If power were the only thing making cars go faster, then nobody would be happier than the performance carmakers. Nothing would help them sleep easier at night than having to focus on just one element of a car.
Sadly for them, it's not that simple. Besides, power is more than just a number - it's not just how much of it you have, it's also how it gets delivered. For instance, there's the low-rev grunt of turbocharged engines versus the high-rev whining of naturally aspirated engines. They both serve the same purpose but go about it in very different manners.
Then there's also the question of where does all that power go? Does it get sent to the front wheels, the ones in the rear or all four of them? And how about the gear box? Sure, they're all automatic these days, but do they use one clutch, two clutches, three, ten?
On paper, a drag race could not be more balanced if it tried. Thanks to a RENNtechECU upgrade, the Mercedes-AMG GT S now has 612 hp, which is just two more than the power output of the stock Lamborghini Hurácan LP610-4. However, apart from both having seven-speed dual clutch automatic transmissions, the similarities between the two end here.
The Affalterbach machine has a twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 engine which develops 522 hp at 6,250 rpm when stock, while the Italian uses a larger 5.2-liter naturally aspirated V10 engine that churns out its maximum power output 2,000 rpm higher.
It means the AMG should, in theory, have an advantage early on due to the lower rpm cap, only for the Lambo to throw its all-wheel-drive card and re-balance the whole battle once again. Yes, it is going to be a rolling start, but these cars can break traction at almost any speed. So, which way is this going? Only one way to find out.
"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie) Full profile
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