GQ_South_Africa_2017

54 GQ.CO.ZA OCTOBER 2017

AMG highlights over the decades

Th e most famous

AMG racing car,

the Red Pig (left),

couldn’t have asked

for more appropriate

off spring. Meet the

most muscly E-class

ever: the E63 AMG S.

Left foot on the

brake, right one on

full throttle. Th e

wide rubbers on

20-inch wheels claw

into the tarmac, and

the all-wheel-drive

four-door limousine

is catapulted

forward in an orgy

of glorious sound

and spectacular

acceleration.

I am pressed

deeply into the

beautifully stitched

leather seats. In

a sports car you

expect this kind of

raw performance;

in a two-ton luxury

sedan it almost

blows your mind.

0-100km/h in 3.4

seconds brings

a grin to your face

that almost has

to be surgically

removed.

Th e new E63

AMG not only

features launch

control, but

something else

that clearly

proves German

engineers have a

sense of humour:

drift mode.

Select race mode,

1971 The Red Pig – 300 SEL 6.8-l.

With its limo engine, the ‘red pig’ put out 320kW

and behaved like a wrestler doing gymnastics.

This wide coupé boasted huge torque (566Nm)

and simply annihilated its competition.

1995 The Modern Gullwing – 300SL HWA

The Sultan of Brunei asked AMG to put a 6.0-l.

V8 into a classic 1954 SL 300 Gullwing. Lovely!

NÜRBURGRING’S

FASTEST

1. Lamborghini
   Huracán
   Performante


2. Mercedes-AMG
   GT R


3. Porsche 918

G&Ts all round!

After adding an

‘R’ to the GT,

Mercedes-Benz

may have to adapt

its catchy slogan

‘Best or nothing’ to

‘Beast or nothing’.

There’s a topless

AMG GT version

available as well.

The GTR is the

most pointed silver

arrow ever. It’s very

much a refl ection

of the changed

times at Mercedes-

Benz, where

CEO Dieter

Zetsche makes

appearances in

jeans and sneakers.

The R takes the

AMG GT family up

to fi ve, with two

new roadsters on

the way. The

four-door GT is

planned and

a Black Series is

already on its way.

What they all

have in common,

besides enormous

power, is the new

grille, named

Panamericana. It

looks like Hannibal

Lecter’s mask,

a muzzle to contain

the green hulk

and its brethren.

The GT R beat

Porsche’s 918 with

a lap time of

07:11:00, only to

be dethroned by

the Lamborghini

Huracán

Performante,

which lapped

Nürburgring in

6m52s. Let’s see

what the Black

Series will do, or to

make absolutely

sure, the

Mercedes-AMG

hyper car.

2013 The Electrifying Ride – SLS Electric Drive

Near-silence at 250km/h. A motor at each wheel.

1 000Nm. 7m56s on the ’Ring. Electric perfection.

See (and hear)

the AMG GT R

in action at

GQ.co.za

MERCEDES-

AMG E63 S

mercedes-benz.co.za

0-100km/h in 3.4 seconds;

top speed 250 km/h (limited) or

300 km/h (with AMG driver training)

PERFORMANCE BASE PRICE

4.0-l. V8 (9-speed auto R1 868 400

and AWD)

450kW and 850Nm

POWER

switch ESP off , go into

manual and pull both

paddles towards you.

When you’re sure, give

it one more tug of the

right paddle. A clutch

in the transmission

decouples drive to the

front wheels and all

850Nm of torque is

sent to the rear axle

• wave goodbye to
  your rubber! Th e new
  E63 AMG is conclusive
  proof that genius is
  wonderfully close to
  insanity.

The Nürburgring

turns 90 this year