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Mercedes-AMG GT R Pro review

4 years ago

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Writer:

Andrew Frankel | Ti co-founder

Date:

14 April 2021

The Mercedes-AMG GT R Pro shows better than any previous Benz just how seriously the company wants you to take it as constructor of genuine driving machines. Not cars for fashion victims but proper drivers, who will take their car to the track, to the limit and not stop there. The kind of people who lie awake at night pondering bump and rebound damper settings. The GT R Pro is for them.

I like the fact it has no more than the 577bhp of the standard GT R. Winding up the wick would have been easy, so they didn’t do it. Instead it has lightweight wheels and seats and ceramic brakes to shed around 40kg. The structure is stiffer, rubber has been removed from the suspension and you can adjust everything: shock absorbers, ride height, roll bars, you name it. It has more downforce too.

This is a track day car but you still have to drive it to the circuit and if there’s a car with a more inappropriately titled ‘comfort’ mode, I’ve not driven it. It’s never comfortable, never stops reminding you of its intended purpose in life. But it’s bearable even over long distances and even if you can’t find a track, just a decent stretch of road, it’s worth it. It actually looks quite tame compared to how it goes.

I’ve never known a front-engined car offer greater grip or better composure. It’s dangerous to draw the conclusion, but I’d bet it’s stunning on the track. I have but two reservations, one the price and knowledge of what else it would buy, such as a McLaren 600LT. But I also know it is not this but next year’s Black Series that will be the ultimate AMG GT, and I think I’d want to find out what that was like first…

Mercedes-AMG GT R Pro
Engine: 3982cc, V8, twin-turbo
Transmission: 7-speed dual clutch, RWD
Power: 577bhp @ 6250rpm
Torque: 516lb ft @ 2100rpm
Weight: 1575kg
Power-to-weight ratio: 366bhp/tonne
0-62mph: 3.6 seconds
Top speed: 198mph
Price: £188,345
Ti rating: 8/10
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