Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series Arrives With 720bhp Flat-Plane V8

If you want a track-friendly Mercedes-AMG GT, you’re already pretty well catered for. There’s the GT C, the GT R and the GT R Pro, but if none of those satisfies, there’s now an AMG GT Black Series. And it has more. Of everything. Power, aero and track capability have all been bumped up significantly.

Laughing in the face of the face of the mere 577bhp developed by the M178 engine in the GT R and GT R Pro, the ‘M178 LS2’ 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 in the GT Black is good for 720bhp between 6700 - 6900rpm, while peak torque 590lb ft is felt between 2000 - 6000rpm.

0-62mph takes 3.2 seconds, while 0-124mph is reached in under nine. The top speed is 202mph. Impressive though those figures are, we’re much more interested in the way the reworked M178 makes its power - it uses a flat-plane crankshaft, evening out the firing order between cylinder banks and drastically changing the character of the unit.

Along with the new crank, the Black Series has - like the AMG GT Four-Door - special anti-friction bearings in its twin-scroll turbochargers. The compressor wheels are a lot bigger here, though. Elsewhere in the engine bay, there are larger intercoolers to keep the temperature in check when the car is being hammered on track.

The aero profile is drastically different from the GT R and GT R Pro’s, with a front end modelled on the AMG GT3 racer. Under the enlarged grille is a manually adjustable carbon fibre splitter with two settings - Street and the lower Race position, ensuring you can have optimum downforce at the track without suffering painful speed bump contact on the way home.

Normally on a car like this, the rear wing would be the element stealing our attention (more on that aero piece later), but the bonnet might just be even more attention-grabbing. In stark contrast to the mostly featureless hoods used in the rest of the AMG GT range, the carbon part includes two huge vents which - together with the new ducts in the front wings - eject hot air from the engine bay while also increasing downforce.

Moving around to the back - ogling those chunky side skirts as we do so - there’s a whole new rear apron featuring a carbon fibre diffuser. Above that, there’s a rear wing of epic proportions, including an electronically-controlled flap with 20 degrees of movement. It can be angled down to give maximum downforce in the corners, flat for a reduction in drag on the straights, or up to act as an air brake.

This works together with a set of standard-fit carbon-ceramic brakes, hiding under 19-inch wheels at the front and 20-inch rims at the back. Wrapping those tyres at super-soft, ultra-sticky Michelin Pilot Sports Cup 2 R tyres measuring a brilliantly fat 335mm in width at the back.

Going with the boots, the Black Series has tweaked suspension with adjustable front and rear camber, and a new carbon fibre sheer panel under the back of the car for additional stability. There’s also a carbon fibre strut brace at the front and a new steel one at the back, both of which are adjustable.

To make the interior as circuit ready as the exterior, there’s the option of a Track Package, which adds carbon-backed seats with harnesses, a fire extinguisher and a titanium roll cage.

Pricing hasn’t been given just yet, but to give you an idea of how enormously expensive this car will be, the AMG GT R Pro is £188,345.