Panamera-Fighting Mercedes-AMG GT4 Spied

When Mercedes debuted a concept version of its four-door GT sports car at the fanciest auto show in the world, it stole the show.

Looking to steal sales way from the Porsche Panamera and BMW 6 Series Gran Coupe and Audi S7/RS7, the Mercedes-AMG GT4 has been spied testing near AMG’s testing facility in Germany. Production for the car was officially confirmed, but these spy photos tell us that it may be coming sooner than we thought.

The design of the concept was quite extreme, but judging from the spy photos, the design hasn’t been toned down too much. The sportback design seems to have carried over, but the concept’s huge tailpipe, super shiny wheels, and intricate headlights appear to have been replaced by more traditional designs. The large and protruding center-mounted exhaust has been replaced by a quad tailpipe setup, and, of course, the four-door has side mirrors, where the concept used cameras instead. This prototype is also wearing a boxy prosthetic to hide the back end’s true design.

ALSO SEE: Mercedes-AMG GT Concept is the Sexy 4-Door the Panamera Never Was

Although the Mercedes-AMG GT4, which hasn’t even been officially named yet, takes a lot of design cues and its name from the GT sports car, it will actually have more in common with its E-Class platform-mate.

Although there have been no production powertrain details confirmed, the concept car had a unique twin-turbo V8 hybrid setup with more than 800 horsepower. It’s unlikely that the production car will have this setup, at least right away, although Mercedes will need a hybrid version to compete with the Porsche Panamera Turbo S E-Hybrid. It will more than likely be powered by AMG’s twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 that resides in everything from the E63 AMG sedan, to the AMG GT sports car, and even the GLC63 crossover.

Expect a production version of this Mercedes-AMG GT4 four-door later this year or in early 2018.

Discuss this story on our Mercedes-Benz Forum