When we interviewed AMG chief Tobias Moers last fall, he memorably blustered, "Nobody will miss the good old 6.2-liter naturally aspirated engine!" When we suggested that people would, in fact, miss the free-breathing, loud-barking, large-displacement monster, he backtracked with a hint of defeated humility in his voice, admitting, "It's a nice engine, yeah." Nice enough to live on, as it turns out.
Although roadgoing AMG GT models receive the new M178 twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8, this new GT3 racer will use the same M159 engine as the outgoing SLS AMG GT—so it tuns out that suckers for the old 6.2 lump can still get a brand-new one. The downside—if one can call it that—is that they'll only be able to make use of the glorious thing on the track.
Like the SLS AMG GT3 before it, the AMG GT3 is a bulging, aero-kitted, stripped-out terror. And while the production GT and GT S are certainly prettier cars than the butch SLS, the GT3 variant of the new car amps up the menace over its motorsport predecessor. The grille, with its vertical bars, recalls the prewar Silver Arrows and competition-spec 1950s Gullwings.
The exterior, as you'd expect, is rife with carbon-fiber bits, including the doors, front and rear fascias (including the air dam and diffuser), side skirts, rear wing, and hood. Aerodynamic additions and aesthetic considerations aside, the GT3 swaps the roadgoing car's seven-speed dual-clutch transaxle for a race-grade six-speed sequential 'box and adds a roll cage to the interior.
The cabin retains the basic framework of the road car's, although the gauges make way for an info display and the steering wheel gets tossed for a full-race unit with the requisite switches, including transmission-engagement buttons. No longer does the AMG GT pilot have to pop his shoulder out of its socket simply to put the car in drive! The gear selector, COMAND controller, and cup holders have been excised from the center console, leaving room for a brace of beefy toggle switches.
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We'll have to wait until next year's racing season to see if the new GT3 backs up its sinister look with frightening on-track performance, as customer teams won't receive their AMG GT3s until the end of this year.
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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