The Mercedes-AMG GT R Roadster Is £30,000 More Expensive Than The Coupe

The Mercedes-AMG GT R Roadster has gone on sale and costs £178,675, a whopping £30,000 more than its hard-top sibling. That huge price puts the Roadster closer in value to the ultimate AMG GT, the £188,425 GT R Pro.

When you give Mercedes an extra £39,750, on top of the £148,675 for a regular AMG GT R, for a Pro you get a set of adjustable coilovers, a carbonfibre front and steel rear antiroll bar (again, all adjustable), carbonfibre bracing, a carbonfibre roof, carbon-ceramic brakes (a £5,995 option on the normal GT R), forged wheels, a roll cage, four-point harnesses and a fire extinguisher. Despite the addition of the safety equipment, the Pro is 14kg lighter than the AMG GT R.

The Pro also has a more comprehensive aero package, including front arch vents, a larger front splitter and gurney flap on the rear wing. It’s easy to see where all that money goes.

The only difference between the GT R Roadster and the cheaper coupe, however, is a three-layered electronically retracting fabric roof and a host of strengthening elements to compensate for the lack of a hardtop. All that results in an increase of 80kg over the coupe.

Yes, the Roadster has the same 4-litre twin-turbo hot-V V8 that puts out 572bhp and 516lb ft of torque as the GT R and Pro version. And, despite the extra weight, it can even match the 0-62mph time of its R stablemates with 3.6 seconds and is only 1mph shy of their 198mph top speed.

But with nothing like the changes that the Pro pack brings, the AMG GT R Roadster seems a tad expensive. Especially as the Roadster versions of the GT and GT S are just £11,305 more than the hardtop, while the GT C drop-top is only £9,115 more than the coupe.

Would you have one over the tin top?