The Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance Is Grand Touring, Perfected

The new Mercedes-AMG GT isn’t the sports car it used to be. These days, the V-8-powered two-door from Affalterbach is more of a grand tourer, with a roomier interior and a wider range of capabilities thanks to standard all-wheel drive, which comes at the cost of added weight. While it’s not as driver-focused as the previous car, the new GT does the cross-country missile thing very well.

The AMG GT63 S E Performance, a new hybrid variant that uses a trick rear-mounted electric motor to add even more power and tech, doubles down on that ethos. With a combined 805 horsepower and 1,047 pound-feet of torque, it’s leagues quicker than the standard car and packed with a whole bunch of fun hybrid tech, adding another layer of complexity to an already complex car.

The E Performance is, in many ways, very similar to the standard GT63. It looks identical, with no changes to the sleek, long-nose body and menacing front end. The carbon-ceramic brakes are the same, the Michelin Pilot S5 tires are the same, and the aero goes largely untouched. The interior is lifted from the pure ICE car, with its gigantic touchscreen control center, digital gauge cluster, and infuriating touch-sensitive controls. If you want an in-depth explanation on why I hate controls like this, read my review of the GT63. In short, they feel like cost-cutting measures that are worse to use versus physical buttons and switchgear.

All of the real changes happen beneath this AMG’s skin. In place of a regular rear differential sits a 201-horsepower electric motor directly on the rear axle using two forward gears. Combined with AMG’s magnificent 4.0-liter twin-turbo V-8—making 603 hp in this application—it turns an immensely quick vehicle into the fastest-accelerating gas car I’ve ever driven.

Mercedes claims a 0-60 mph time of 2.7 seconds, making it even quicker than the AMG One hypercar. But the E Performance feels quicker than that number suggests. Where you’d get a slight delay between throttle push and forward thrust in the standard car, here there’s instant gratification. Low-speed response is truly immediate thanks to the e-motor, like you’d find on something purely electric. The biggest surprise doesn’t come at 60 mph, though. It comes at 160. 

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Pros: Exceptionally Stable at High Speeds, Packed With Tech, Fastest-Accelerating ICE Car I’ve Ever Driven

With free reign of Germany’s Autobahn (where there are no speed limits), I’m able to explore the E Performance’s explosive acceleration. That electric motor doesn’t just help the car accelerate at low speeds. It helps everywhere. That same gut-punch of electric shove you feel at normal speeds? You also feel it deep into triple digits. Having that kind of immediate forward momentum available at 150-plus-mph is a mind-bending sensation. This is probably what it’s like to drive a Bugatti. 

Top speed for the GT63 E Performance is electronically limited to 199 mph. That’s just barely better than the normal GT63’s top speed of 196 mph. Don’t let the numbers fool you, though. While I can see the normal car reaching true V-max at its quoted top speed, this hybrid version feels like it can keep pulling past 215 if the limiter were removed. It took me relatively no time at all to reach an indicated 192 mph on an empty stretch of German highway (the fastest I’ve ever driven a car, anywhere). It was still pulling hard when I had to let off. You’re paying for the way this car reaches these speeds in such a nonchalant, unfazed, and timely manner. 

While the powertrain feels seamless from behind the wheel, it’s highly complex. The GT63 hybrid uses a similar setup to the bigger S63 E Performance sedan, with some modifications to the rear diff’s housing to get it to fit into the GT’s underside. The single permanent-magnet synchronous motor is powered by a 6.1-kilowatt-hour battery that lives in the trunk area, taking up a fair bit of what used to be a cavernous hatch. Thankfully the optional rear seats still fold down, so you’ll never be short of space when packing for two. 

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Because that e-motor is connected directly to the differential, it can actually send torque back up the driveshaft and to the transfer case, which in turn throws twist to the front wheels. That means even in Electric mode—one of eight(!) different drive modes in the E Performance—the car remains all-wheel drive. Of course, the transfer case is almost always sending all the power to the rear to improve vehicle dynamics. Up to 50 percent of the torque can make it to the front axle, but that only occurs in cases where traction is tough to come by, like snowy hills or slippery corner exits. 

