Photo: Daimler AG
When the first reports about the upcoming Mercedes-AMG GT (C190) started popping up, much of the outsiders' questions revolved around what type of powerplant it will have, especially since it was also announced that it will use an entirely new one.
Since then, we have found more and more details about the new engine, since the V8 will not be exclusive to the AMG GT, but different variants of it will be used on most other AMG models in the upcoming lineup.
Internally codenamed M178 for the AMG GT, it is known so far that it will have a displacement of just four liters, two twin-scroll turbochargers situated inside the cylinder lines – just like on the BMW S63 and the Audi 4.0 TFSI - and that it will offer over 500 hp and 700 Nm (516 lb ft) of torque.
Paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission that follows the transaxle principle used in the SLS AMG, the new V8 is said to be based on bonding two M133 four-cylinder engines from the “45 AMG” series together.
To make matters even more mysterious, it seems that around the new engine there is more intrigue to be found than in a spy novel about the Cold War, especially after AMG boss Tobias Moers recently said something rather odd about it.
Speaking with Automotive News about the new AMG GT sports car and about a prohibitive Chinese tax on engines with a displacement larger than four liters, Tobias told them that “the GT was developed in part with the new tax in mind,“ explaining that the new M178 and its subsequent variants has a displacement of just under four liters mainly because of the Chinese tax.
Sure, the new four-liter V8 is that big because it shares quite a few components with the bonkers M133, which has just under two-liters, but AMG could have easily squeezed more cylinder capacity out of it just because... well... it's what they are usually known to do.
In other words, the Chinese car market has become so powerful that it can even indirectly dictate the displacement of engines developed in Affalterbach. On that bombshell, the Mercedes-AMG GT (C190) is to be officially unveiled either at the end of August or the beginning of September, with the model to have its public debut in October, at the 2014 edition of the Paris Motor Show.
Internally codenamed M178 for the AMG GT, it is known so far that it will have a displacement of just four liters, two twin-scroll turbochargers situated inside the cylinder lines – just like on the BMW S63 and the Audi 4.0 TFSI - and that it will offer over 500 hp and 700 Nm (516 lb ft) of torque.
Paired with a seven-speed dual-clutch transmission that follows the transaxle principle used in the SLS AMG, the new V8 is said to be based on bonding two M133 four-cylinder engines from the “45 AMG” series together.
To make matters even more mysterious, it seems that around the new engine there is more intrigue to be found than in a spy novel about the Cold War, especially after AMG boss Tobias Moers recently said something rather odd about it.
Speaking with Automotive News about the new AMG GT sports car and about a prohibitive Chinese tax on engines with a displacement larger than four liters, Tobias told them that “the GT was developed in part with the new tax in mind,“ explaining that the new M178 and its subsequent variants has a displacement of just under four liters mainly because of the Chinese tax.
Sure, the new four-liter V8 is that big because it shares quite a few components with the bonkers M133, which has just under two-liters, but AMG could have easily squeezed more cylinder capacity out of it just because... well... it's what they are usually known to do.
In other words, the Chinese car market has become so powerful that it can even indirectly dictate the displacement of engines developed in Affalterbach. On that bombshell, the Mercedes-AMG GT (C190) is to be officially unveiled either at the end of August or the beginning of September, with the model to have its public debut in October, at the 2014 edition of the Paris Motor Show.
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