2015 Mercedes-AMG GT first drive "Ah yes, the F-type, we thought we would get criticisms," says exterior designer Slavche Tanevski, who points out the lengths he and his colleagues have gone to in avoiding the haunchiness of the Jaguar. It stops the traffic, too. Park it anywhere in California and you'll draw a crowd of admirers. The GT uses some parts from the SLS it replaces, but is shorter and narrower Out go the gullwing doors of the SLS and also its 6.3-litre naturally aspirated V8, which drank like a Bactrian camel at an oasis. Carrying over the front suspension, firewall, transmission tunnel, A and B pillars and sills from the SLS influences some dimensions, but the GT is 92mm shorter and about 20mm narrower, although it's still longer and wider than Porsche's 911. The under body is all aluminium and magnesium; a spaceframe with extrusions welded into castings for featherlight strength. Not so very featherlight, though, since the GT S weighs 1.64 tonnes. The suspension is upper and lower wishbones all round and the driveline is old-school hard charger, with the dry-sump, biturbo 4.0-litre V8 feeding drive into a carbon-fibre propshaft braced with a torque tube and into a seven-speed, twin-clutch rear transaxle. That V8's a thing of beauty. Loosely based on two four-cylinder A45 units, it has the more conventional V8 breathing reversed so the twin elephantine turbos lurk within the vee, fed with fresh air and exhaust gas from the inward-facing ports. To reach the outside of the cylinder heads, the pressurised air is delivered around the front of the block via a brace of water-to-air intercoolers and the exhaust gas goes straight off the back of the block and into the exhaust pipes. Nice... Three versions of the GT will be offered; the first, the 510bhp £110,495 GT S arrives in April, delivering a top speed of 193mph, 0-62mph in 3.8sec, 30.1mpg in the Combined cycle and band K CO2 emissions of 219g/km. Alongside will be a launch-special Edition 1 model costing £122,745 with a host of special exterior and interior trim packages, plus the £4,195 premium pack and £995 Driving pack comprising lane keeping, blind-spot detection and the Pre-safe crash preparation system. The cockpit is snug, the transmission tunnel massive The standard 462bhp GT arrives at the end of 2015 costing £97,195 and delivering 189mph, 0-62mph in 4sec, 30.4mpg and 216g/km. There will also be a customer GT3 racing version and probably a cabriolet, but no four-wheel drive version. It's also perfectly possible to rinse your wallet on GT options with yellow paint, for example, costing £10,695 and ceramic brakes £5,995. The GT S driven here has 19in front and 20in rear Michelin Pilot tyres on alloy wheels with red AMG-branded brake calipers, high-gloss paint highlights, as well as the more powerful engine, marginally better performance and electronically-actuated rear differential as well as electronically adjustable dampers and engine mounts with three settings; Comfort, Sport and Sport Plus. Clamber across the wide sills and sink into the cockpit and you sit low and snug, with the seat wrapped around you like an amorous spider in catcher's gloves. Like the exterior, the cabin feels taut and tightly wrapped. The transmission tunnel is enormous and high and the facia sweeps around so there's an impression of being in a very posh fighter aircraft. Make that a blingy aircraft, since endless surface changes and polished metal highlights are confusing and the switch and dial placing feels haphazard. The driver's instrument binnacle, for example, has proper instruments and a digital screen, but four typefaces. There's just enough room, but leg space is at a premium and six-footers should try before they buy. At 350 litres the boot is large, but it's not a very practical shape, so soft bags are better than suitcases. The engine clanks like a locomotive at idle and picks up smartly but not abruptly like the SLS did. On slippery city roads, the car feels more intimidating than it turns out to be, although you can lose sight of the potholes under that huge bonnet. That's not good because the ride is harsh even in Comfort setting, the car crashing into holes and fizzing on concrete roads. The tyres are noisy at motorway speeds, too. The 4.0-litre V8 is the apotheosis of AMG's engine-building prowess The twin turbochargers spool up very quickly and you occasionally get more torque than you wanted, but it's abrupt rather than scary. Likewise the steel brakes are powerful, but grabby at low speeds, so driving smoothly demands forethought and discipline. Stand on the accelerator and the engine bellows, the seven-speed swishes down a couple of ratios and you head for the stars. It's a fantastical, endless charge behind 500 oat-fuelled racehorses heedless of speed limits and other traffic scattered in the exhausts' wake. On the average British B-road, you'd rarely use full throttle. Not that it isn't controllable. Those variably damped engine mounts and the adjustable dampers mean the steering feels sharp and well weighted. The body control is extraordinary, but a tiny bit more understeer could be welcome. On the track at Laguna Seca in race mode, however, the GT felt wieldy and safe if scarily fast. Its steering quick-reacting steering was linear and the cornering predictable although smoky oversteer was a mere twitch of the throttle away. The ceramic anchors felt strong and unburstable but again clattery at low speeds. Where the SLS was a crude broadsword, the GT has bought finesse and refinement to the business of going fast in a more appropriately sized package. It's not as rapier-like as the Porsche 911, more of a scimitar perhaps? Wild enough to be exhilarating and a touch scary, but beautifully finished and just practical enough, I think that AMG has built a very desirable motor car. Do you want one yet? I know I do. Mercedes-Benz AMG GT S Tested: 3,982cc twin-turbo V8 petrol, seven-speed twin-clutch semi-automatic transaxle transmission, rear-wheel drive Price/on sale: From £97,195 for GT (£110,495 for GT S and £122,745 for Edition 1) /April 2015 Power/torque: 503bhp @ 6,250rpm/479lb ft @ 1,750rpm Top speed: 193mph Acceleration: 0-62mph in 3.8sec Fuel economy: 23.2mpg/30.1mpg (EU Urban/Combined). On test 19.5mpg CO2 Emissions: 219g/km Verdict: What a ride! Where the outgoing SLS was a crude bruiser, the GT brings finesse, refinement and balance into the equation. It's much better looking, too. Still needs care when driving fast and some markets will want four-wheel drive, but a great debut into the big sports coupé market Telegraph rating: Four stars out of five Porsche 911 GTS, from £91,098 Go-faster version of the 911, with 424bhp, 3.8-litre flat-six, meaner bodywork and lower ride height. Top speed 190mph, 0-62mph in 4sec. Available with four and rear drive in cabrio or coupé form. Nicely balanced and rapid although some find the wide-body 911 hard to look at. Great looking - and sounding - coupé, but 542bhp/502lb ft 5.0-litre V8 is almost too much (top speed 186mph, 0-62mph in 4.2sec, 25.4mpg and 259g/km) and the cheaper, less powerful V6S is better balanced. Recently announced 4x4 version might solve traction issues. BMW i8, from £99,845 The £99,825 M6 should feature here, but it's not in the same class, whereas the i8 petrol/electric hybrid is a very modern take on the two-seater coupé. Top speed 155mpg, 0-62mph in 4.4sec and 135mpg. Looks sensational, but doesn't drive quite as well as it should. Read more Mercedes reviews