Hot Mercedes-AMG GLE63 Coupé revealed at Detroit show

The Mercedes-AMG GLE63 Coupé has been revealed at the Detroit motor show, and will aim to take on the BMW X6 M and Porsche Cayenne Turbo S when it goes on sale in the UK in June.

The GLE63 Coupé is powered by a twin-turbocharged 5.5-litre V8 engine developing 577bhp, and can hit 62mph from rest in a claimed 4.2sec in top-end form.

Following the example of other recent Mercedes-AMG models, the GLE63 Coupé is available with the choice of two differing engine specifications in both standard and a more powerful S model.

Pricing is yet to be announced, although Mercedes-AMG officials suggest the standard GLE63 Coupé will be pitched close to the existing £86,995 second-generation ML63 AMG, with which the new performance SUV shares such of its mechanical package. It will also be produced alongside that model at Mercedes-Benz’s US manufacturing plant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

Power for the GLE63 Coupé comes from AMG’s familiar twin-turbocharged 5.5-litre V8. As in other recent AMG models, the 90deg unit comes in two differing states of tune depending on the model chosen.

In the standard GLE63 Coupé, it delivers 549bhp at 5750rpm and 516lb ft on a band of revs between 1750 and 5500rpm.

For the range-topping GLE63 S Coupé, the engine musters an additional 28bhp and 44lb ft thanks to increases boost pressure and other internal tweaks to offer a stout 577bhp at 5500rpm and 560lb ft between 1750 and 5250rpm.

By comparison, the new BMW X6 M’s twin-turbocharged 4.4-litre V8 produces 564bhp and 553lb ft, while the twin-turbocharged 4.8-litre V8 used by the new Porsche Cayenne Turbo S provides 562bhp and 590lb ft.

The GLE63 Coupé’s heady reserves are channelled permanently to all four wheels via AMG’s seven-speed 7G-Tronic SpeedShift Plus automatic gearbox and a specially tuned version of Mercedes-Benz’s 4Matic four-wheel drive system that has been set up to provide a nominal 40 per cent front, 60 per cent rear apportioning of drive.

Official performance figures made public at its unveiling suggest the latest AMG model will offer straight-line acceleration consummate with the high-riding performance SUV competition, with the standard GLE63 Coupé possessing a claimed 0-62mph time of 4.3sec and the more powerful GLE63 S Coupé running an even sharper 4.2sec. This compares to the BMW X6 M and Porsche Cayenne Turbo S’s claimed 0-62mph times of 4.2sec and 4.1sec respectively. 

The top speed for both GLE63 Coupé models is limited to 155mph, while their combined fuel consumption is put at 23.7mpg, along with average CO2 emissions of 279g/km.

The GLE63 Coupé rides on a sophisticated chassis adapted from the existing ML63 AMG, itself due to be facelifted and renamed as the GLE63 in line with Mercedes-Benz’s new naming system in 2015.