Mercedes-AMG GT Premieres at Pebble B
The 72nd running of the Concours d’Elegance in Pebble Beach, California taking place on August 20-21 will see the debut of the next-generation Mercedes-AMG GT coupe. That means Affalterbach now has the distinction of having designed five models completely in-house, as opposed to simply building the engines and tuning existing Mercedes cars and SUVs. No news on the new car’s powertrain, but if they can find a way to make the C63 compact sedan churn out over 670 horsepower from a four-cylinder hybrid, I’m sure the GT won’t be left wanting for power.
Other neat stuff on the Benz stand this year includes a flotilla of W 06 classics from Mercedes’ own collection as well as the One-Eleven concept, a modern take on the gullwinged classic — no, not that gullwinged classic — the C111 concept.
Have it Your Way, Bugatti-Style
There’s no question that any Bugatti model is already pretty high on the bespoke-ness meter – which, by Bugatti’s own admission, is “near infinite” – but the Chiron Super Sport ‘Golden Era’ is on another level. The idea – nay, the vision – for this particular Chiron came from a collector who believes the Chiron and its W16 quad-turbo motor is a landmark moment in the world of the car. As a result, they’ve chosen to honour the brand’s history throughout the car, which includes 45 sketches – all done manually — sprinkled throughout of Bugatti models old and new. Other than that, you can’t miss the bespoke “Doré” gold colour that almost caramelizes the car – we would love to take a bite out of this thing – as well as an interior replete with more sketches on the bespoke leather, specialized stitching and “one-of-one” motifs.
Nissan Nismo says “No” to the Stick Shift
It’s of course very exciting that the Nismo version of the latest Nissan Z sports car has finally been officially revealed, but there are a handful – well more than a handful, really – of purists that will be miffed that there will be no manual ‘box to choose from, even though the Z gets one as standard. Still, even the most firebrand of the #savethemanuals crowd will appreciate the bump in power – 20 hp and 34 lb-ft over the standard Z – track-based Sport+ drive mode, aero teaks and wider tires. And how could we forget the classic red banding ‘round the front and rear splitters and rocker panels?
Porsche Says “It’s a STelebration”
Like most automakers that build all-time greats, Porsche isn’t one to let as important a milestone as the 911’s 60th anniversary pass without a proper amount of fanfare. Enter the 911 S/T, the evolution of the GT3 Touring seen last generation that everyone loved so much. It gets the GT3’s naturally-aspirated flat-6 engine as well as its short ratio manual ‘box (take that, Nissan!) but keeps the body clean by foregoing the GT3’s wild aero addenda. It’s good for 518 hp and since the S/T weighs less than 1,400 kilos (yes; that undercuts the old GT3 Touring), we’re guessing those fancy wings won’t be missed all that much.