It comes from hell and it promises heaven! The Mercedes-AMG GT R has just been released on the racetrack. “It looks like hell and it drives like hell”, says Tobias Moers, the Chairman of the Management Board of AMG.
The pure-bred sports car Mercedes-AMG GT R, with racing DNA, marks a milestone in driving performance, as it is nothing less than the street-legal version of its racing sibling, the GT3.
As we have announced this very morning, the GT R comes with a pack of 585 HP, which makes it the most powerful street-legal car ever built in Affalterbach. The active aerodynamics and the looks of the model specifically handcrafted by racers turn it into the meanest and greenest beast that it is.
The live presentation brought the green beast on the screen, making its way through the jungle at a breathless pace, eating up the road and chasing wild animals away. Meanwhile, through the radio communication, the world champion’s voice, Lewis Hamilton, is easily recognizable. It probably takes a world champion to tame such a beast, set to fight the Porsche 911 GT3 RS!
Hamilton stops panting at the pits, but when the technicians approach him, he starts off again, teleporting himself, together with the green monster, back into the tropical forest.
And then on to the racetrack, at Brooklands, UK. Actually, right above it, to be more precise, as a helicopter safely delivers the gigantic precious package. The container branded with the “Mercedes-AMG GT R” designation, accompanied by the warning “Watch out for the beast” is safely lowered to the ground with the precision of a surgeon in the ER.
The AMG GT S Safety Car and the GT3, together with other two GT S-es, are giving it a warm welcome, as they start drifting, smoking up the track and wasting out their tires.
Fuming inside, trapped in the container, the beast is finally released on what seems to be its very home: the jungle of the racetrack. Stroboscopic lights and fireworks, blurred out only by the machine-gun sound of the engine, make the captivating setting of the GT R’s live presentation.
Tobias Moers gets off the GT R, but can’t talk for long. The world champion Hamilton cuts in: “I came to pick up my car. Can I take it for a quick drive?”, he dares to demand.
“Are you sure it’s street-legal?” Hamilton asks with a shade of doubt, when he brings the car back in one piece. The driver is the one to adjust the machinery’s behavior at the touch of a button in the AMG DRIVE UNIT or by using the AMG DYNAMIC SELECT transmission modes. Three modes are available: “Comfort”, “Sport” and “Sport Plus”. he standard 3-stage ESP with the settings “ESP ON”, “ESP SPORT Handling Mode” and “ESP OFF” works makes a perfect team with the limited-slip differential, amplifying the outstanding driving dynamics of the GT R.
“It sounds like hell and it drives like hell!”, Tobias Moers responds, hardly believing his eyes.
And speaking of the looks, the Mercedes-AMG GT R, painted here in the exclusive “AMG green hell magno”, comes with what the AMG executives call the Panamericana radiator grille, originally unveiled last year with the GT3. Its muscular stance is highlighted by the prominent wings, side panels and by the huge manually adustable wing at the rear, all making it float through the air. Yet the lowered suspension and the wider tracks of the AMG dragon makes it look as if it’s glued to the ground.
The curved solid bonnet shelters the 4.0-liter V8 biturbo with a power boost, hitting the 585 HP output benchmark. 15 kilograms lighter than the GT S at 1,630 kg, despite the highest number of technologies it incorporates, the car runs from a standstill all the way to 100 km/h in just 3.6, in its way to hitting a top speed of 318 km/h. The peak torque of 700 Nm is available between 1,900 and 5,500 rpm.
Never before has Mercedes-AMG boxed up so much racing technology in a car set free on the road. The front mid V8 biturbo with transaxle transmission, a significantly modified undercarriage and the intelligent lightweight construction are the key components in the ultimate driving experience.
But the numbers don’t tell half of the story! If you’ve missed the live presentation, check out the official Facebook page of Mercedes-AMG to watch the full 15-minutes video.
[…] 585-horspower and 700-Newtonmeter Mercedes-AMG GT R, with a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8 underneath the bonnet accepted the challenge. The AMG escaped from […]