All images courtesy of Mercedes-AMG.
To find the 5 fastest Mercedes-Benz cars in 2022, we’re exploring the vast AMG family and its diverse selection of high-performance machinery. Among them, you’ll find hybrid and petrol-only cars, coupés, sedans, roadsters—and one true hypercar.
Mercedes-Benz is promising genuinely powerful electric vehicles from the AMG EQ range for 2023, yet this year, all of the brand’s quickest cars have a combustion engine (and most of them are V8s too). Let’s see which 2022 Mercedes-Benz cars can get you from 0 to 60 and beyond in an astonishingly quick manner.
#1: Mercedes-AMG ONE – 2.6s
After a long, long wait all the way from the first announcement in 2017, the F1-hybrid-V6-powered AMG One finally broke cover in its production guise. If you don’t count the CLK GTR, the AMG One is the first hypercar to wear the three-pointed star, which is indeed a milestone for the company—considering their decades of breaking records, setting standards and dominating in all kinds of motorsports.
The AMG One famously brings an advanced 1049 horsepower hybrid system consisting of a 1.6-liter V6 lifted from the F1 programme coupled up with four electric motors: the MGU-K at the crankshaft, the MGU-H integrated with the turbocharger, and two powering the front axle.
The engine alone revs at 11,000 RPM, and it produces 566 horsepower, while the electric motors have 161, 121, and 161 horsepower each, respectively. The transmission of choice is a single clutch AMG Speedshift 8-speed automated manual chosen for handling the engine’s high rev limit as well as in weight saving efforts. A combination of low weight, aerodynamics, and sheer power means the AMG ONE takes approximately 2.6 seconds to sprint from 9 to 60 mph, while the top speed is 219 mph.
The AMG One hypercar is limited to 375 pieces worldwide and comes at a price of a cool $2.75 million. While it’s technically a 2023 car, the AMG One finds a place on our list as it made a dynamic debut at the 2022 Goodwood Festival of Speed and all examples have been already spoken for.
#2: Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E PERFORMANCE – 2.9s
Until the aforementioned hypercar finds its way to select customers, the fastest sprinting Mercedes-Benz money can buy is a hybrid variant of the flagship AMG GT four-door coupe. Originally built around the CLS platform, but with a number of tweaks to make it perform as close as the two-door stablemate, the AMG GT quickly established itself as a go-to family-friendly performance car from Affalterbach.
Expanding the lineup, Mercedes-AMG went both ways, introducing the sensible AMG GT 43 option, a beefier AMG GT 63S, as well as what eventually became the most powerful Mercedes-Benz ever produced (at least until the AMG One showed up to claim the title).
The Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance is a hybridized range topper, mating the 630-horsepower 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 with a 204-horsepower electric motor boosting the rear axle. The system produces a total of 831 horsepower and 1,033 lb-ft of torque distributed to both axles via AMG Speedshift MCT 9G transmission.
These impressive numbers translate to a 0-60 sprint in 2.9 seconds, and a top speed of 196 mph. The Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E Performance starts from €196,897 in Europe but is not available on the US market.
#3: Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series – 3.2s
AMG’s Black Series badge is exclusive to some genuinely special cars, and the latest addition to this noble family is the ultimate expression of the sportiest AMG coupé. The AMG GT has been around since 2014 and has since come in a number of trims, all sharing the 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 as a common denominator. In the Black Series variant though, the AMG GT was honed to perfection and priced accordingly at $325,000.
Let’s start with the obvious: the car got an all-new aerodynamic body kit, the body was lightened in numerous ways, including carbon fiber driveshaft, and the suspension was revised to cater to track driving. Finally, the powerhouse was tuned to produce 720 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque, sending it to rear wheels via a recalibrated 7-speed AMG Speedshift DCT transaxle.
This phenomenal coupé is undoubtedly crafted for performance, and in capable hands, it can do way more than just sprinting from 0 to 60 in 3.2 seconds. Its Nürburgring lap time is 6:43.616, a new record for an unmodified car, dethroning the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ. To those who are getting their hands on one of these and putting it on the track rather than preserving it as an investment piece, the AMG GT Black Series will offer nothing but thrills.
#4: Mercedes-AMG E 63 S 4MATIC+ – 3.4s
For a traditional power sedan experience, Mercedes-AMG offers the amped up E Class with pretty impressive performance. The most powerful E 63 S variant is offered both in sedan and wagon body styles, and both versions offer similar stats, courtesy of the handcrafted 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 in both.
The engine produces 604 horsepower and 520 lb-ft of torque sent to both axles via AMG Speedshift MCT 9-speed transmission. In sedan body style, the 0 to 60 sprint takes 3.4 seconds, whereas the wagon is one tenth of a second slower, at 3.5 seconds. Both cars have an electronically limited top speed of 155 mph.
As Mercedes-Benz recently announced, the E 63 S will sadly be the last V8-powered car in the AMG E Class. To back up the claim, Mercedes-AMG unveiled the Final Edition—limited to 999 pieces worldwide, both in sedan and wagon body styles.
Dropping the V8 marks the end of an era for sure, but at least the W213 generation E 63 S will go down in history as one of the greatest sports sedans ever built.
#5: Mercedes-AMG SL 63 4MATIC+ – 3.5s
A breath of fresh air into the fallen roadster dynasty, the newest R232 SL was fully developed by AMG—and judging by the first impressions, it looks like it’s set to change the course of the nameplate, which has definitely seen better days. The baseline 2022 Mercedes-AMG SL 43 will sport an e-turbocharged four-cylinder, but for this list of the top 5 fastest Mercedes cars of the year, we’re going up the range to the Mercedes-AMG SL 63 4MATIC+.
Powered by a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 producing 577 hp and 590 lb-ft of torque, the R232 SL 63 4MATIC+ is so far the range-topping Sport Leicht roadster. Thanks to a 9-speed AMG Speedshift MCT transmission and 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive, this SL can sprint from 0 to 60 mph in 3.5 seconds and can attain a top speed of 196 mph.
The Mercedes-AMG SL 63 4MATIC+ is set to start around $180,000, although the manufacturer is yet to confirm the suggested price for this brilliant rag top. It’s also worth noting that the States won’t get the more affordable SL 43 as of now, making the 469-horsepower SL 55 the only available alternative.
