Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series Is Now The 'Ring's Fastest Production Car

As anticipated, the Mercedes-AMG GT 4 Door claiming a niche Nurburgring record was something of a warm-up act. The main event involves its distantly related GT Black Series cousin, and yes, it has snatched the production car lap record away from the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ.

It took just 6:43.616 to cover the lap (6:48.047 for the longer version incorporating the T13 straight section), putting it over a second clear of the Lamborghini. If that time sounds familiar, it’s probably because Nurburgring YouTuber Misha Charoudin estimated the GT Black had done the deed in around 6min 43sec.

GT3 driver Maro Engel was behind the wheel for the thrilling run, and Mercedes has even confirmed the setup he used to set the time. The adjustable carbon splitter was in its extended ‘Race’ position, while the lower and upper ‘blades’ of the rear wing were in their middle settings. The adjustable dampers were lowered by 5mm at the front and 3mm at the back, with the negative camber adjusted to 3.8 degrees at the front and 3.0 degrees at the rear - the maximum.

Finally, the nine-stage traction control was switched between six and seven, with Engel varying it as necessary for different bits of the track. It’s interesting that he deemed this the fastest way to get around - normally, we’d just expect a racing driver to switch everything off entirely. The track conditions were likely a factor in that choice - they were less than ideal on 4 November, with cold tarmac and damp patches making for a less than optional environment to run a 710bhp car wearing Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 Rs.

The time was set at 5:02pm - after sunset when the air temperature was just seven degrees Celcius and the track surface only slightly warmer. With a warmer, drier track, it’s possible that Engel could challenge the 6min 40sec lap set by the Manthey Racing-tweaked Porsche 911 GT2 RS MR, becoming the Nurburgring’s fastest street-legal car as well as its fastest production vehicle.