercar-like top speeds, with a 316km/h maximum claimed. The mighty g-forces are accompanied by a fittingly robust audio display, with a V8 roar and electric motor whine singing in chorus off a high-adrenaline hymn sheet.
This grand tourer hustles through corners with better-than-expected alacrity for its size, aided by rear-axle steering that improves high-speed stability and cornering crispness. You’re always aware of its bulk, but with the suspension stiffened in Race mode the big Benz turns into bends fairly crisply and changes direction without feeling wallowy.
As long as one understands that it’s a grand tourer and not a point-and-squirt sports car.
The Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance blasts from 0-100km/h quicker than you can say its name.
Picture: DENIS DROPPA
Aside from preventing tyre-smoking pulloffs, all-wheel drive and stability control put the enormous power down with a fair degree of civility through corners. The big Benz is not a loose cannon that requires gentle tiptoeing to keep it in line on a twisty road. You can’t stomp the throttle with wild abandon, not with all that torque, but the car is relatively forgiving when driven by the scruff of the neck.
Exploiting the car’s high-performance zone predictably has it burning through fuel like a truck, but the car is able to drive on pure electric power for about 10km, a feature that I used in slow-moving traffic, which helped reduce the average fuel consumption to a respectable 12.4l /100km.
In electric mode the car still feels entertainingly thrustful with instant torque. The battery pack is quickly regenerated while driving in petrol mode, especially in the Race setting, while the plug-in hybrid car can also be recharged with a cable if necessary.
At just over 5m long, the car’s four-seater cabin has almost limousine-like room, with rear passengers able to stretch out comfortably and in the lap of luxury. The two rear passengers can control their own climate settings and there are two USB charging ports for phones.
The 335l boot swallows a respectable amount of luggage, and the luxury supercar is fully stacked with niceties including electric adjustment for the front seats and steering column, MBUX infotainment system and heated front seats.
Luxury trappings and lots of room with a sporty vibe.
Picture: DENIS DROPPA
If the R4.6m basic price doesn’t make you blink, the car can be specified with a raft of extra-cost options including a head-up display, Burmester 3D high-end audio system and 21-inch wheels as fitted to the test unit. The car also had optional leather/alcantara AMG performance seats with prominent side bolsters, which felt a little hard at first but proved comfortable on long journeys.
The cabin is heavily digitised in the typical modern Benz style, with turbine-style air vents, ambient lighting and metal embellishments that create a glitzy vibe far removed from Merc’s conservative origins. Carbon fibre adornments and an alcantara/leather flat-bottomed AMG steering wheel provide racing-themed flair. Some may find it garish, but underlying the flashy décor is a typically solid Mercedes feel and top-quality trimmings.
Externally, the large four-door coupé projects a visual blitzkrieg with its low-slung stance, black wheels, V8 biturbo badges under the “gills” on its flanks, and a rear diffuser flanked by two pairs of big-bore exhausts. It projects an elegant menace, like Chuck Norris in a tuxedo, and the test car’s racy theme was heightened by an optional boot spoiler.
The ride is on the firm side, but feels relaxed enough with the adaptive suspension set to Comfort mode. Savage and smooth in equal measure, the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance is a usable daily driver that can dice Lamborghinis.
Support our award-winning journalism. The Premium package (digital only) is R30 for the first month and thereafter you pay R129 p/m now ad-free for all subscribers.
DRIVING IMPRESSION
REVIEW | Mercedes-AMG GT 63 is a racer dressed as a luxury car
Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance four-door coupe is savage and smooth in equal measure
There is something entertainingly discordant about a racing car dressed up as a luxury sedan, which the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance essentially is.
Priced at R4,464,871, the four-door coupé is one of the triple-pointed star’s most expensive models and the most powerful Benz you can buy in SA. It is absurdly fast for a car weighing 2.4 tonnes. We took it to the Gerotek test track, and the hulk blazed the 0-100km/h sprint in a supercar-like 3.02 seconds, which is just short of the sea-level 2.9 seconds claimed by Mercedes.
The clinical-sounding figure doesn’t explain how fast that feels, and how the blood drains from your head as you get slammed into your seat as the big Benz explodes off the line. With all-wheel drive, the car just grips and goes with the barest chirp of wheelspin instead of a smoking getaway.
Getting such a hulk off the line so quickly takes a lot of grunt, and the 4.0l biturbo V8 engine and electric motor generate a combined 620kW of power and 1,470Nm of torque. Stupendous.
The big car has excellent directional stability as it soars to supercar-like top speeds, with a 316km/h maximum claimed. The mighty g-forces are accompanied by a fittingly robust audio display, with a V8 roar and electric motor whine singing in chorus off a high-adrenaline hymn sheet.
This grand tourer hustles through corners with better-than-expected alacrity for its size, aided by rear-axle steering that improves high-speed stability and cornering crispness. You’re always aware of its bulk, but with the suspension stiffened in Race mode the big Benz turns into bends fairly crisply and changes direction without feeling wallowy.
As long as one understands that it’s a grand tourer and not a point-and-squirt sports car.
Aside from preventing tyre-smoking pulloffs, all-wheel drive and stability control put the enormous power down with a fair degree of civility through corners. The big Benz is not a loose cannon that requires gentle tiptoeing to keep it in line on a twisty road. You can’t stomp the throttle with wild abandon, not with all that torque, but the car is relatively forgiving when driven by the scruff of the neck.
Exploiting the car’s high-performance zone predictably has it burning through fuel like a truck, but the car is able to drive on pure electric power for about 10km, a feature that I used in slow-moving traffic, which helped reduce the average fuel consumption to a respectable 12.4l /100km.
In electric mode the car still feels entertainingly thrustful with instant torque. The battery pack is quickly regenerated while driving in petrol mode, especially in the Race setting, while the plug-in hybrid car can also be recharged with a cable if necessary.
At just over 5m long, the car’s four-seater cabin has almost limousine-like room, with rear passengers able to stretch out comfortably and in the lap of luxury. The two rear passengers can control their own climate settings and there are two USB charging ports for phones.
The 335l boot swallows a respectable amount of luggage, and the luxury supercar is fully stacked with niceties including electric adjustment for the front seats and steering column, MBUX infotainment system and heated front seats.
If the R4.6m basic price doesn’t make you blink, the car can be specified with a raft of extra-cost options including a head-up display, Burmester 3D high-end audio system and 21-inch wheels as fitted to the test unit. The car also had optional leather/alcantara AMG performance seats with prominent side bolsters, which felt a little hard at first but proved comfortable on long journeys.
The cabin is heavily digitised in the typical modern Benz style, with turbine-style air vents, ambient lighting and metal embellishments that create a glitzy vibe far removed from Merc’s conservative origins. Carbon fibre adornments and an alcantara/leather flat-bottomed AMG steering wheel provide racing-themed flair. Some may find it garish, but underlying the flashy décor is a typically solid Mercedes feel and top-quality trimmings.
Externally, the large four-door coupé projects a visual blitzkrieg with its low-slung stance, black wheels, V8 biturbo badges under the “gills” on its flanks, and a rear diffuser flanked by two pairs of big-bore exhausts. It projects an elegant menace, like Chuck Norris in a tuxedo, and the test car’s racy theme was heightened by an optional boot spoiler.
The ride is on the firm side, but feels relaxed enough with the adaptive suspension set to Comfort mode. Savage and smooth in equal measure, the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance is a usable daily driver that can dice Lamborghinis.
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