The Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance Is Still A Real Sports Car: Review
Despite hybridization, hefty weight, and a shared platform, the new AMG GT is still a true sports car—and a fast one at that.
I’ll put my hand up and say it: When the new AMG GT debuted without its razor-sharp SLS AMG-derived dedicated sports car platform, I rang the alarm bells. It was the downfall of an institution, the beginning of the end for a beloved, twin-turbocharged V8 brute of a German sports car.
There was no way this could be the sports car that the previous GT was, I thought—4,827 pounds is not a sports-car number. That’s more akin to the weight of a small county. But the Desert Sand Metallic GT63 S E Performance Coupe in my driveway challenged my notions rather powerfully.
| Quick Specs | 2026 Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance |
| Engine | Twin-turbocharged 4.0-Liter V8 Hybrid |
| Output | 805 Horsepower / 1,047 Pound-Feet |
| 0-60 MPH | 2.5 Seconds (est.) |
| Weight | 4,827 Pounds |
| Price / As Tested | $195,900 / $221,299 |
In saying farewell to the old SLS platform (C190 for the nerds), the GT became a much different car. On paper, the GT is more of a… GT, while the former C190 was more sports car in soul and execution than anything, unabashedly so.
The GT no longer has a dual-clutch transmission; AMG’s nine-speed planetary-gear automatic with a multiplate clutch, instead of a torque converter, lives in its place. Instead of simple dual wishbones all around, multi-link arrangements exist at the front and rear. Its dry-sump oiling system is ditched for a wet-sump system, which is less track-friendly.
Most importantly, though, the GT’s body is no longer an aluminum spaceframe with a rear-mounted transmission; it’s now a mix of aluminum and steel with a conventional, front-mounted gearbox. AMG calls the new chassis C192.
With the top-flight GT63 S E Performance trim, it also gains the ultimate form of blasphemy: hybridization. AMG’s P3 hybrid system places a 201-horsepower electric motor within the rear differential housing, sending power forward through the central driveshaft and directly to the rear wheels with the half-shafts. With the well-known 630-horsepower 4.0-liter V8 up front, the GT63 S E is good for a total of 805 horsepower and a colossal 1,047 pound-feet of torque.
If you can do basic math, you’ll recognize that 630 plus 201 is 831, though AMG claims 805 total. 805 is likely the total maximum output it can do regularly. Much of its toolbox of tricks is the same as the C63 S E, which includes the same high-discharge 6.1-kilowatt-hour battery and two-speed rear motor. It also comes with that car’s quirks, but more on that later.
The exterior looks good to my eyes. Lovers of dash-to-axle will miss the long and lovely nose of the previous car, but this one has great road presence. It looks even better in this Desert Sand color. Its interior, even with the hard AMG bucket seats, is dazzling, with stainless steel accents and over-the-top animations everywhere you look.
The waterfall-mounted 11.9-inch MBUX display is disappointing, per usual, removing a lot of the tactility of the old car. There is also a preposterously wide selection of gauge clusters, from the traditional Benz look, to an understated one, and a handful of different choices for the sporty cluster—all of which are utterly useless. The speed and crispness of that and the 12.3-inch gauge cluster display made up for some of it. Still, all of the car's functions are relegated to touch, which isn’t befitting of a $221,299 car.
The car starts silently, with just a slight whirr as the high-voltage electrics come to life. With the single rear motor and permanently geared all-wheel drive, the electric motor can be used to manipulate handling balance on entry and exit, helping stabilize the GT.
It also deploys the full modern suite of physics-bending stuff: rear-wheel steering, active sway bars, adaptive dampers, brake vectoring, and yaw-manipulating electronics. Completing the effect is a set of Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 tires in MO Mercedes spec, which are Michelin’s newest compound.
The most important thing to know is the driving modes, of which there are seven: Comfort, Sport, Sport+, Battery Hold, Electric, Ice, and Race. Most of these are superfluous, and frankly, Sport and Sport+ are worth skipping for Race. That, and Comfort, are where my AMG spent the most time.
That’s because in Comfort, Sport, and Sport+, the GT63 S E still relies on hybrid power more than it should, depleting its battery. Only in Race does it regenerate charge meaningfully. And, to my ass dyno, Race dampers are the sweet spot and may even be slightly softer than Sport+.
Then there are the modes for the electronic stability program, three in total: On, Sport, and Off. Sport is the bare minimum, because the big AMG tries too hard to intervene with all its systems on and cowers at a hint of coccyx-activating yaw.
Gallery: 2026 Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance Review
But with all of that, frankly, bullshit out of the way, I could finally drive the thing. Immediately, the hybridity of this car is clear. It uses almost pure electric power for the first few seconds of any throttle application, thrusting its considerable weight forward instantaneously.
The handoff between electricity and internal combustion can be graceful, but is sometimes fraught with confusion. For no good reason, the AMG sometimes completely dumps electric power as the V8 builds boost, causing a lurching reduction in torque while the engine catches up.
But it only ever happens if you’re driving it, well, normally. The transient responses are unfinished in many ways, with the electric motor never quite syncing to the V8 unless you are absolutely steady with the throttle. Any deviation, like rolling into the throttle, causes whatever algorithm buried deep in its many ECUs to lose its shit.
Mercifully, there’s a simple solution to this: Drive harder.
The way the GT63 S E accepts the modulation of brake pressure is addictive. Paired with incredibly fast, weighty, and shockingly talkative steering, it makes for a graceful dance. On initial braking, the car hunkers down hard on its tires and wags its tail reassuringly to communicate its intent. Those of lesser bravery may back down and release brake pressure too early. But they’ll find a car that isn’t particularly interested in cornering. The GT practically relies on you to turn it.
But nail the roll of pressure to apex, and it rewards you with the most delicious carve, a wonderful dance where the wagging rear settles and digs into its tires, steering along with the front. The entire process murmurs up from the steering column, and after every apex, its colossal acceleration hardly challenges the tires.
God, the acceleration. The GT moves with the swiftness of a supercar, unchallenged by air resistance or gravity. With every corner, the picture of this car and its colossal potential becomes clearer. Its suspension, which feels slightly harsh but not terribly so on the street, comes to life with sophistication on a canyon road. The gearbox, which doesn’t have the sharpness of the old DCT, still shifts ferociously, with theatrically simulated torque interruptions.
Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance Verdict
Dynamic masterpiece? I would caution greatly against saying that about any car as heavy as the GT. But, even months later, I think of the dance that it choreographs. In that way, the new GT hasn’t lost an ounce of its old character.
That said, at $195,900 to start and $221,299 as tested, this car is in rarefied air at that price point, amongst competitors like the brilliant Aston Martin Vantage S and Porsche 911 Turbo S. It’s certainly more exciting than the 911, definitely more playful, and practically as competent. Frankly, it’s only troubled by the Aston Martin, which has similarly incredible handling and a genuinely special interior space.
Splitting hairs, the AMG has nicer, more talkative steering, crisper tech, and is genuinely quicker. It’s every ounce of a driver’s car, too, but you can’t beat the feeling of (relative) lightweight. But as an exercise in street performance, no other GT has achieved what this car has. And for that, it is unbelievable and memorable. A true AMG, this car is.
Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance Competitors
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2026 Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance
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