2015 Mercedes-AMG GT teased

If you’re glum that the thunderous Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG is no longer in production, don’t be. There’s a new hot rod with a three-pointed star in town.

This is the first picture of the new 2015 Mercedes-AMG GT – a sports car from the German firm that will go up against the Porsche 911, following its debut at the 2014 Paris Motor Show.

On Bing: see pictures of the 2015 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT

Find out how much a used Mercedes-Benz AMG cost on Auto Trader

The silhouetted teaser shot shows a long bonnet, a relatively upright windscreen and a fastback-style, tapered rear end, suggesting the AMG GT may sport a hatchback to improve boot space and long-distance touring ability.

It does at least look the part and should deliver plenty of visual impact from this initial, heavily disguised image, even if the proportions do seem slightly awkward to us.

But we’ll put that down to a trick of the light for now…

At the heart of any sports car – and especially an AMG – is the engine. Mercedes has already confirmed that it will be a V8, but exactly what capacity and whether it will be turbocharged is not yet known.

However, we expect at least 500hp, with motive force delivered by a “downsized” 4.0-litre twin-turbo uni,t based on two 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo petrol engines from the firm’s A45 AMG model spliced together.

That four-cylinder unit is already a total firecracker, so doubling up can only mean good things for fans of performance and noise. Compared to AMG’s naturally aspirated 6.2- and twin-turbo 5.5-litre V8s, it should prove more efficient, too.

In true AMG fashion, drive will be sent to the rear wheels via a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox similar to that in the A45, with the 0-62mph sprint taking less than 4.0 seconds. But don’t rule out a four-wheel drive option in time, either.

The name is also an interesting one – rather than calling it the “Mercedes-Benz AMG GT”, the new car is the first model to be branded “Mercedes-AMG”.

This is small but significant, as it shows Mercedes’ intent to build a performance car to topple the Porsche 911, and that this has been developed from the ground-up with AMG involvement – a modified cooking Merc this is not.

Although Mercedes did recently reveal the AMG GT’s interior, detailing the extensive levels of technology it will cram into its new model, any other details surrounding the car are scarce.

We know the AMG GT will go on sale at the beginning of next year after being shown publicly for the first time at the 2014 Paris Motor Show in September. However, as for price, there’s no official (or even unofficial) information yet.

Expect the 2014 Mercedes-AMG GT to cost around £100,000 when it hits the market.

On Bing: see pictures of the 2015 Mercedes-Benz AMG GT

Find out how much a used Mercedes-Benz AMG cost on Auto Trader

Read a Mercedes-Benz review

Mercedes-AMG GT: 911 rival’s interior revealed

By motoringresearch.com