IF THERE is one comparison that can be called out as a cliché in the motoring world, it’s the one where a car is compared to a famous German marque’s rear-engined, rear-drive coupe.

Calling a car a ‘Porsche 911 competitor’ instantly brings a huge weight of expectation – and more often than not, those expectations are not met.

Sublime steering, unflappable yet involving handling, extremely high levels of grip and a certain swagger are the entry points for a car to be rightly rated against Porsche’s coupe de pace.

Mercedes-AMG (not Mercedes-Benz) reckons it might just have the right weapon to bring to the fight a rear-drive, front-engined GT that packs 375kW from a twin-turbocharged V8 under the bonnet, to be exact.

With the legacy of the gullwing-doored SLS looming large over its more svelte shoulder, all that is left for the smaller, lighter, less expensive GT to do is take the crown that the 911 has worn for many years – the title of best two-door GT car on the planet.

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