Mercedes-AMG unleashes its first plug-in hybrid

Wednesday, 1 September 2021

Meet Mercedes-AMG's first ever plug-in hybrid. The electrified V8-powered GT 63 S E-Performance.

Mercedes-AMG has officially unleashed its first plug-in hybrid and it’s a real doozy. Feast your eyes on the GT 63 S E Performance, expected here in the second half of 2022.

AMG purists will be thrilled to hear that the four-door grand tourer does not use a four-cylinder engine for combustion motivation. It doesn’t use a six-cylinder either – it gets the mighty twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 that has become AMG’s calling card.

The bent-eight generates some pretty spectacular numbers by itself, boasting 470kW and 900Nm, but paired with a rear-mounted electric motor, the combined figures are simply astonishing. Get this – 620kW and 1400Nm, sent to all four wheels. That’s enough for a 0-100kmh time of 2.9 seconds and a sub-ten-second 0-200kmh run.

Meet Mercedes-AMG’s first go at a plug-in hybrid, without a four-cylinder in sight.

It absolutely crushes the 515kW/870Nm Porsche Panamera Turbo S e-hybrid PHEV (its closest natural competitor) and even outmuscles the mightiest Porsche Taycan, the Turbo S, which makes 560kW/1050Nm. And that thing wants to turn your spleen inside out, so imagine how ruthless the GT 63 S E Performance will be.

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The epic AMG V8 lives on in harmony with added electrical power.

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It won’t come cheap but the GT63 S E-Performance should be more than a match for the likes of the Porsche Taycan Turbo S. It effortlessly crushes the Panamera Turbo S PHEV.

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The Taycan claims a quicker 0-100kmh time, so it will be interesting to see how the two compare in reality. Apparently, the full power of the electric motor can be applied from standstill, so theoretically, they should be pretty close, with the AMG making up the electrical deficit through raw combustion power.

AMG’s Formula 1 expertise has translated to the battery, which is a 6.1kWh unit that allows for 12km of EV driving per charge. That’s not much, but Mercedes says that it was designed for fast power delivery and draw, not range.

A high power density of 1.7kW/kg means that the battery only weighs 89kg, which in turn keeps the car’s overall weight down.

Seven drive modes are included; Electric, Comfort, Sport, Sport+, Race, Slippery and Individual. They all so basically what you’d expect, with Slippery designed for low-grip environments like the roads up the Swiss Alps, and Individual a totally customisable mode that will probably be locked in maximum noise with comfort suspension.

Mention which, the GT 63 S E-Performance gets multi-chamber air suspension as standard with automatic level control and adaptive damping. That last one is new to the GT line, using two pressure relief valves to allow damping forces to be even more controlled depending on the drive mode and road conditions.

Keeping everything in check is a set of AMG ceramic composite brakes, the discs measuring 420x40mm at the front and 380x32mm at the rear.

Mercedes-Benz New Zealand confirmed the GT 63 S E-Performance will arrive here in the second half of next year, but didn’t give pricing or final specs. Expect those closer to launch.