The Meh-rcedes AMG GT is meh

"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein) 09/09/2014 at 17:10 • Filed to: None

4

46

Just looking at the pictures of the Mercedes-AMG GT, it's not really exciting me. Oh sure, it's got classic long hood short deck rwd sports car proportions, oodles of power, and a fancy electronic differential (well, at least on the GT S model), but I'm mostly unmoved.

I'm trying to identify the things that don't do it for me, and here's what I can come up with.

I don't like the headlights and how they flow into the grille. Some angles are better than others, but they're just weird.

Derp.

The blocky, trying-too-hard front end styling is the polar opposite of the pointy, almost overly minimalist rear end styling.

To me, it just doesn't flow well from front to back. Can we throw in an Accord Coupe joke because of the rear side window shape?

The front fenders are well ventilated though.

Mercedes has apparently jumped on the Porsche bandwagon of making center consoles too damn tall.

Who needs room for their right knee?

I mean really, look at this picture. The top of the seat juuuust peeks out above the door sill. But then it's CENTER CONSOLE.

Although since Mercedes is trying to compete with Porsche here, anyone trading in a 991 will have already amputated their knee in order to clear the 991's center console.

Either that, or like DeJuan Blair, they have no !!!error: Indecipherable SUB-paragraph formatting!!! .

This is the best looking angle for the car:

So be sure to park somewhere near a platform which you can then ascend and gaze down upon your car, feeling satisfied with yourself, and not worrying about having no ACLs.

Saracen > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:17

13

You're in the minority. The AMG-GT is gorgeous.

And ACL functions as rotational stability between the upper and lower leg. It doesn't really have anything to do with what you're describing.

Manuél Ferrari > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:17

0

Give it our good buddy Manuél and I bet our Opponions would change

ReallyColorful > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:17

0

Screw you. I like it!

mcseanerson > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:18

3

My first thought when I looked at the new car is SLS values are going to skyrocket like the Ford GT values. Then I thought about all the special editions.

That and total sales of over 10,000 values probably won't skyrocket that fast. Still I imagine they are going to bottom out in price and bounce back soon in the next 5-10 years.

Textured Soy Protein > Saracen 09/09/2014 at 17:19

0

Hey, DeJuan Blair was the first person I could come up with who has freakish knees that might interface well with the center console. I didn't want to go the full Alex Zanardi.

Manuél Ferrari > Saracen 09/09/2014 at 17:20

0

I like it too. I want one. I just don't want to have to pay for it. I don't want it enough to buy it instead of other cars. Used R8 V10 Manuél would be more fun.

Textured Soy Protein > Manuél Ferrari 09/09/2014 at 17:21

1

I don't even mind the lack of Manuél. Basically if it were the exact same car but looked more interesting and didn't have such a stupid center console, I'd be like "THAT THING IS AMAZING!"

Manuél Ferrari > mcseanerson 09/09/2014 at 17:22

0

Haha they had as many special editions as the Gallardo (ok maybe not that many but still a lot)

Manuél Ferrari > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:22

0

The mid cycle refresh will probably make the looks more interesting

LappingLuke > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:22

0

It had a lot of potential but I think they dropped the ball just a bit on the exterior design. Overall the shape is very nice but it starts with a lot of aggressive, hard lines at the front and smoothes out toward the back where its 100% slick as a bar of soap which makes no sense to me and kind of hurts my eyes. It's like they didn't want to directly copy the SLS but all they knew how to do to accomplish that was to sand down the rear end smooth. Weird. But overall still a pretty cool and sexy machine.

mcseanerson > Manuél Ferrari 09/09/2014 at 17:23

1

I was thinking more like the Veyron but yeah. I wish car manufacturers would make like 1 or 2 limited editions to be actually limited and like 3 or 4 trims.

GhostZ > mcseanerson 09/09/2014 at 17:23

0

This is going to tank SLS values, I bet, unless it turns out to be a really shitty car. Depending on how long they make it though, the SLS will appreciate more in the long run.

