Mercedes practically invented the factory-built high-performance luxury SUV in 1999 when it stuffed a 5.4-liter V-8 into its ML-class ute and christened the ML55 AMG. That vehicle’s stats and figures—342 horsepower, 376 lb-ft of torque, 60 mph in the mid-sixes—seem quaint two decades later. But at the time, the company was able to call it the fastest ute in the world. With more than half of Mercedes-AMG’s sales today being utility vehicles, it makes sense for the performance sub-brand to keep pushing its SUV bar ever higher. The redesigned 2021 GLE63 S is the latest to faithfully adhere to that mega-horsepower tradition.
Swallowing up to 18.9 psi of boost, the GLE63 S’s twin-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 produces 603 horsepower at 5750 rpm and 627 lb-ft of torque at 2500 rpm. That’s 26 more horses and 66 more lb-ft than the previous version’s twin-turbo 5.5-liter V-8. The GLE63’s 4.0-liter is also the first AMG V-8 to get Benz’s 48-volt EQ Boost hybrid system that mounts a motor-generator between the engine and the standard nine-speed automatic transmission.
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Along with powering the V-8’s accessories, including the electric air-conditioning compressor and electric water pump, the motor-generator can briefly kick in up to 21 horsepower and 184 pound-feet to reduce the engine’s lag and, in theory, improve its fuel economy. That extra boost is administered with silky refinement just off idle, during gear changes, and in a handful of other situations when the V-8 might pause while its turbos spool up. The additional electrons also make for one of the quickest and seamless engine stop-start systems we’ve experienced. But, let’s be clear: It does not increase the engine’s output. Although the system’s torque does occasionally overlap with the V-8’s, the motor’s boost never exceeds the engine’s max output.
The somewhat lazy calibration of the nine-speed transmission in the GLE63 S can be frustrating on challenging roads. Even in its most aggressive Race drive mode, the gearbox tends to upshift entering corners and is often caught napping in too high a ratio. Activating the nine-speed’s manual mode remedies this by allowing you to hold gears to the engine’s 7000-rpm rev limiter, but downshifts are still lazier than we’d like.
Performance and Grace
The GLE63 S storms out of corners with seemingly endless traction, thanks to a standard limited-slip rear differential and a rear-biased all-wheel-drive system that never sends more than half the engine’s torque to the front wheels. We’ve yet to strap our test gear to one, but AMG says the GLE63 S should do the 60-mph dash in a hasty 3.7 seconds. That’s the same figure BMW claims for its new 617-hp X5 M Competition.
Dynamic engine mounts, a first for an AMG SUV, stiffen automatically based on driving conditions. Their main benefit is in sharpening the GLE63 S’s responses and heightening the feedback from the chassis. Similarly, this AMG’s suspension firms up noticeably in its Sport, Sport+, or Race settings. The adaptive dampers tighten 25 percent in Sport and another 40 percent in Sport+ and Race. But an overriding sense of safe understeer at the limit is always present.
AMG has also fitted its 48-volt Active Ride Control anti-roll system, which helps keep body roll tightly in check in the more aggressive settings. Even on its optional 22-inch wheels (21s are standard), the GLE63 S deftly soaks up midcorner bumps and undulations without feeling brittle. Ride quality is almost too plush in the Comfort setting, though. Overall, AMG’s suspension setup can drop the GLE63 S 0.4 inch above 75 mph to reduce drag or raise it 2.2 inches in the Trail and Sand modes to increase ground clearance.
Hitting the Mark
The 2021 GLE63 S will carry a sizeable base price of $114,945 when it goes on sale this summer. It should be easy to spot with its AMG flair, including vertical louvers in its grille, an aggressive front bumper with large black air intakes, flared wheel arches, and two large rectangular exhaust pipes poking out through its rear diffuser. If you want a racier, if funky, look and less cargo space, a GLE63 S coupe version will be offered by the end of the year.
Inside either model, you’ll find a fat, three-spoke sports steering wheel with aluminum paddle shifters, as well as standard heated, ventilated, and thickly bolstered AMG sports seats covered in nappa leather. A blind-spot assistant also is included, but Mercedes still makes you pay more for most of its other driver-assistance technologies.
Two decades after AMG released its first high-performance luxury SUV, many enthusiasts (including us at times) still struggle to see the appeal of monster-engined tanks such as the GLE63 S. Yet, the trough of willing buyers continues to grow for such vehicles. As evidence, please see the numerous copycats that have entered the fold, from Aston Martin to BMW to Lamborghini. With the new GLE63 S, Mercedes-AMG’s offers exactly the overabundance of power, performance, and refinement that its customers have come to expect from one of the progenitors of the segment.
Source: Reviews - aranddriver.com
