AMG's New SUV Targets Porsche and Lotus
Long a performance sub-brand for Mercedes-Benz AG, AMG is now a bigger part of the company's future strategy that includes generating more revenue from the upper end of the luxury market. The first bespoke vehicle developed completely in-house by AMG was the SLS gullwing coupe back in 2010. Now, AMG offers the GT coupe, SL convertible, and just-launched GT 4-Door Coupe. What's left to fill out the portfolio? An SUV, of course (with an SUV coupe to follow.
The generically named AMG GT SUV shares quite a bit with the aforementioned 4-Door Coupe, including the new AMG.EA EV platform and a trimotor powertrain featuring lightweight and power-dense axial flux motors and an 800V electrical architecture. Also onboard are AMG's Active Ride Control+ set-up, which combines air springs with hydraulically interconnected dampers to control body roll, pitch and dive without conventional anti-roll bars, and AMGFORCE Sport+, which delivers the "authentically reproduced sound of a powerful AMG V8 engine or a characterful AMG six-cylinder in all its nuances, simulated gear changes, seat shakers and a matching display design."
With a maximum of 1,153 hp in GT63 form, it outpowers (for the moment) the flagship Porsche Cayenne Electric and Lotus Eletre variants. The maximum 710kW DC charge rate matches the best Chinese EVs, and the maximum 2,695kg curb weight is just a bit heavier than the Porsche and a bit lighter than the Lotus. EV range tops out at a competitive 415 miles WLTP (around 330 miles EPA). Curiously, the base GT55 gets a different powertrain: a two-motor setup with conventional permanent magnet synchronous motors.
Visually, it's far removed from Mercedes' other electric performance SUV, the lozenge-shaped AMG EQE SUV. Like the 4-Door Coupe, there's a lot going on here, between the oversized AMG grille, wrapover headlamps with star-shaped running lights, triple round taillamps with star-shaped graphics, and numerous scoops, scallops, and slits all over the body. To its credit, the overall proportions work even if the details are a bit overwhelming.
The interior appears nearly identical to the 4-Door Coupe, which could be good or bad depending on your tastes. It's screen-heavy (driver display, central touchscreen, and optional passenger display) with few physical controls. There are three rotary controls for adjusting throttle response, cornering behavior and traction control intervention (except on the base model). Pricing has yet to be announced in the US, but is likely to be around $115-$125,000 to start, about where Porsche starts their lineup. The Cayenne already seems to be winning fans among the media who have driven it, so AMG has their work cut out for them.
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