What's the news?
Mercedes-AMG is giving the GT Coupe a few tweaks and updates for 2019, to coincide with the arrival of its four-door cousin.
So, what's new? Well, there's new styling for a start, although the changes are minor and mostly confined to some small alterations to the grille and bumper. There is a new version though, called the GT R Pro.
Not surprisingly, this builds on the existing, raging-hot GT R version, with a 585hp version of AMG's mighty 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine. The Pro version gets a new front end, with a deeper bumper, bigger air intakes and a huge racing-style splitter, held in place by extra metal struts.
There are also louvres in the front wings to let high-pressure air out from inside the wheelarches, more aero elements on top of the rear wheels and a redesigned rear wing with a Gurney flap, which is sitting on milled aluminium brackets. There's also the inevitable massive diffuser.
The AMG GT R Pro gets a carbon pack as standard, which ensures that all the Pro's extra components are made from the lightest, strongest, material possible. There's also a lightweight body wrap (note; not heavy paint), which features a green and dark grey colour scheme with racing stripes.
Keeping that storming V8 engine under control is an uprated ceramic braking system, which features black-painted calipers mounted behind the lightweight AMG Performance five-double-spoke forged wheels, which are painted titanium grey.
The suspension is fully adjustable, from the spring rates to the damper settings, and that can be done with a simple twist-and-click system, rather than needing to break out the spanners. The front axle also gets an adjustable carbon-fibre torsion bar (the rear suspension makes do with a steel one). There are new Uniball spherical bearings for greater strength and adjustability, and they mean that toe-in and camber do not change even under high loads.
The electronically controlled dynamic engine and transmission mounts were also retuned to further increase the agility and deliver high-precision response and clear feedback.
There's a Track Pack available for the Pro, too, which includes a full steel roll cage (which helps to stiffen the whole structure of the car), four-point harnesses and a fire extinguisher.
On the electronics front, the GT R Pro gets all-digital instruments, with a 12.3-inch TFT screen ahead of the driver and a separate 10.25-inch display in the centre console for the infotainment system. The instruments can be switched from Classic" to "Sporty" or "Supersport" and in that last mode there's a gearchange prompt when you have the dual-clutch transmission in manual mode.
The standard, updated AMG GT model gets a lot of that too, along with special buttons on the central screen for chassis, stability control, exhaust and rear spoiler systems.
All AMG GT versions (including the Pro) get a new three-spoke, leather-wrapped AMG steering wheel, with its slightly flattened sides and touch-sensitive buttons on the spokes. It also gets the small rotary controller for the Dynamic Select system, integrated into the right-hand spoke, with a separate suspension damper override and stability control switch on the left.
There's also a data-logging and telemetry system built into the car's electronics, accessible through the infotainment screen. Called AMG Track Pace, it records 80 vehicle-specific sets of data (e.g. speed and acceleration) ten times every second. It'll flash up green or red depending on whether you're going slower or faster than you were on your last lap, and there are pre-loaded track maps for such iconic circuits as the Nürburgring or Spa-Francorchamps. You can also record your own maps for tracks that you visit regularly, if they're not already on the system.
Other changes to the broader AMG GT range are minor. There are new LED lights, a redesigned rear bumper with new exhaust pipes, new sill covers, new alloy wheel designs and the addition of a new parking assistant system.
Anything else?
There's also a tweak to the stability control, which like that of the C 63 saloon and coupe, now comes with different levels depending on your driving skill. So, while you get the usual Slippery, Comfort, Sport, Sport Plus, Race and Individual modes, there's also the new AMG Dynamics system laid over the top of those modes. Basically, AMG Dynamics is like having a built-in racing instructor, which works at three levels - Basic, Advanced, Pro and Master. These levels monitor your driving style and tweak the interventions of the car's various driver assistance systems to suit your mood and skills.