Men scurried out of roadside bars cold Coronas in one hand, using the other to shield their eyes from the afternoon sun, and stared at me, possibly wondering which cartel I belonged to. School kids with their mouths agape stopped on the pavements, waiting for me to throttle past them, leaving the speed-breakers and end-of-school-zone road signs behind. And they would break out in spontaneous applause even as I left them with a veil of dust, burnt rubber and an echoing guttural exhaust note.

The object of their admiration was the SLS AMG that I was driving. An over-the-top limited production supercar from Mercedes-AMG built to compete with the big boys in the super performance segment, the SLS was the first car to be completely designed and developed in-house by AMG - Merc's sports and performance division. This was back in March 2010 and I was driving the SLS along a section of the Panamericana highway in Mexico just outside the picturesque city of Puebla.

There was more than one reason why this was a historic setting. It is was here that the original Merc 300 SL won the 3rd Carrera Panamericana race in 1952. That car's timeless design, including its famous gull-wing doors, was the inspiration for the SLS AMG, which in turn was the inspiration for the AMG GT - the Merc performance subsidiary's second sports car made entirely in-house. The AMG GT was officially launched in September 2014 and worldwide deliveries started the next year. Like the SLS, the GT too is an unapologetically over-the-top sports car to look at. But it more than makes up in performance what it lacks in subtlety. It ticks off almost every check box in the automotive bucket list of today's young sports car buyers.

Inspired design

The SLS AMG was an overload on multiple senses, as is the AMG GT, despite missing the drama of the former's gull-wing doors. The GT's design is a two-door, two-seater coupe with regular doors. The AMG GT and its slightly more powerful twin GTS too take the 300 SL’s design and exaggerate it for modern sensibilities and safety legislation. While their aggressive, sporty design is very drool-worthy, they may not be the most practical on Indian roads. But, no buyer is going to weigh the pros and cons; logic can take a long walk.

The GTS’ almost yatch-like bonnet seemed unending and frightful when I was stuck in a gridlock in Chennai last month. The proximity sensors stayed in a permanent state of tizzy all through city traffic, easing up much after I pointed that long hood towards Pondicherry. But once that shapely bum left behind all the chaos, the AMG GT finally came into its own.

Multi-laned highways and the race track are its familiar territory, but I was enjoying the GTS' ride on the East Coast Road (ECR), which is barely a dual-carriageway and quite busy too in places. The very car that seemed too big in the city, falls right into you when you are driving at higher speeds and carving corners aggressively.

Only those who have seen the 300 SL in the flesh will identify the GTS' inspired similarities in the iconic design of the rear, the classic sporty roofline and the narrow, rear-biased greenhouse. Of course, on the road, even novices to the world of sports cars were clearly appreciating the GT's design. My test mule was also dressed in Merc's 'solarbeam' body paint (made famous by the SLS) and that yellow was naturally stirring up even more curiosity in a city known for its obsession with bling.

One Man One Engine

The AMG GTS is a front mid-engined, rear-wheel-drive sports car, with a 7-speed dual clutch transmission in transaxle configuration. So, its weight distribution is a perfect 47:53 front/ rear. Plus with a space frame chassis built mostly out of aluminium and more weight savings from a magnesium bonnet, the AMG GTS is extremely light - at about 1,540kgs - in relation to its size. It is built by manic engineers who are all racers themselves, so serious track capability is where the whole game starts. AMG's engines are special, not just because they are seriously capable mills compared to the relatively more docile units in other Mercedes cars, but also because each of them are hand assembled by one engineer who then signs the engine before it is lowered into the bonnet of the AMG model.

The GTS features the 4-litre AMG V8 Biturbo petrol engine. This 3,982cc engine generates 510hp of peak power and 650Nm of torque. The 0-100kmph run takes 3.8 seconds and its top speed is a governed 310kmph. The fireworks begin as soon as you start the engine. Punch the button on the centre console and the engine roars to life with a throaty growl that rattles the neighbourhood before it settles into a steady thrum. The exhaust note has been tuned to stay a deep, rumbly growl even during steady, light throttle, which turns into an angry growl at higher speeds. High rpm downshifts lead to an addictive crackle and pop in between all that growling - clearly there is no way you'll save on fuel if you are going to want to keep revving that engine.

Bottomline

But fuel can hardly afford to be your worry if you are considering the AMG GTS amongst the other options you have in the sports car category. There is no doubt though that you'll feel special being in the GT. The cabin is supremely plush, and though it feels very much like a Merc with some of the borrowed design elements like the circular aircon vents, every part feels better made and with even more premium materials. Of course predictably, there are a lot of carbon-fibre panels in the cabin, but they have been very tastefully integrated. Driving it takes some training and getting used to, especially if you truly want to explore the car's potential. Real world problems I faced include handling speed breakers and finding parking slots. The ride quality is stiff due to the speed dependent sports suspension.

The AMG GTS also has a more powerful sibling in the AMG GTR which sports the same engine that is tuned up to offer 75hp and 1000Nm of more power and torque respectively. But the AMG GTR is not currently offered for Indian buyers. The AMG GTS is priced at ₹2.4 crore. That tag makes it cheaper than some of the other serious super sports cars, though you can still get a Porsche for a little over half that price.

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