When Porsche launched its latest Panamera Turbo S last August, the sports car maker gleefully claimed the title for the quickest executive car around the Nurburgring Nordschleife, posting a time of 7:29.81 around the 20.83 km track. Little did they know, the title would be quickly reclaimed by the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S in less than three months.
Armed with the 2021 model-year Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S 4Matic+, AMG development engineer Demian Schaffert managed to set an official lap time of 7:27.8, beating the German rival by just over two seconds. The time is “officially measured and notary-certified”, and will be reflected on Nurburgring’s homepage as part of its official leaderboard started in 2019.
According to Mercedes, the new record is set by a “completely standard” GT 63 S, which is a requirement for the official Nurburgring times. A notary will be present at the attempt to monitor the timekeeping (with a standardised timing gear placement), as well as inspect and approve the vehicles and tyres before the run.
The record-breaking Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S 4Matic+ is powered by the 4.0-litre twin-turbocharged V8 underneath the hood, which pumps out 639 hp and 900 Nm of torque. Drive is sent to all four wheels via a nine-speed automatic gearbox and a performance-oriented all-wheel drive system for a 0-100 km/h time of just 3.2 seconds, and a top speed of 315 km/h.
The Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S 4Matic+ used in the attempt is also fitted with Michelin Pilot Sport Cup2 tyres and the aerodynamics pack, both available to order as optional extras from the factory.
Following the record-breaking lap, Schaffert said “Even though I’ve been accompanying our GT 63 through its development for several years now, it’s always impressive to see the wide spread we have been able to achieve with this exclusive vehicle.
“On the one hand, the four-door coupé is comfortable and equipped with many intelligent safety features for everyday driving, and on the other hand it offers this extremely high level of driving dynamics and precision, which we have now been able to demonstrate once again on the demanding Nordschleife.”
Aside from the official record, Mercedes-Benz also released an “unofficial” timing of 7:23.009 around the 20.6 km variant of the track, which excludes the T13 straight. The 20.6 km variant is used “traditionally” by car manufacturers before Nurburgring’s official lap in 2019 came about, which means you’ll be able to stack up the GT 63 S’ performance against older runs, too – and what do you know, the GT 63 S also beats out the Panamera Turbo S 20.6 km run by about two seconds.
GALLERY