MIATAAAA > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:23

0

I will agree with you re: the front end of the car. I think the headlight look a bit droopy at angles. And the front looks a bit like everything else Mercedes.

But dat ass..... wowza amazing. I'd get it just for that.

jariten1781 > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:23

0

I like the straight on rear angle. Very much like the 86-~90 928 which was always a good look. I don't mind the front either. The profile of the passenger cabin just looks off to me. Reserving final judgment until I see one in person.

Santiago of Escuderia Boricua > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:24

1

Are these blocked/fake intakes? I can't tell

mcseanerson > GhostZ 09/09/2014 at 17:25

1

I think the fact that the SLS has gullwings and just seems a little more special it will appreciate a quickly. I do agree with tanking SLS values in the beginning though so in the next 1-3 years is a good time to buy an SLS before people realize the values are going to go back up.

Textured Soy Protein > Santiago of Escuderia Boricua 09/09/2014 at 17:27

0

One would hope they're used for oil coolers, or intercoolers, or brake ducts.

themushman > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:28

0

I really like it. But now that you pointed out the headlights, I agree..i dont like the angle of them. But its of no concern to me because ill never afford one. But other than the front fascia being a bit of a mess..i think its sexy overall. The fact that it exists is great news for us all though.

Danimalk - Drives a Slow Car Fast > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:29

0

I think if the SLS had never existed, this would be fantastic.

But I can't help but think of how great that car did what it did, and how this is just trying to do the same but be less polarizing and more affordable. <-not MB values.

It's very uninspired and WAY too safe. Corvette and Jaguar took much larger risks (with larger payoff) on their current designs. (911s all look the same.)

It may be a great car, but its initial 'meh' impression puts if 5th or 6th on my list for cars of this type if I had to buy one. Not as impressed as I hoped I'd be.

CRider > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:29

1

I want to know why Mercedes keeps making their halo cars slower. The SLR had 617 horsepower and went 209 MPH. The SLS AMG has 583 horsepower (although the option to add more came later) and a top speed of the more powerful GT was only 197. This thing gets only 503 hp.

Jayhawk Jake > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:30

0

The giant mercedes logo is literally the only thing I don't like about this car.

And that's something, because I do not like Mercedes in general. Never have been a fan.

HammerheadFistpunch > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:32

0

Nah, I don't like it either. I feel like they got a menu of all the things that make GT cars pretty and said:

mcseanerson > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:33

0

Now that I've had time to actually read the reveal info I have made up my mind. MB isn't trying to make a 911, they're trying to make a Z/28.

Trying and failing.

HammerheadFistpunch > Santiago of Escuderia Boricua 09/09/2014 at 17:34

0

Could be active shutter

Textured Soy Protein > CRider 09/09/2014 at 17:34

1

Pretty sure they've also been getting cheaper in the process.

CRider > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:35

0

That's not the point. The best car Mercedes builds should be the best car in the world.

Danimalk - Drives a Slow Car Fast > mcseanerson 09/09/2014 at 17:38

0

Apples and Oranges be damned! The price will probably be close enough.

... and yes, I would buy a Z/28 over this. Guaranteed to be more a much more exciting drive.

It's a "Porch-uh" > Saracen 09/09/2014 at 17:40

0

I like it.

mcseanerson > Danimalk - Drives a Slow Car Fast 09/09/2014 at 17:43

0

7 liters of pure POOOOOWWWWWAAAAAAHHHH!

Manuél Ferrari > mcseanerson 09/09/2014 at 17:47

0

Gotta love the special editions that aren't even special. The purely cosmetic "we are having trouble selling this car so we tarted it up and called it a special edition" edition

Pancake > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:50

1

Whaaa? It looks fantastic!! Definite improvement on the SLS front end, and I see hints of a hardtop BMW Z8 at the rear 3/4 . The only fail is that idiotic standalone navigation screen. Why is that a trend these days?!

Battery Tender Unnecessary > CRider 09/09/2014 at 17:50

1

They don't want to step on SLS owners toes...but I couldn't care less if it had more power. The SLS is natural aspiration, port-injection so a pure Apples to Apples comparison is impossible as far as engine personality goes. Rumor mill has the Black Series version of the AMG GT putting down 560+ (but expect Weistec to get over 600 with a tune and a few part swaps on a base GT).

