2019 Mercedes-AMG G63

[Aveyro]

 

Base Price (as Tested): $147,500 ($170,000)

Powertrain: Twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 | 577 horsepower, 627 pound-feet of torque | 9-speed automatic | all-wheel drive with lockable low-range

0-60 mph: 4.5-seconds

Top Speed: 149 mph

 

 

Mercedes-AMG is known for its bellicose hand-built engines, and the G63's character is rooted in 4.0-liter V-8 power plant. It's completely ridiculous in the best way—a close cousin lies under the hood of the Mercedes-AMG GT R—producing 577 horsepower and 627 pound-feet of torque. That sort of world-bending twist is pushed to all four wheels with a 40/60 power split between the front and rear axles, both of which feature locking differentials for off-road antics. But on pavement, the G63 hits 60 mph in just 4.5 seconds en route to a staggering top speed of 149 mph.

 

It's one thing to read those numbers off a spec sheet. It's quite another to slide behind the wheel and feel the 5,842-pound truck surge forward with perspective-altering speed. Right foot down, the 9-speed automatic gearbox drops as many gears as it can to keep up with the fast-revving twin-turbo V-8. Shifts resound with a low-pitched blat as the turbochargers only slightly muffle the V-8 cacophony. Nothing seems like it’d be able to stop the G63—not even its boxy, brick-like aerodynamics.

 

 

Hands on the leather-wrapped, beautifully-stitched steering wheel—another touch from AMG's sports cars—it's a riot to floor it and watch the world go from stationary to a blur of green, all while the cloistered interior cushions both driver and precious cargo. While other fathers are driving around hybrid crossovers, you're piloting a loud-and-proud bomber equipped with a big red button reading "NUKE."

 

And while you could live out your militaristic fantasies alone in that bank vault of a cabin, clicking the rifle-action locks and sinking into the heated, cooled, and massaging (yes, you can activate all three at once) front seats, the Mercedes-AMG G63 is also one of the most practical vehicles for your ever-growing family. Somehow the combination of speed, the crystal-clear Burmester sound system, interior seclusion, and chassis design combine to form a perfect rolling baby room. It’s just that this one has a massive three-pointed star stationed at the front instead of a Disney character.