What do you do when a four-second 0-62mph dash isn’t quick enough? That was the question asked by the nutters behind the 455bhp Mercedes-AMG GT a couple of years ago. Their solution was the more powerful GT S, which got to 62mph a fifth of a second quicker.
But that obviously wasn’t rapid enough because from November, there will be the Mercedes-AMG GT R, which pulls out all the stops to achieve the perfect balance of insane acceleration, pinpoint handling, and a level of grip that would make King Kong look like a wimpy pushover.
Motorsport has played a key influence in the car’s conception with the aim of introducing the driving dynamics of AMG’s GT3 racing car to the AMG GT equation. One of the guys behind the car’s development claims that the finished product has “reached the next level of driving performance”, and we’re inclined to agree.
The AMG GT R pumps out even more power to make it as quick as a Lamborghini Murcielago LP640 V12.
Despite being notably nippier than its siblings, the GT R (no relation to Nissan’s horsepower hoarder) uses the same 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbo engine as the preceding GT cars, but some serious tuning from the boffins at AMG – Mercedes’ performance-enhancing division – has wrangled another 121bhp from the engine, totalling 576bhp.
Aside from its 3.6 second 0-62mph sprint, this new range-topping GT also pushes its top speed to 197mph, compared to 189mph in the standard car.
Plenty of cosmetic changes differentiate the GT R too, with vertical slats in the front grille, a fixed rear wing, new front air intakes, and new diffusers at the front and rear.
The wider front and rear wings serve more than just cosmetic purposes, achieving optimum grip to let you smash round corners even faster than before.
Asking price hasn’t been confirmed yet but expect it a considerable rise over the £110,510 GT S when it goes on sale this November.
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