Mercedes-Benz S 65 AMG Coupe

While its electronic speedo suggests the big coupe, which is based around the S 65 AMG limousine, will hit 360km/h, the reality is that AMG has limited it to a more humble 250km/h, though handing over a wafer more cash will see that lifted to 300km/h.

The S 65 AMG Coupe is clearly a car that is bought with the heart, rather than the head, because it’s easily outpointed by its V8 stablemate, the S63 AMG Coupe, in most areas.

“There are AMG fans for whom our V12 biturbo engine is the measure of all things,” AMG chairman, Tobias Moers, insisted.

“For this clientele we have developed a unique car in the form of the S 65 AMG Coupe. From driving dynamics to comfort and equipment, our new twelve-cylinder coupe surpasses even the highest expectations.”

Well, almost. The engine’s architecture dates back, very clearly, to the C 215 model CL 65 from 2002. It has a three-valve cylinder head and indirect fuel injection, largely because its ultra-low volumes don’t justify the cost of swinging it onto a more modern platform or adopting it to take newer bits. Still, it now has start-stop and it’s now EU6 compliant.

Besides the two turbochargers, some of its technical highlights include an air-to-water intercooler, an aluminium crankcase, a forged alloy crankshaft and the adoption of a lithium-ion battery that replaces both the starter and the backup battery and saves 20kg.

The S 65 AMG Coupe will receive all of the good bits from the just-launched S 63 AMG Coupe, including the Magic Body Control and the Corner Tilt Function, both of which work by “seeing” the road in front of the car and adjusting the suspension to suit. Kind of like noise-cancelling headphone tech for suspensions.

The third-generation of Benz’s big V12 coupes since 2002, the S65 AMG Coupe is also the most economical, posting 11.9 litres/100 km to slash 2.4 litres/100 km from the C 216 CL 65’s NEDC figure.

It runs a strengthened version of the old AMG favourite transmission, the seven-speed automatic, and sports Plus One wheels and tyres over the 19-inch units in the S 63 AMG Coupe. The S 65 AMG Coupe rides on 255/40 R20 boots up front and 285/35 R20s at the overworked rear.

Those tyres girt new 20-inch wheels (8.5” at the front and 9.5” at the rear) with a unique 16-spoke design and focus on a central screw-on wheelnut cover that looks a lot like a racing centre-lock nut, but isn’t.

It gets a few specific design features, like chrome accents and exhaust tips, while the best of AMG’s Designo interior materials are pasted and stitched on everywhere.

It builds on the S 63 AMG Coupe’s interior package, which itself is built on the S-Class limousine. It features two 31.2 cm TFT displays side by side, one of which operates as a traditional instrument cluster and the other as a multi-media display screen. There’s also a head-up display, delivering information onto a 21 x 7 cm display.

It’s clearly a car for the head, though. The all-wheel drive version of the S 63 AMG Coupe is both faster and more economical, after all... and not to mention cheaper.