Late last week, and just prior to the Bathurst 12 Hour endurance race, Mercedes-AMG has set the production car lap record around the 6.21km Mount Panorama circuit when they unleashed the AMG GT R.
Finished in the appropriate Green Hell Mango matte exterior, the AMG high performance coupe piloted by factory driver Bernd Schneider posted its quickest lap time of 2 minutes 16.5 seconds , beating the previous holder by roughly 9 second. Ironically, that was a Mercedes-AMG GT S.
Of course, that isn’t on the level of pace as, say, a V8 Supercar, but it's not that far off. Considering the timing gear and 360-degree camera array fitted into it, we wouldn’t be surprised if it was capable of easily shaving more time off from that 2:16.5 lap.
The entire exercise was focused around the GT R making its Australian debut. Set for July, the track-honed AMG flagship coupe will be selling for $349,000, plus on-road costs. Like the GT and GT S that sit below it, the GT R is powered by the M178 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 engine, though here it’s tuned to deliver 430kW and 700Nm of torque.
The century sprint takes just 3.6 seconds from a standstill and achieves a top speed of 318km/h. Power is delivered to the rear wheels via a 7-speed AMG Speedshift dual-clutch transmission. More importantly, the GT R features race-derived active aerodynamics that engages at higher speed to increase downforce.
Aiding this is the fixed carbon fibre rear wing, carbon fibre roof, lightweight 20-inch forged aluminium wheels, lighter titanium exhaust system, active rear-wheel steer system, and new coil-over suspension.
It’s not, however, a fully stripped out racer, and still arrives with a good amount of creature comforts, though to save some weight, most of the sound-deadening material has been removed.
For more on Mercedes-AMG vehicles, including pricing and specifications, check out our Showroom.
