The Mercedes-AMG GT R Is A 577bhp 911 Hunter

The AMG GT S with its 503bhp output and snarling soundtrack may have enough bite for most, but that doesn’t mean Mercedes is content with leaving it as-is. These days there’s a more hardcore version of everything, and now it’s the turn of Affalterbach’s grand tourer, which has been transformed into the AMG GT R.

The first thing that’s hit us is the looks. It’s a pretty thing, isn’t it? The old Black Series AMGs had a certain hard-edged brutishness to them, but this new track-friendly GT wears its exterior changes very well.

The front grille with its vertical slats - intended to be reminiscent of the front of the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL racer - is new, as are the much larger lower intakes. The side skirts are lower too, and at the rear you’ll find massive cooling ducts, a double diffuser and a wider rear wing. The most interesting bit you can’t see: underneath and just in front of the engine, there’s a little carbon flap which lowers at 50mph to change the airflow under the car, giving yet more downforce.

These macho specials normally only come with a modest increase in power, but that’s not the case here. Up from 503bhp in the GT-S, the 4.0-litre, dry sump lubricated twin-turbo V8 has been boosted all the way up to 577bhp and 513lb ft of torque thanks to a pair of new turbochargers running a higher boost pressure. As before, power is sent to the rear via a transaxle seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox, although both the software and the ratios have been fiddled with by AMG boffins.

So, that’s the aero, engine and transmission dealt with, but what about suspension? As you’d expect, it hasn’t been left alone. All new adaptive coilovers have been added, while the front and rear track is wider. You also get a thicker rear anti-roll bar, and many, many components made from forged aluminium to keep the weight down.

Braking wise, you get 390mm front/360mm rear discs with fade-resistant pads, or if you want a little more fade resistance than that, there’s the option of bigger carbon ceramic rotors.

The GT R employs various weight saving strategies, including but not limited to the use of carbonfibre in the construction of the front wings, a carbonfibre prop-shaft and forged 19-inch front/20-inch rear forged wheels (wrapped in Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s, in case you were wondering). The result is 15kg shaved of the car’s weight.

Sure, that doesn’t sound much, but good going considering all the beefier stuff going on under the skin, the wider track and the fancy new active aero. And in any case, the extra power does a pretty good job of making the GT R fast: it’ll hit 0-62mph in just 3.6 seconds, and top out at 198mph.

A price hasn’t been revealed yet, but with all those changes, you can expect a hefty increase over the £110,500 charged for the AMG GT-S.

If you can settle for just ogling it, get yourself down to the Goodwood Festival of Speed, where it’ll be on display all weekend.