Mercedes-AMG has decided that the family sport-utility vehicle needs the sort of firepower formerly reserved for exotic machinery, professional racing drivers and people who consider a speeding ticket an administrative inconvenience.
This explains the 2028 Mercedes-AMG GT SUV, an all-electric bruiser that promises up to 1,153 horsepower, a zero-to-60-mph sprint of 2.4 seconds and a top speed of 168 mph. It’s scheduled stateside in summer 2027, making ordinary SUVs look like delivery vans.
An SUV With Supercar Numbers
AMG says this is the first full-size SUV it has developed entirely in-house during its 59-year history. The machine rides on the company’s AMG.EA high-performance architecture and combines the commanding proportions of an SUV with technology borrowed from the company’s performance-car and motorsport programs.
The top-of-the-line GT 63 SUV employs three axial-flux electric motors generating 1,153 horsepower. There will also be the GT 55, delivering 805 horsepower, and an entry-level GT 53 producing 536 horsepower from two electric motors. All three use fully variable all-wheel drive. There are Seven drive programs ranging from Comfort and Eco to Race.
The GT 63’s acceleration figures are particularly outrageous. Mercedes-AMG claims it will reach 60 mph in 2.4 seconds and 124 mph in 6.8 seconds. This is an SUV, remember, a vehicle category originally conceived around hauling people, groceries and the occasional Labrador.
Batteries That Mean Business
The engineering is considerably more interesting than the numbers alone suggest. An 800-volt battery uses directly cooled cylindrical cells to manage heat and sustain power delivery under repeated heavy demands. The 106-kWh battery in the GT 53 supports charging at up to 600 kilowatts, while the 128-kWh packs in the GT 55 and GT 63 can accept up to 710 kilowatts under suitable conditions.
Mercedes-AMG says the larger battery can add as much as 450 kilometers (280 miles) of WLTP-rated range in 10 minutes. Charging from 10-to-80 percent takes an AMG-claimed 12 minutes. Those figures depend on charging conditions and infrastructure, but they suggest that the company is delivering peak power and performance that can be repeated.
Keeping All That Power Under Control
The suspension receives similarly serious attention. AMG Active Ride Control+ uses active hydraulic pitch and roll stabilization, while rear-wheel steering adjusts the steering angle up to six degrees. There’s also the AMG Race Engineer system that manages the GT 55 and GT 63’s drivetrain and driving dynamics. Its high-performance Core chip controls power delivery, braking and energy recuperation, while an optional Control Unit adds three rotary dials on the center console to adjust drivetrain response, handling and traction.
It’s all in the name of making a large, heavy electric SUV behave with the precision and feel of something lighter and smaller.
The Electric SUV That Pretends to Have a V8
Then comes the theater. AMGFORCE Sport+ gives the GT 55 and GT 63 the sound of a V8, while the GT 53 gets a six-cylinder soundtrack. Mercedes then adds simulated gear changes and seat vibrations. This is automotive make-believe on an industrial scale. The electric motors deliver supercar acceleration, but without the traditional engine noise. So, AMG pumps in a soundtrack, simulates gear changes and vibrates the seats. It’s like buying a first-class ticket on a supersonic jet only to discover that someone has installed a cassette player to reproduce the sound of a propeller plane.
Screens And Sound
The GT SUV also gets a 14-inch multimedia screen, a 10.2-inch instrument display and an optional passenger screen. There’s a three-passenger rear seat, diamond quilting, and an optional Burmester 4D Surround Sound System.
The Upshot
Prices have not been announced.
For now, AMG has established its intentions: build a family hauler with supercar acceleration, racing-derived technology and a soundtrack engineered to make the proceedings feel appropriately dramatic.
Whether buyers want all that in an SUV remains to be seen. But nobody will accuse AMG of thinking small.
