- Development of Mercedes-AMG’s super-SUV has moved to the Nurburgring.
- The electric LamboUrus rival shares tech with AMG’s upcoming 4-door GT.
- A triple motor setup could deliver up to 1,341 hp in the SUV’s hottest form.
Mercedes-AMG teased its new electric GT earlier this summer with a four-door coupe concept that hid a 1,341 hp (1,360 PS / 1,000 kW) surprise under its bright orange skin. But its SUV take on the same recipe you see in these new scoop shots is sure to be an even bigger hit for the Affalterbach crew.
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Related: You Won’t Recognize AMG’s Cars Two Years From Now
Development work on the unnamed, but very sporty utility has switched to the Nurburgring and our spy photo team was on hand to capture the electric SUV pounding the pavement of the 12.9-mile (20.8 km) track.
Testing on the Edge
Interestingly, the photo guys say AMG’s engineers sometimes enter and exit the circuit by some of the other barriers located around the long track, perhaps to avoid the gaze of cameras, or maybe to prevent anyone publishing unrepresentative lap times. But in this case, the two-row EV took in every one of the Ring’s dozens of curves.
Though still heavily disguised, the prototype gives away a shape that’s more crossover than traditional upright SUV. Think Lamborghini Urus or Ferrari Purosangue, rather than Rolls-Royce Cullinan or Bentley Bentayga. It has flush door handles, frameless door glass and a low ride height, though we expect drivers will be able to alter the amount of ground clearance by using a drive mode selector to tweak the air suspension settings.
SHProshots
Not visible in these images is the front end design, and though teaser images of the new GLC EV’s illuminated grille revealed last week clued us in to how Mercedes-branded cars will look in future, it’s likely AMG’s SUV will have a different styling.
The GT XX sedan concept had a new take on AMG’s Panamericana grille, where the outer frame was lit up, but the vertical grille bars and Mercedes star were not.
Performance and Launch
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We do know the production version of the XX shares its AMG.EA platform with the SUV, as well as its Yasa axial flux motor tech. The SUV’s exact spec is still firmly under wraps, but we understand it could be offered in both two and three-motor configurations, and going by the XX’s numbers, the hottest could deliver 1,341 hp.
That compares with 715 hp (725 PS) for the 6.5-liter V12 Purosangue, and while there’ll be no comparison when it comes to noise, the AMG won’t be completely silent. It will have a synthesised soundtrack that could replicate the tune of an AMG V8 using speakers in its headlights, and you can expect simulated shifting, too. The SUV should debut in 2027, a year behind the sedan.
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