The Mercedes-AMG GT 12: A Return to Form?

As we sat in the driver's seat of the latest Mercedes-AMG GT 12, it was clear that this car was something special. With its massive V12 engine producing a whopping 550 odd pound foot of torque from under 2,000 reps, this car is not for the faint of heart. The naturally bumpy technical circuit we found ourselves on was the perfect testing ground for this beast of a machine, and it proved to be more than capable of handling the challenges that came its way.

One of the standout features of the GT 12 was its high-speed stability. As we pushed it hard through the corners, it demonstrated a level of precision and control that was truly impressive. The steering was sharp and responsive, with a delightful balance of bite and feel that made it easy to carve up the track. But what really set this car apart was its ability to accelerate with incredible force when you let off the throttle. It's like the car is "loose off the leash" - there's a raw energy and power that's impossible to deny.

But the GT 12 isn't just about brute force - it's also incredibly comfortable and refined. As we cruised through the corners, the suspension worked tirelessly to keep the car planted and stable, even over the bumpiest of surfaces. The ride was smooth and composed, with barely any hint of noise or vibration to speak of. It's clear that Mercedes-AMG has done a fantastic job in tuning this car for both performance and comfort.

One of the most interesting aspects of the GT 12 is its handling dynamics. While it may not be the most playful or agile car out there, it's still an absolute delight to drive - especially when pushed hard through the corners. The car takes attitude quickly, but only in a good way - it's like it's trying to get your attention and make you engage with it on a deeper level. And when you do manage to correct its drift, it's incredibly rewarding.

Of course, no discussion of the GT 12 would be complete without mentioning its engine. The V12 is, as expected, beautifully tuned - but there's something about the way it sounds that's just different from any other Mercedes-AMG I've ever heard. It's deeper and more muffled than some of their other engines, but still retains that unmistakable wail that only a high-performance V12 can produce.

But what really sets the GT 12 apart is its ability to balance performance with practicality. This car is designed to be driven on the road as much as it is track, and Mercedes-AMG has done an excellent job in making sure that it feels at home in both environments. The damping, for example, is superb - even on the more aggressive settings, it's able to keep the car firmly grounded and composed.

As we took the GT 12 out onto the longer corners of the track, it was clear that this was a car that could really hold its own. It takes big turns with ease, using the extra torque to propel itself forward with incredible speed. And even when slowed down, it still retains that effortless feel and poise - like it's always ready to spring back into action at a moment's notice.

Of course, as with any high-performance car, there are some compromises to be made. The mechanical slip differential, for example, can sometimes struggle to cope with the sheer amount of torque on offer - but that just adds to the overall sense of urgency and engagement that this car provides. And let's not forget the braking performance - the GT 12 is capable of stopping from over 180 km/h in a mere 35 meters - that's some serious hardware.

As we came to the end of our time with the GT 12, it was clear that this was a truly special car. It's not just a high-performance machine for those who can handle its ferocity - it's also an epic way to bid farewell to a sports car that feels unashamedly of the 20th century. The Mercedes-AMG GT 12 is a car that will make heads turn and excite its driver in equal measure, even if it may not be the best-sounding or handling car in its class.

Perhaps the one thing that's missing from this car is a bit more finesse - some of the lines between aggression and playfulness are blurred just a tad. But overall, the GT 12 is an absolute delight to drive - especially when pushed hard through the corners. It requires a step up from your usual driving skills, but if you can handle it, the rewards are well worth the effort.

The Mercedes-AMG GT 12 may not be the best-sounding or handling car of its particular bloodline, but it's certainly an epic way to say goodbye to a sports car that feels unashamedly of the 20th century. This is a car that will make you sit up and take notice - especially when it's really pushing itself to the limit.

