AMG GT63 S E Balances Power and Poise

For most car fans, performance still lives and dies by the stopwatch. Zero-to-60 times, quarter-mile slips, and top-speed bragging rights make for easy comparisons. But those yardsticks get fuzzier when a car claims to be both a high-performance machine and a true sports car. The 2025 Mercedes‑AMG GT63 S E Performance steps into that gray area with audacious numbers, a hybrid punch, and a mission that leans as much toward continent-crossing comfort as it does apex-chasing precision.

The latest GT is a different proposition than the original AMG two-seater. The first generation was a front-engine, rear-drive purist’s coupe designed to spar with the world’s sharpest sports cars. The second generation, introduced for 2024, shares its platform with the SL grand tourer. That brings a longer wheelbase, the availability of all-wheel drive (rear-drive is reserved for the base GT), and a 2+2 layout. It also brings mass—lots of it. While an early GT S coupe hovered near 3,600 pounds, a current GT 63 clears 4,300. Layer on the S E Performance’s plug-in hybrid hardware and you add roughly another 500 pounds. Nearly two and a half tons is a big number for a “sports car,” and it shapes everything that follows.

Under the hood is the familiar thunder: AMG’s 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, rated at 603 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque. It’s assisted by a rear-mounted electric motor producing 201 hp and 236 lb-ft. Because the car uses a nine-speed multi-clutch automatic for the engine and a separate two-speed gearbox for the electric drive, AMG calculates a combined system output of 805 hp and 1,047 lb-ft at the crank. However you parse the math, the result is staggering: 0–60 mph in 2.7 seconds, a quarter mile in the mid-10s, and an electronically limited 199 mph. It is the quickest series-production AMG to date.

Matching that firepower is an arsenal of chassis tech. Carbon-ceramic brakes loom behind the wheels. Active rear-axle steering tidies up low-speed agility and high-speed stability. Hidden underbody aero helps manage air more intelligently. And the marquee trick is AMG Active Ride Control, an advanced hydraulic system that replaces conventional anti-roll bars and aids the adaptive dampers at each corner. By controlling roll and helping keep the tire’s contact patch optimally cambered, it promises a smoother ride in daily driving and more grip when you push.

Open the door and the GT’s grand-touring intent becomes clear. The cabin feels roomier than before, anchored by an 11.9-inch touchscreen that serves up track telemetry alongside a polished Burmester audio experience. Adults will find the rear seats best used for short trips or extra luggage, and cargo space takes a hit compared with other GT models: the hybrid components create a trunk hump that trims capacity to 7.3 cubic feet from 11.3. It’s a practical compromise you’ll notice on a weekend getaway.

Fire it up and you’re greeted by a chime rather than a V8 bark. Default is Comfort mode, one of eight settings that span Electric, Battery Hold, Slippery, Sport, Sport+, Race, and Individual. The car can cruise on electricity alone up to highway speeds, blending in the engine seamlessly when needed. The battery is modest at 6.1 kWh, good for an estimated eight miles of EV range, but regenerative braking works hard to keep it topped up, minimizing the need to plug in for typical use.

On urban streets and long highway stretches, the GT63 S E Performance is remarkably composed. Even with 21-inch wheels, ride quality is confident and controlled. The optional AMG Performance Seats are standouts, offering the bolstering you want on a twisty road and the amenities—heating, ventilation, massage—you want for hours behind the wheel. The overall impression is of a car targeting the grand touring elite—a machine you might cross-shop against an Aston Martin DB12—rather than something chasing lap time at all costs.

Head for the hills and the AMG shows both its brilliance and its limits. In Sport and Sport+ settings, Active Ride Control does an impressive job quelling body motions.