From the November/December 2025 issue of Car and Driver.
Not one to shy away from controversy in its quest for speed, Mercedes-AMG boldly changed course with its latest-generation GT coupe. While its predecessor was a lean rear-wheel-drive hunter of Porsche’s sportiest 911s, the current model has grown larger, become more sophisticated, and (gasp) adopted all-wheel drive. It’s even sprouted a pair of optional rear jump seats. The addition of a plug-in hybrid GT63 S E Performance model certainly won’t stifle critics of evolutionary bloat. But the result is the brand’s quickest and most powerful two-door this side of the Formula 1–engined AMG One.
Included in its $16,850 upcharge over the $180,200 GT63 coupe, the hybrid S version’s rear-mounted E Performance module adds a 201-hp AC motor mated to a two-speed transmission, plus a 5-kWh battery pack. This can power the car on its own for short distances (six miles in our 75-mph highway test) via the car’s variable all-wheel-drive system. But the prime mover is a front-mounted twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 lashed to a nine-speed automatic with a multiplate clutch pack, no torque converter here. The engine’s 603 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque sit between the regular GT63 coupe’s 577-hp tune and the four-door GT63 S E Performance model’s 630-hp output. Factor in the e-motor’s contribution, and AMG’s convoluted arithmetic gives you a total output of 805 horsepower and 1047 pound-feet.
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There’s no finessing our test car’s corpulent 4743-pound curb weight, 498 pounds more than the nonhybrid GT63 and over half a ton up on the previous GT R model. Engage the hybrid’s launch control, however, and it muscles to 60 mph in a scant 2.4 seconds, beating the nonhybrid version by 0.3 second. Keep on it, and amid the 91-decibel thunder of the V-8, you can feel the car catch a second wind around 75 mph as the rear electric motor finds high gear. You get a 10-second shot of full boost, and then power peters out to a steady 94 horses just before the E Performance trips the quarter-mile lights in a heady 10.4 seconds at 135 mph, at which point the standard GT63 is 0.5 second and 10 mph behind. That pace will also win a drag race against humbler hybrids such as the all-wheel-drive, 655-hp Chevrolet Corvette E-Ray and the rear-wheel-drive, 532-hp Porsche 911 GTS. Just know that the margin of victory will only be by about a bumper’s thickness (0.2 second).
Despite the hybrid’s active roll control and rear-axle steering, that extra weight contributes to its slightly reduced skidpad grip, 1.04 g’s to the nonhybrid’s 1.06 g’s. Another factor: 52.1 percent of the GT63 S E’s bulk sits on its tail versus only 45.8 percent for the regular car. This rear-weight bias results in a pendulum effect that can manifest in lift-throttle oversteer, particularly when you attempt to channel its full thrust through the rear tires in Drift mode. Though a dollop of countersteer from the GT63 E’s ultraquick steering will catch a wayward slide, its brake-pedal feel is inconsistent as it juggles regeneration requirements. Still, our test car’s standard carbon-ceramic stoppers hauled it down from 70 mph in 147 feet and from 100 mph in 287 feet, beating the lighter GT63 coupe by six and 12 feet. That’s with the two sporting the same brakes and optional 21-inch Michelin Pilot Sport S5 summer tires (20-inchers are standard).
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In the wild, the adaptive dampers help maintain enough ride compliance to traverse Michigan’s shoddy pavement without making us wince too much. The hybrid system does shrink the luggage hold from 11 cubic feet to just seven cubes, but its integration with the gas engine is almost seamless in regular driving. Cruising around town in the near silence of Electric mode is a rejuvenating trick after enduring the 74-decibel din we recorded inside at 70 mph. But of the multitudinous drive settings, we found it most helpful to toggle in and out of Race mode, as it runs the gas engine harder in order to replenish the battery in just a few miles. Alternately, plug in, and AMG says the 3.7-kW onboard charger will fill the pack from 25 to 100 percent in two hours. Hybridization also ups the GT63 coupe’s EPA combined estimate from 14 to 19 mpg.
As a head-turning power play with some electric range, the GT63 S E Performance highlights the GT coupe’s newfound duality as a serious sports car that can moonlight as a high-tech grand tourer. This powertrain setup is arguably more compelling in the GT63 S E’s more practical four-door variant, which is just as quick to 60 mph. And the two-door GT63 Pro trim makes a stronger case as the driver’s choice of the bunch, packing the 603-hp V-8 from the hybrid yet forgoing the weight and complexity of electric assistance. But for those seeking the ultimate AMG GT coupe, the GT63 S E is the one to get.
Specifications
Specifications
2025 Mercedes-AMG GT63 S E Performance
Vehicle Type: front-engine, rear-motor, rear/all-wheel-drive, 2+2-passenger, 2-door hatchback
PRICE
Base/As Tested: $197,050/$218,850
POWERTRAIN
twin-turbocharged and intercooled DOHC 32-valve 4.0-liter V-8, 603 hp, 627 lb-ft + AC motor, 201 hp, 236 lb-ft (combined output: 805 hp, 1047 lb-ft; 5-kWh lithium-ion; peak charge rate, AC 3.7 kW)
Transmissions, F/R: 9-speed automatic/2-speed automatic
CHASSIS
Suspension, F/R: multilink/multilink
Brakes, F/R: 16.5-in vented, cross-drilled, carbon-ceramic disc/14.2-in vented, cross-drilled, carbon-ceramic disc
Tires: Michelin Pilot Sport S5
F: 295/30ZR-21 (102Y)
R: HL305/30ZR-21 (107Y)
DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 106.3 in
Length: 186.1 in
Width: 78.1 in
Height: 53.3 in
Trunk Volume: 11 ft3
Curb Weight: 4743 lb
C/D TEST RESULTS
60 mph: 2.4 sec
100 mph: 5.8 sec
130 mph: 9.5 sec
1/4-Mile: 10.4 sec @ 135 mph
150 mph: 12.4 sec
170 mph: 18.3 sec
Results above omit 1-ft rollout of 0.3 sec.
Rolling Start, 5–60 mph: 3.1 sec
Top Gear, 30–50 mph: 2.3 sec
Top Gear, 50–70 mph: 2.4 sec
Top Speed (mfr claim): 199 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 147 ft
Braking, 100–0 mph: 287 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft Skidpad: 1.04 g
Interior Sound
Idle: 42 dBA/3 sone
Full Throttle: 91 dBA
70-mph Cruising: 74 dBA/31 sone
C/D FUEL ECONOMY
Observed: 14 MPGe
75-mph Highway Driving, EV/Hybrid Mode: 58 MPGe/26 mpg
75-mph Highway Range, EV/Hybrid mode: 6/480 mi
EPA FUEL ECONOMY
Combined: 19 mpg
Combined Gasoline + Electricity: 28 MPGe
EV Range: 1 mi
Mike Sutton is an editor, writer, test driver, and general car nerd who has contributed to Car and Driver‘s reverent and irreverent passion for the automobile since 2008. A native Michigander from suburban Detroit, he enjoys the outdoors and complaining about the weather, has an affection for off-road vehicles, and believes in federal protection for naturally aspirated engines.
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