“…we have taken the time that was necessary for development and testing to be able to offer a perfect product in the end. We aren’t entering a new segment to finish second.”Stefan Wendl, head of Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing
With the new race car, Mercedes-AMG GT4 is entering another GT racing category. Race series all over the world provide an attractive mix of demanding sprint races and legendary endurance races that allow for an increasing number of opportunities to compete with GT4 machinery.
As with the introduction of the SLS AMG GT3 and the Mercedes-AMG GT3, aspirations for the new race car are high. The Mercedes-AMG GT4 is entering the scene as a fully matured and proven competition car. It arrives to set new benchmarks in its class relating to safety, ergonomics, driveability, performance as well as service- and user-friendliness.
As Test and Development Drivers, Bernd Schneider, Thomas Jäger and Jan Seyffarth are largely contributing to the maturity of the Mercedes-AMG GT4. Like with the SLS AMG GT3 and the Mercedes-AMG GT3, the co-operation between the experienced drivers and the engineers from Affalterbach is an important element in the complex vehicle development process. The close interaction between the experts results into excellent driveability, a characteristic that is typical for the Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing cars.
The Mercedes-AMG GT4 is powered by the 4.0 litre V8 biturbo engine with direct fuel injection, known from the road cars from Affalterbach. The proven production technology of the front-mid engine allows for particularly long service intervals and also provides sufficient performance reserves for the future. Depending on the balance of performance, this results into an output of up to 510 hp and a maximum torque of over 440 lb-ft.
To achieve maximum performance at the race track, the Mercedes-AMG GT4 has been weight-optimised in every area. An intelligent mix of aluminium and carbon has been used for the chassis and the bodywork. The structure of the GT4 consists of a very light and extremely rigid aluminium spaceframe that can also be found in the Mercedes-AMG GT R and that has been honoured with the ‘Leichtbau Award 2017’, an innovation award from the German engineers’ association VDI. As a part of the AMG Lightweight Performance Strategy, further measures and optimisations of details contribute to the weight reduction. Thus, racing-specific bodywork parts such as the bonnet, the front apron or the front splitter have been made of a particularly lightweight composite material. In the production version of the GT R, carbon is already used as a material, for instance for the front wings and the torque tube between the engine and the gearbox.
The main areas of competition for the Mercdes-AMG GT4 The boom of the GT4 class was initiated in Europe and is reflected in a rapidly increasing number of opportunities for competition, be it with exclusive GT4 formats or as separate vehicle categories within various series or events. Currently, the following series can be considered as the most important ‘hunting grounds’ for the new Mercedes-AMG GT4: the IMSA Continental Tire Sportscar Challenge and the Pirelli World Challenge in the US, the Blancpain GT Series Asia in Asia and the Australian GT Trophy in Australia. In Germany, the VLN endurance racing championship and the Nürburgring 24-hours are the designated highlights for the new race car from Affalterbach. The GT4 European Series Northern Cup and the GT4 European Series Southern Cup are dedicated international GT4 series. The 24H Endurance Series also provides a large international platform for GT4 competition. Therefore, the new Mercedes-AMG GT4 is eligible to race at a large international platform where it can compete for victories and titles in the hands of the AMG Customer Racing Teams.
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