Mat’s flown over to Germany to get his hands on a very special car! For the first time, he’s got his hands on the Brabus Rocket GTS! It’s based on the Mercedes-AMG SL 63 e-Performance, and it’s one of the most impressive cars Brabus has ever produced! But what makes it so special? Let’s take a closer look… The exterior design is super special, and that’s because this is the first car where Brabus has re-engineered the exterior body! As a result, there are some similarities to the SL 63, but it largely looks like a completely different car. Up front, there’s a super aggressive bumper with huge air intakes, and an air intake in the centre of the bonnet. Along the side, there are 21” alloys at the front and 22” alloys at the rear, with both fitted with aero covers. Once we head towards the back, there are extended wheel arches, while at the back, there’s a ducktail spoiler, quad tailpipes, and a huge diffuser. It’s also worth noting that every single body panel on the car is made from carbon fibre, and there are only three exterior elements taken from the SL – the headlights, the tail lights, and the door handles! Everything else is bespoke for this car! On the inside, the overall layout of the cabin matches what you’ll find in the standard SL 63. That means it comes with the same infotainment screen layout and the same digital dial setup. However, once you look a bit closer, you’ll notice some subtle changes. Around almost every element, there’s bespoke trim and detailing – that means trim around the screen, the centre console, and even the door switches! There’s also leather throughout the entire cabin, along with a load of carbon fibre. Even the door mats are made from leather! It’s not just the exterior design that’s impressive. Once you look under the carbon fibre bonnet, you’ll find something really special. The Brabus team have also gone to town on the engine, which means the Rocket GTS is powered by a 4.5-litre twin-turbo V8, which, once combined with the electric motor, produces 1,000hp and an eye-watering 1,820Nm! That’s an increase of 184hp and 400Nm! There’s one catch, mind – the Rocket GTS has a price tag of £1,000,000!! So is it worth it? You’ll need to stick with Mat to see for yourself!
The most exclusive car I’ve EVER reviewed!
Carwow’s Mat Watson has been driving the Brabus Rocket GTS – an ultra-exclusive, highly customised Mercedes-AMG SL63. It has a totally new carbon fibre body, a more luxurious interior and more performance than the standard car.
This is the Brabus Rocket GTS, and it’s a bit like a Mercedes-AMG SL which has been turned up to 11. It has a totally bespoke body, the engine internals have been heavily modified, and the interior has been completely overhauled as well.
I had a go at maxing this car on the Autobahn, and I also took it to the Nurburgring to see if this £1 million monster actually gets any attention. I’ll also test the 0-60mph time, as well as do a brake test to see how well this car stops.
Brabus Rocket GTS review: design
Let’s start with the visual changes to the Brabus Rocket GTS, and there’s plenty to talk about. It shares three exterior parts with the standard Mercedes-AMG SL, and I’ll tell you what they are once I’ve shown you around the rest of this car.
For starters, every panel is made from carbon fibre, and this one has the weave exposed with a cool blue tint. The front bumper is totally bespoke and looks way more aggressive than the Mercedes SL.
It’s from the side that you see the biggest design change here, because it looks like no other car on the road – unless you’re familiar with the BMW Z3 Coupe. It has a taller roofline than an AMG-GT as well, which I found to be good for rear headroom.
These wheels are also unique to the GTS and are made entirely out of carbon fibre, measuring 21 inches at the front and 22 inches at the back for a more muscular stance. At the rear you have a ducktail spoiler in the bespoke tailgate.
So which bits of this car are carried over from the Mercedes SL? It’s just the front lights, taillights and the door mirrors. Brabus makes everything else in-house.
Brabus Rocket GTS review: engine and performance
As well as the unique bodywork, Brabus has also completely overhauled the engine in the GTS. It starts out in life as a Mercedes-AMG SL 63 E-Performance, which is already an 816hp hybrid which does 0-60mph in 2.9 seconds, but that’s just not crazy enough for Brabus.
It bored out the 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 to 4.5 litres, and there are also upgraded turbochargers and a sports exhaust. The result is 1,000hp and 1,820Nm of torque, but what does this mean for performance?
Well Brabus says the Rocket GTS will do 0-60mph in 2.6 seconds, 0.3 of a second quicker than an AMG SL63 E-Performance, but my specialist timing gear says otherwise.
I actually managed to do 0-60mph in just 2.5 seconds, so slightly quicker than Brabus claims. The top speed is electronically limited to 197mph, so my next stop was the autobahn to try and max it out.
But there was a problem – the traffic was so heavy that there was a 130km/h speed limit in force on every section I visited. That’s around 80mph, and the Brabus was barely breaking a sweat at that speed.
I did manage to get up to around 110mph on a derestricted section before the traffic built up again, and I can tell you that this thing pulls so hard that I’m in no doubt that it could touch 200mph given enough room.
Brabus Rocket GTS review: is it an attention grabber?
If you’ve just spent £1 million on a car as rare as this, chances are you want to be noticed. To find out if this car turns heads, I went straight to the Nurburgring.
There’s all sorts of exotica to be found here, but my Brabus seemed to fly a bit under the radar. Fearful of someone damaging that super-expensive carbon bodywork, I parked the Rocket in a nice, wide EV charging bay. It is a plug-in hybrid after all, even if it doesn’t have the right charge port for this station.
A few people gave the car a second look, but I couldn’t tell if those glances were admiring or if they were just confused as to why I’d left a charging cable laying under the car. As I was leaving, one man came running up to my window. Finally, I thought, someone’s noticed me. Well actually, he had just noticed that I left the charging flap open and was letting me know. Very courteous of him, but not what I was after.
Brabus Rocket GTS review: my final verdict
So then, what’s my final verdict on the Brabus Rocket GTS? Well I had a bit of a frustrating day with the car. I didn’t manage to do a top speed run, and it didn’t draw as much attention as I’d hoped.
But that’s not a reflection on the car, and it feels like a properly special thing to drive. Only 25 of these cars will be made, which is why I was so nervous about driving it, but I love the way it looks and the attention to detail is superb.
