A fresh Mercedes-AMG GLE 63 S Coupe SUV and GLS SUV have been revealed, the first of a new generation of models that feature a brand-new high-performance V8 engine. Joining the recently updated Mercedes GLE range, the GLE 63 S Coupe will be available in the sleeker Coupé variant, and should cost from around £140,000.
Much of the GLE 63’s styling and tech upgrades have been brought over from the wider range, but the big news is the V8 engine. Even with a need to pass tough new Euro 7 emissions regulations, power and torque is on-par with the previous generation, producing 603bhp and 850Nm of torque.
To do this, the AMG’s V8 has undergone some pretty major technical changes, not least a controversial switch to a flat-plane crankshaft design. Despite the appreciative gains in efficiency and smoothness, though, these crankshafts often remove some of the character that’s fundamental to any AMG V-engined model – as was found with the first AMG with such a motor, the more experimental AMG GT Black Series.
However, the brand is confident that it has developed new technology for the engine and its subsidiary parts to ensure that the burbly V8 exhaust noise has been retained.
At 4.0 litres, its capacity is the same as before, but as well as the new crank, and a fresh firing order to go with it, the entire injection, intake and exhaust systems have been redesigned. There’s also a new camshaft on the intake side, a new compressor and housing for the turbos, plus a redesigned exhaust system that now features an exhaust-particulate filter on all markets, not just those in Europe.
