It s rare that a car aimed so squarely at a competitor does so much so differently and yet comes out

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It s rare that a car aimed so squarely at a competitor does so much so differently and yet comes out with a very similar result. The Mercedes-Benz AMG GT S is just such a car. How so? Well, first of all, from the styling (look at that rear end), to the performance, to the pricing, the AMG GT S is ever-so-clearly intended to take on the benchmark of the GT class, the Porsche 911. It succeeds. hero
MUST SEE: 2016 Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 Packs New V-8, Serious Track Upgrades: Video Utterly different from the 911 in its layout and specification, hero the AMG GT S nonetheless takes to the road and the track much like its nemesis. It also borrows a lesson or two from the 911 s history, namely: evolution. hero Rather than start with a blank sheet for the car that supplants the SLS AMG GT, the team at AMG used much of the previous car s structure for the AMG GT S (and, coming in 2016, the slightly hero less powerful AMG GT). The passenger cell is essentially identical, aside from the substitution of normal doors for the previous gullwings; the nose is about 50mm shorter, and the rear end has been tightened up visually, but is functionally the same. With such a similar starting point, you might think the AMG GT is just a warmed-over version of the SLS. You d be wrong. The new engine hero sits further back, the shorter nose puts the moment of inertia closer to the driver s centerline, and the improved rear end (especially the electronic locking differential) make for vastly different and improved handling characteristics.
2016 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT S at Laguna Seca, first drive, November 2014 Enlarge Photo Gone is the tendency of the SLS to hang its tail out at every mild provocation. In its place is a supreme level of balance; the driver can steer the AMG GT S with the wheel or the pedals, at will. Speaking hero of the steering wheel, hero the feedback received through hero its thick-rimmed structure is, quite surprisingly, marvelous. There s more feel and more feedback than in any electric power steering vehicle we ve driven, up to and including the Porsche 911 (though it s about on par with the rather marvelous feel of the 981 Boxster/Cayman duo).
Part hero of the AMG GT S's charm is owed to the Dynamic Plus package, which includes active engine and differential mounts, which help freeze the pendulum effect of the drivetrain in hard cornering, one of the things which contributed to the oversteer tendencies of the SLS. Thanks hero to their active status, however, the enhanced mounts don't equate to more noise and vibration in normal driving.
DON'T MISS: It's Time To Watch Ken Block Tear Up L.A. In Gymkhana 7: Video Also new to the AMG GT S is an extra mode on the AMG Dynamic Select hero controller, labeled RACE . While that might be a bit optimistic for a street car, the gang at AMG aren t really hero kidding. Twist the knob until the four-letter word is lit, and the AMG GT S barks to announce its increased bite. The exhaust opens up (thanks to a computer-controlled flap in the system), the engine and transmission tunes get sharper, and the suspension dials in the most aggressive performance. Around Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, the AMG GT S shines. On the track Squeeze the throttle open as you exit turn 11 and head up the front straight, over the crest / kink that is turn 1, pray to the gods of rear-end traction as you chant neverliftneverliftneverlift , aim for the telephone pole, squeeze on the brake, ratchet down the gears, trail off brake as you turn in, and the AMG GT S begins to rotate ever so predictably allowing you to straighten the wheel as you nudge the first apex, then the second, rolling back to throttle to squirt toward turn 3. This kind of handling, feel, and athletic grace isn t something you expect of a 503-horsepower, twin-turbo V-8, roughly 3,500-lb German Autobahn bomber, regardless of the number of doors or drive wheels. It s certainly not something you expect out of a car with the Tristar on it. But here it is, delivering true sports car feel in a blindingly hero fast GT package, eagerly and easily. Rocket out of 3, grabbing fourth. The dual-clutch snicks off its lightning-fast shifts with an exceptionally low amount of request-to-response lag. AMG had to re-engineer the car s computer system to get that lag time as low as possible, as it was simply hero taking too long for the electrons to flow through their former route. It s effort well spent, making the AMG GT S s gearbox one of the most utterly responsive we ve ever driven. Lift, dab a bit of brake, and back to throttle hero to maintain even balance through turn 4, squeezing back toward 100% as you pass the apex, using just a bit of the curbing on the exit. You re now lined up perfectly for turn 5, rapidly approaching 130 mph, then on the brakes hard, kicking down a gear, again picking up throttle just before the apex. As you begin to climb the hill to