Price start USD 130K
It’s finally we drive today, the Great Ocean Road, specifically. This local media launch is our first chance to sample the $130K flagship in something approaching ordinary conditions. Having been tossed a set of keys at lunch, we wander out to the car park and scan the awaiting AMGs for the corresponding number plate. Our match is the sole Edition 1 spec on test, all-black complete with
gloss rims, front flics and a fixed rear wing.
They’ve decided to delete the carbon fibre roof in this case, though. Too much, perhaps? Slotting into the seat (bum first, then legs and head), my shoulders submerged below the windowsill, I’m immediately hypnotised by the long scalloped nose.
The 2016 Mercedes AMG GT-S is not a huge car (at 4546 mm, it’s 140 mm shorter than a C-Class), but that long snout combined with the rear-set cabin makes it feel larger and a little more intimidating than you might think. The driving position is classic sports coupe, of course: low hip-point, high belt line, seat tucked back toward the rear axle. It’s a strangely satisfying position to find yourself in, enough alone to bring a tingling sense of anticipation about the journey ahead.
Of course, knowing what lies beneath the GT S’ taut skin is the main reason to get excited. Shoved
right back against the GT S’ firewall, not far from my shins, is a mighty V8, hand-built by the fine folk at Affalterbach. Classic AMG... except that it isn’t. See, unlike the 6.2-litre naturally aspirated AMG units of yore, M178 has just 4.0-litres and a pair of turbochargers nestled inside the valley of the vee.
As well as being more compact, this setup is designed to minimise exhaust gas emissions and improve engine response times. As they have with the AMG C63, the Australian branch of Benz has
decided to forgo the entry-level version, and is only offering the S-specced car.
This manages peaks of 375 kW from 6250 rpm and 650 Nm from a lowly 1750 rpm through to
4750 rpm. The speedo registers triple figures in 3.8 sec and continues on to a top speed of 310km/h.With those extraordinary figures cycling through our minds, we begin.
A push of the start button and the GT-S makes her presence known, snarling confidently from the twin performance exhaust. The noise is never going to match the theatre of the atmo unit from the SLS, but its cultured growl is proof enough that turbos need not dampen the acoustics. In fact, the deliciously anti-social active exhaust button will be thoroughly smudged with finger prints by the end of the day.
From the very first corners out of our Torquay base, it’s the speed and lightness of the hydraulic steering that surprises. It feels quite strange at first, but as the suburbs thin and we delve into the meat of our drive route, I realise that the character of that beautifully tactile Dinamica performance wheel makes perfect sense for this car. It responds quickly to inputs yet does so in a reassuringly calm manner, with a level of feedback that serves as a welcome antidote to the anaesthetic electric systems
we’ve had of late.
It’s a variable ratio setup, of course, so responds accordingly to speed, drive mode and lateral acceleration, but the nice part for us is the way it fizzes between your hands with tiny reactive
twitches. It’s a rare and beautiful thing, and instils the GT’s helm with such precision and texture that the lengthy front end seems to shrink to a much less daunting size.
That reactive-yet-composed temperament seems to be imbued throughout the GT’s dynamic DNA.
The ride quality, for example, is quite firm, but never restless or brittle, even in the tauter Sport and Sport Plus modes offered by the AMG Drive Select system. The setup is comprised of aluminium double wishbones and coil springs that afford the GT S’ 19-inch front and 20-inch rear wheels an astounding sense of composure over bumps and imperfections, as the continuously variable dampers work to sand down the harshest edges.
Factor this in with the lightweight, predominantly aluminium chassis and 47:53 weight distribution, and you have a car with phenomenal balance and poise. The lack of lateral movement through corners is simply astounding.
As we squeeze around the corrugated cliff faces, I look to the horizon of the GTS’ nose as a make shift spirit level, and in all but the tightest bends it stays beautifully flat. And even then, any slight lean is a perfectly appropriate indication that the car is working hard.
That reassuring composure translates through to corner exit, where the 295/30 ZR20 rear Michelin
Pilot Super Sports cleanly transmit the wallop of low-end torque to the road surface.
Despite the GT-S’ transaxle layout, and abundant Newton metres, it seems as if it would take a deliberate and obvious effort to explore the lateral potential lying in its rear end, such is the level
of composure here. Of course,with convoys of caravans and tourist buses sharing the road (along with
Merc’s PR team), I figure it best not to tempt fate. For the same reason – and the whole speed limit thing–we don’t get to explore the upper reaches of the V8 or to get too much heat
But I can certainly tell that the potential is there. The brake pedal, though a little lacking in feel, travels smoothly, finding bite in the 402 mm front discs without disrupting their steady progression.
The throttle, meanwhile, is much more reactive and easy to finesse, making exploration of the engine’s beautiful mid-range a complete cinch. Hunting between 50 and 100km/h, there’s an ease to its operation that is beautifully in sync with the seven-speed dual-clutch transmission. It crisply climbs and falls through its ratios, either of its own accord or with a tweak the short-travel paddles.
The only issue here is a slight restlessness at low revs, which can create the odd surge when creeping. That aside, this box is among the best andmost alert we’ve tried lately. We’ll have to get some alone
time with the GT S to become properly acquainted with its wild side, but we’re prepared to believe claims that it’s wilder than most. The wheel and pedals are superbly reactive, the engine’s
figures prodigious and the chassis exploitable. Neither mellow nor manic, it seems to operate on
a sliding scale somewhere in between, like a child that plays nice in proper company but will gleefully break the rules when dared.We’re game.
Specification
Engine
3982cc V8, dohc, 32v, twin-turbo
Top speed
310km/h (limited)
Power
375kW @ 6000-6500rpm
Torque
650Nm @ 1750-5000rpm
Weight
1570kg (239kW/tonne)
Consumption
9.4L/100km
0-100km/h
3.8sec (claimed)
Basic price
USD 130K
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