As we reluctantly brought the GT 12 back into the pits, it was clear that this was just the beginning of an epic journey. With its incredible performance, comfortable ride, and engaging handling dynamics, the Mercedes-AMG GT 12 is a car that will leave even the most seasoned drivers in awe.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enuh aston martin has history when it comes to squeezing ever larger engines into its smaller sporting gts and it goes back a lot further than this the new v12 version of the current vantage sports car there were three v12 engine versions of the last vantage not counting the roadsters and a few low volume specials and before that there was the db7 vantage of 1999 and even the fire breathing supercharged v8 powered virage vantage v600 before that the modern aston buyer clearly has a taste for big combustive fireworks delivered in smaller packages but it's a taste that won't be catered to for very much longer because this is set to be the very last v12 vantage of them all now the aston martin management hasn't been clear about why the line has to end here exactly but we know that like so many other car brands it's moving inexorably towards an all-electric future and we also know that they're gradually phasing out the old ford linked clone engines one of those that this car has and it's phasing in more and more mercedes amg built engines so one way or the other you could say the writing's been on the wall for this car for a while but as you can see it's not going out gently there will be just 333 examples of this last of the breed v12 made this year and aston says all were sold before the order books even officially opened not a bad result for them at 265 000 pounds apiece plus options and arguably not for the customers either who'll get an instantly collectible car for about a third of the price of the open cockpit v12 speedster of 2021 much of which car's mechanical package the v12 vantage shares the twin turbocharged v12 engine in the front of the car is the same as the speedsters and produces the same 690 brake horsepower and 555 pounds for the torque available across a whopping 4200 rpm wide rev band like all vantages but unlike other aston martin gts the gearbox is carried in a transaxle unit at the rear of the car and it's an 8-speed automatic driving through a mechanical limited slip differential in this case big engines are heavy of course and this vantage weighs 110 kilograms more than a regular v8 coupe but it still has 20 more power to weight than the regular car so we're at the silverstone stowe circuit today to drive this car there are some of the development cars running because aston martin does a lot of development work here and i can't tell you exactly what's running around the track now but it's very loud and very fast and it begins with a v and it'll be on sale soon um so you can probably work it out for yourself anyway more about this car the v12 engine in this car isn't the only thing that's new about it but you can certainly tell that it's there because there's this extra wide radiator grille with the chrome bars telling you all about it you've also got an extra aggressive splitter at the front and a whole new lightweight front bumper the bonnet is carbon fiber too and lightweight so are the front wings and in fact the front wings are wrapped around a wide body construction so you've got wider axle tracks front and rear on this car than a standard advantage has 40mm wider and the whole thing just looks a lot more aggressive because of it moving backwards you've got 21 inch forged alloy wheels lightweight and they're around carbon ceramic brakes and then as we go backwards the like the lightweight panels become composite rather than carbon fiber so you've got a composite rear bumper boot lid and you've got this very aggressive rear diffuser which i think you've seen before on the f1 edition and this rather noticeable now just like on a certain gt department porsche you can have this deleted from the veto advantage if you want i think i'd leave it on because it's well it's distinctive and very nicely presented in this sort of lack of carbon fiber so underneath all this lightweight bodywork we were talking about the vantages chassis has been stiffened quite a lot as well there are new shear panels at the front and the back of the car that add rigidity and if we open this boot lid we'll find a strut brace across the two rear suspension towers and that's adding strength as well the car's suspension and its steering have been widely recalibrated as well more than that in a minute so this is the first v12 vantage ever to come with turbochargers um apparently it's the last v12 vantage of any kind that aston will ever make so it's a bit of a watershed car isn't it and it's a serious thing probably more serious than any any of its predecessors were because as well as the powertrain transformation you've got a pretty wide ranging chassis and suspension overhaul going on here too got all the stiffening measures for the chassis we've already talked about and for the suspension they've gone something like 40 50 stiffer on the suspension springs than a regular vantage has brand new adaptive dampers a new steering calibration quite different anti-roll bar rates than a regular vantage 2. so probably aiming for a slightly different handling character for this car i would imagine something a bit more purposeful and agile and perhaps a bit less friendly and forgiving we'll find out on that score they clearly want this to feel like a proper bit of kit a real track car a proper serious salute to the to the v12 lineage so i'm just going to drive it properly and quite quickly for a few laps to see what it's like for its intended role as a serious tractor but it's certainly fast i mean it would be you know 550 odd pound foot of torque from under 2 000 reps and this is quite a a sort of a naturally bumpy technical circuit there's not many places you can get up out the third gear and find out what the sort of high speed stability of any car might be like but there are a couple well i'll tell you what it's lovely and precise on the steering turning in with great stability but plenty of bite and then really accelerating when you let it off the loose off the leash i should say and then slowing down lots and lots of power as well there we go fourth gear into the fifth for a minute there before we break at the end of the back straight it's taking a lot of these 90 degree corners in third rather than second because it can because because the intermediate gearing is pretty short but mostly because there's so much torque you just don't need the lower ratio comes out of these tighter corners really quickly even in third so how do we think it sounds in here it is v12 but it's a bit muffled it's not the sort of wailing howling naturally aspirated gt-12 that we once had by the magic of t vehicles you can listen to it on the outside of the car which i can't do but it sounds pretty special to me and it's fast you wouldn't need it much quicker i dare say the damping oh it feels properly serious i mean this guy's carrying another 110 kilos over another any other vantage v8 so it needs proper damping doesn't it well it's got it i've only got these adaptive dampers in the middle setting but it's keeping it really nicely tied down and it bristling a little bit over bumps you can feel them as they hit the axles but it gives you loads of confidence because you know the thing's just not going to start floating and heaving or pitching or running out of composure so as well as the handling being really accurate the body controls right there as well you can carry lots of speed in this car it will not take many prisoners on a track day if you happen to find yourself on one and you can really get into the brakes with loads of confidence right i'm gonna rapture this esp off and we'll use some of these tighter corners to explore the sort of wilder side of this car's handling temperament here's the uh the long one at the there you bottom it's naughty it's still well capable of shapes but as i suspected when it slides you want to be paying attention because it takes attitude pretty quickly not too bad there actually but you want to be precise with the steering when you uh when you correct it it's not like a a dbs superleggera the sort of big laid-back you know continent crossing gt car it's a challenge but it is adjustable it can be playful and a bit sort of old school there it goes better bring your a-game i have to say i like that about it because it's a step up isn't it it's a step up in performance it's a step up in lap time and grip and all of that stuff and it requires a step up from you a real step up otherwise it'll catch you out oh fun i think it's better just when it's going fast you know when it's laser locked to those abc's and it's dancing around a little bit behind you but not taking big attitudes that's what this card's for it's more serious than some of its predecessors it's not the friendly old it's not the friendly old v12 that we used to know and maybe you know maybe that mechanical slippy diff is a bit out of its depth at times i'm sensing here and there that it's just spinning an inside wheel actually i wonder why they couldn't use the edith on this car that other advantages have perhaps it's a torque thing because this car has a lot of it but it just requires a slightly different operating regimen you know you just drive it like it wants to be driven like a proper track car and you get so much out of it it's a good way you know a good way to to say goodbye to a great series of cars this not quite the one i was expecting if i'm honest perhaps the one you might have been expecting from tobias murs though with his serious mercedes-amg hat on it's a car to take seriously the latest v12 vantage probably isn't the best sounding or even the very best handling car of its particular bloodline but it is a suitably epic way to bid farewell to a sports car that feels unashamedly of the 20th century but that can still make heads turn and really excite its driver right now in the 21st thanks for watching liking and subscribing and remember to come back to us soon for more videos just like this 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