You Can Buy A Mercedes-AMG GT For The Price Of A New Mustang GT

The current state of Mercedes-Benz and its fixation on drive-thru-menu-sized screens and more ambient lighting than a Twitch streamer’s bedroom feels sad for multiple reasons. Firstly, because Mercedes-Benz has built so many great cars throughout its history. Machines like the 300SEL 6.3, 500E, and R129 SL. Secondly, because it wasn’t that long ago when Mercedes-Benz seemed to be so back with cars like the original AMG GT.

If you walked into a Mercedes-Benz showroom today to look at an AMG GT, you’d essentially be looking at the coupe equivalent of the SL boulevard-cruising cabriolet. Same all-wheel-drive system, same engine well over the front axle, same sort of interior setup. Things were extremely different a decade ago, because the last AMG GT was a dose of supercar DNA aimed directly at the Porsche 911.

While the current second-generation AMG GT doesn’t capture the magic of the original, used examples of the first-generation car are now getting seriously, tantalizingly cheap. If you’re really willing to shop around and potentially fly to the one you want, you can now pick one up for the price of a decently-equipped new Ford Mustang GT.

What Are We Looking At?

If you were a performance car sub-brand during the Great Recession, what would you do? Instead of adopting a face of modesty, AMG rolled up its sleeves and started developing its own supercar. The resulting SLS AMG was bewitching, a gullwing-doored, transaxle-equipped silver arrow with a properly exotic price tag. Bewitching stuff, but the sort of creation that would always have limited sales volume. The next target? The Porsche 911, and AMG already had a platform to build on.

The resulting AMG GT was nothing short of captivating. Riding on an upgraded, shortened version of the SLS architecture, it featured the marque’s new four-liter biturbo V8 just behind the front wheels, a seven-speed dual-clutch transaxle in the back, compelling balance, and a dash-to-axle ratio that got the people going. In the first-out-of-the-gates AMG GT S variant, this was a 503-horsepower luxury sports car that put the sports car bit first. We’re talking a zero-to-60 mph time of three seconds flat in Car And Driver testing, a top speed of 193 MPH, and 1.05 g on the skidpad. Plus, the magazine reported that going over the limits of adhesion was met with utter playfulness.

You have to switch to the more permissive sport-handling mode if you want to rouse the chassis, thereby revealing a willingness to take instruction from the back end in a benign and predictable manner. Switch the stability off, and it becomes a tire-smoking Visigoth. It’s a hugely exciting car, viscerally thrilling.

Sure, the AMG GT wasn’t quite as polished as the Porsche 911, but it had enormous character. Best of all, because it didn’t cost supercar money, it sold in far greater numbers than the SLS AMG and you can now pick one up for new V8 Mustang money. I’m not the first one to notice this—Kennan Rosen and Doug DeMuro noted a dip in AMG GT prices nearly a year ago—but prices have fallen even further since then, so let’s take a deeper dive into this tempting second-hand proposition.

How Much Are We Talking?

So wait, what is new Mustang GT money? Well, if you want roughly comparable equipment to an AMG GT, like leather and an unlocked V8 soundtrack, you’re looking at a GT Premium with the High equipment group and the active valved exhaust for $57,570. You can certainly find an early AMG GT for less, such as this 2016 example that sold on Cars & Bids in April. It does have a damage entry from 2022 on its Carfax, but 75,600 miles on the clock seems fair for a decade-old car, and this one comes with a few tasteful modifications. An Apple CarPlay box is a great way of getting modern phone connectivity on the factory infotainment screen, and the Renntech exhaust valve controller is a proper bit of kit from a reputable brand. The hammer price? A reasonable $51,000.

Don’t need the full 503-horsepower punch of an AMG GT S? Here’s a 456-horsepower 2017 AMG GT that sold on Cars & Bids in March. It uses basically the same four-liter V8 as its bigger brother, just in a lower state of tune, so a remap can unlock serious power. This particular example has a clean Carfax, 64,600 miles on the clock, and is finished in the proper color of Designo Cardinal Red. Sure, it’s on aftermarket wheels, H&R lowering springs, and has some black-wrapped accents that can be removed, but it also sold for a mere $51,050.

Don’t want to wait for an auction? Here’s another Cardinal Red 2017 AMG GT, except this one’s up for sale in Arizona rather than on an auction platform. It has 68,098 miles on the clock and a clean history report, although I’m not so sure about the spoiler on the back. Still, it doesn’t seem to have any real modifications, and for $57,000, it’s a lot of car for the money.

What Can Go Wrong On A Mercedes-AMG GT?

For the most part, the AMG GT is one of the more reliable secondhand luxury sports cars out there. The four-liter biturbo V8 is a proven unit used in many other cars and the body electronics are generally fairly good, although these cars are generally getting older, so fluid leaks are starting to appear in some early examples. It’s especially important to keep an eye on the active engine mounts on GT S models with the Dynamic Plus Package, as a set of replacements runs a whopping $2,308.99 from ECS Tuning.

Part of what makes the old AMG GT so much more special than the current one is that seven-speed dual-clutch transaxle, but unfortunately, Getrag didn’t quite nail it right out of the gate. Some transmission failures have been reported on 2016 models, and the cost of replacement is simply monumental. We’re talking north of $20,000, depending on labor rates. In that case, the best option is to either buy a 2017 or newer model, or find a 2016 that’s already had its gearbox replaced with a revised unit. Still, for the most part, the vast majority of owners report that their AMG GTs are simply cars. Do the scheduled maintenance, and they generally hold up.

Should You Buy A Mercedes-AMG GT For The Price Of A New Mustang GT?

You know what? Maybe. If you find one that checks out during a pre-purchase inspection and avoids the early transaxle issues through either production date or prior replacement, a first-generation AMG GT can offer serious thrills with reasonable cost of ownership. It’s well low on its depreciation curve now, and while a new Mustang GT with a warranty is a more sensible choice, this AMG is a more involving proposition.

Top graphic image: Cars & Bids