Mercedes-AMG's Electric GT 53 4-Door Coupe Has ‘Authentic’ Inline-Six Sound

The Mercedes CLS had to die so that the AMG 4-Door GT Coupe could live, but the large five-door liftback with combustion engines is following the swoopy sedan into the car graveyard. In its place is a new model that carries the same confounding name but goes fully electric. After the second-generation model premiered in May with GT 55 and GT 63 flavors, the lineup is expanding to include an entry-level member: the GT 53.

But this is no ordinary base model. It still packs a healthy 536 horsepower and 590 pound-feet (800 Newton-meters) of torque from a pair of electric motors after ditching the three axial-flux motors of its more potent siblings. Mercedes estimates it’ll need 3.8 seconds to hit 60 mph (96 km/h) before topping out at an electronically capped 143 mph (230 km/h).

While the AMG GT 53 is predictably slower and less powerful, it does have an advantage over the GT 55 and GT 63. With a Mercedes-estimated WLTP range of 503 miles (809 kilometers), it goes farther than the other two members of the lineup. It’s also an absolute charging monster, supporting 600 kW and allowing a 10-to-80 percent charge in as little as 11 minutes. Alternatively, 10 minutes of charging can add up to 332 miles (534 kilometers) of range.

Numbers aside, there’s some simulated trickery involved. While the more powerful versions mimic a V8 soundtrack, the new GT 53 delivers inline-six noise, specifically the soundtrack of the old AMG E53 Coupe with its turbocharged 3.0-liter engine. We’re told it’s an “authentically reproduced combustion engine sound,” one that’s meant to deliver a “goosebump factor.”

There is some truth to the “authentic” part of the statement. While the car obviously doesn’t have a combustion engine, Mercedes-AMG recorded the noise made by an actual inline-six using no fewer than 16 microphones mounted inside and outside the car. More than 100 measurements were made with the car both in motion and stationary.

Accompanying the inline-six music are “immediately tangible” faux gear changes operated through the steering-wheel shift paddles. Hearing the engine sounds and going through the simulated gears is possible by turning on Sport+ mode, selectable alongside Comfort, Sport, Slippery, Eco, and Individual.

With the electric motors controlled independently, the GT 53 switches between rear- and all-wheel drive depending on the driving conditions. While the horsepower we mentioned earlier represents the peak output, it’s important to note that the continuous output of the two electric motors stands at a far lower 362 hp.

The second-generation Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupe hits dealers in the United States later this year in GT 55 flavor, before the GT 63 and this new GT 53 arrive in early 2027.