TheCraigy > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:52

2

Have you actually sat in a 991? Or are you some sort of gargantuan?

I think you're imagining a problem that doesn't exist with the center consoles.

Battery Tender Unnecessary > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:53

0

I'm not a fan of "inflated balloon/swelling" design of the front of the car. I'm probably bias but I like the more angular and defined edges of the SLS. I like how the GT's back 3/4s and the rear deck blend. It's a lot more natural than the SLS. In fact, graft that rear end on a SLS and you'd have what I would consider one of the best looking cars of all time.

I don't think this design in the front will age well. Before the unveiling I heard a lot of people that had seen the finished product say it was on par with the 300SL in terms of beauty...but they must have seen an earlier revision of this design.

Blondude > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:56

0

Is anyone skilled enough to 'shop this vent off? I normally don't have a problem with them but I feel like it's making the front half of the car seem more aggressive than the rear. If the rear is gonna be all flow-y, the front needs to too.

TheCraigy > mcseanerson 09/09/2014 at 17:56

0

Damn had no idea they made that many SLS AMGs. I guess a ton were sold in Europe. I see more Ford GTs than I do the SLS.

Saracen > Manuél Ferrari 09/09/2014 at 17:56

1

I can't really say what would be more fun because I haven't driven an R8...but the AMG GT inspires lust. But if I'm going to buy one 6 figure toy, it's going to have three pedals (looking at you, 997.2 GT3)

gawdzillla > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 17:57

0

the SLS AMG is so much better.

this one is meh I agree

mcseanerson > TheCraigy 09/09/2014 at 17:57

1

There were less than 4,000 Ford GTs and I imagine they get totaled at a higher rate than the SLS do.

Manuél Ferrari > Saracen 09/09/2014 at 17:59

0

I drove an R8 once, but not very fast. But it was fun.

But when in doubt, go 997.2 GT3!

TheCraigy > mcseanerson 09/09/2014 at 17:59

1

Yeah but they sold so many to the gray-haired guys who park them in a garage and rub them with cloth diapers so the ones that are left are probably well preserved. ;)

Textured Soy Protein > TheCraigy 09/09/2014 at 18:01

1

I'm not some sort of orangutan.

But like an orangutan, I do have knees.

I haven't sat in a 991. But you know what car I have sat in? A Ford Fusion.

See how there's that bin in front of the shifter, that is sorta blocked on either side by those pillars that serve no purpose other than to make the styling of the center console flow?

In the entire time I had that Fusion rental car, I kept knocking my knee on the pillar on the driver's side. Remove the pillar, and the dash retains the exact same utility with more knee space.

Burn all the needlessly tall center consoles!

colorfulyawn > Textured Soy Protein 09/09/2014 at 18:49

0

I don't find it very attractive. The front is aggro-masculine-ugly, the rear end is droopy, and in profile it looks oddly unfinished. The windscreen is too steep and all of the pillars are too thick. There's nothing graceful or elegant about it.

It's also too expensive, has a turbocharged reverse-flow engine, and doesn't offer a manual gearbox.

What I do like are the aluminum double-wishbone suspension and its curb weight, which is significantly lighter than the F-Type's.

CRider > Battery Tender Unnecessary 09/09/2014 at 19:31

0

What are you going to replace the SLS with? Another Mercedes?

Battery Tender Unnecessary > CRider 09/09/2014 at 19:58

0

SLS is a permanent resident of the garage as far as I'm concerned. End of the naturally aspirated AMG engines and one of the best sounding engines of all time. In the short term the i8 is the new addition. Waiting to see what they do with the AMG GT Black Series.

Conan > Textured Soy Protein 09/13/2014 at 21:55

0

I think it's bigger than you think (with added aluminum lightness) so this is less of an issue. Derivative though? Certainly. If I had the money it'd be in the running though. It still may be, post eventual AMG depreciation.