Germany are now number one in the world at football. Well done to them. But let’s not forget Germany’s greatest achievement to the world; the automobile. And as luck would have it Mercedes Benz has unveiled it’s top of the range S65 AMG Coupe the same day Germany won the World Cup.
For me, the announcement of the S65 AMG Coupe is as exciting as the World Cup win. No really, it is. Here is a car that defies every sort of logic imaginable. There was a time when I truly thought we’d never see the likes of it again. I mean who in their right mind could possibly need a 6.0-litre twin-turbo V12 coupe in this day and age?
I do. I need one. This Panzer tank pumps out 621bhp and an earth-shattering 1000NM of torque. That’s more torque than a Mclaren P1 produces! 0-100 km/h is over and done with in 4.1 seconds, some 0.1 second quicker than the V8 powered S63. Top speed is limited to 250 km/h.
So why spend almost 80% more for the S65? Why not get the S63 instead? It’s got the same top speed and is only a tenth of a second slower to 100. Surely that’s a capable enough car. But the S63 has to make do with 580bhp and 800NM of torque. That extra bhp and torque figures will prove their worth come overtaking time.
To balance it out it even comes with stop-start technology. As one would expect from a high-end Mercedes you’ve got every toy imaginable and some you couldn’t even dream of. The Magic Body Control is fitted as standard which leans the car’s body into a corner, like a motorbike. It also has a system that can “read” the road ahead and adjust the suspension accordingly to give the smoothest ride, and it has a lithium-ion battery to save 20kgs. This car can do it all. It’s so clever it can even solve the Middle East crisis and end world famine. But being a German car those features are optional extras.
Some won’t see the point in this. Admittedly I find it hard to justify a car like this myself and I’m the biggest Mercedes fan in the world. If you really wanted a fast, V12 GT car there’s the awesome Ferrari F12 or FF. Rivals such as the Bentley GT and Aston Vanquish offer a more exotic badge and image. But come on, just look at this thing. Even in this purple colour it looks incredible. It is by far the most beautiful Mercedes design in recent years. Heck, I’d even go as far as to say it’s prettier than the Bentley, classier than the Ferrari, and dare I say it, as perfect as the Aston.
So compared to it’s more well badged rivals it puts up a good fight. But say you’re at the Mercedes showroom. If all you wanted a fast Mercedes S-Class, what’s wrong with the S65 sedan? Then we get back to the S63 Coupe. Now that the SLS is dead (RIP) the S63 is next most powerful coupe to bear the three-pointed star. Let me put it like this. The S63 is a for people to travel through continents in. The S65 is for people who conquer continents. In the real world the S63 is plenty fast for most. But for some they can only have the best, the best or nothing. Prices are rumoured to be around the $450,000 mark so it’ll cost as expensive as it looks and give its rivals a run for their money. Ladies and plutocrats, get your chequebooks out now!