How that rear-mounted motor delivers its performance depends heavily on your selected drive mode. Keep the GT63 in a calmer mode like Slippery or Comfort, and the system will run the car on battery-only power when it can, only firing the V-8 when there’s demand for extra power—or to recharge using the belt-spun alternator-generator. Throw it into Sport or Race mode, and the engine remains permanently online, constantly topping off the battery via the alternator. This way, you’re never lacking for that instant thrust when you need it.

There’s also a Battery Hold mode which, as the name suggests, runs the E Performance on pure internal combustion power until the driver specifies otherwise. Engineers say the goal here is to deliver a “first- and last-mile” EV solution that allows owners to leave and enter their neighborhood in total silence before firing up that loud twin-turbo motor. 

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Cons: Annoying Touch-Sensitive Controls, Drive Modes Can Be Overwhelming, Purists Won’t Like The Weight

Alongside the drive modes are layers of driver customization tools, from suspension stiffness, to traction control, to aero adjustments, to augmented sound coming through the speakers. Some can be adjusted through the giant touchscreen or the left-hand half-moon screens on the steering wheel. Others, like the aggressiveness of the brake regen, are hidden inside the other screen on the steering wheel beyond the drive mode symbols. There’s even a drift mode that sends all the power to the rear, but it requires jumping through about 46 hoops to activate. 

I spent around eight hours in this car over two days, and I was still finding new adjustments toward the end of my drive. You’d need weeks behind the wheel to be truly in-tune with all the tech this car has on offer. For people who like this kind of stuff: You’ll be entertained for months trying out all of the different combinations.

“[The GT63 S E Performance] is for the people who love technology and the engineering craftsmanship we have here at AMG,” head product manager Matthias Schmidt told Motor1. “They want to have the maximum power, that’s the most important thing. This [car] is great for long distances but still delivers very good [cornering] performance.”

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For those more interested in a pure driving experience, you might want to look elsewhere. All this hybrid stuff adds 496 pounds to the GT63’s already comically high curb weight, for a new grand total of 4,839 pounds. That’s more than a double-cab Toyota Tacoma. 

While the extra poundage is easy to feel, the E Performance isn’t lacking in cornering speed. The steering is very quick and pleasantly smooth, helped by standard rear-steer and those excellent Michelins. This Mercedes possesses tons of poise through big and small bends alike, carrying tons of speed with little effort. That’s thanks in part to the standard AMG Active Ride, which forgoes traditional sway bars for a set of interconnected hydraulic lines that open and close depending on driving conditions, widening the range of damping for the uprights to deliver unprecedented performance for a car this heavy. 

There’s also the improved weight distribution. Tobias Roll, head of product development for the SL and GT, told us the E Performance comes out to 51/49 front-to-rear versus 54/46 for the standard car, because of all the rear-mounted hybrid equipment. It’s tough to feel a difference in that balance without driving the two cars back to back, though, especially when both cars are already so heavy. You can have fun in this one, sure. But it’ll never be as joyful around a corner as something with half the weight and a quarter of the power. (Do that math and you won’t be surprised about which car fits those parameters.)

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Corner carving isn’t what GT63 E Performance buyers are looking for. Those customers will go for the GT63 Pro, a trim made specifically for track work sporting more cooling and aero. The person who buys an E Performance buys it because it’s packed with the latest and greatest technological advancements you can find in a car. Because it has seemingly unlimited amounts of customization available. And most importantly, because it has the biggest number on the spec sheet. 

That sheet will include the biggest price, too. While Mercedes has yet to release pricing, we expect the E Performance to start at around $216,000—or about $30,000 more than the standard car. As an all-around sports car, the Porsche 911 Turbo S is probably a better choice. But for ultimate high-speed highway domination and long-range grand touring, there’s nothing better on the market right now.

Competitors

Aston Martin DB12 BMW M8 Maserati GranTurismo Porsche 911 Turbo S

More Thoughts on Mercedes

The Electric G-Class Is Better Than the Gas Version
Joy Is An Empty Runway and a 1,000-HP Sauber-Mercedes C11
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