Mercedes-AMG has pushed the limits of zero-emission performance with its GT XX concept, the forerunner of the brand’s first purely electric sports car. The futuristic four-door saloon has effectively driven the circumference of the Earth, without ever leaving southern Italy.
Over the course of just over a week, two prototypes of the GT XX circled the 7.8-mile Nardò test track in Puglia more than 3,000 times, racking up 40.075 kilometers or the equivalent of lapping the globe.
The record took seven days, 13 hours, and 24 minutes, with only brief pauses for recharging. Mercedes has christened the adventure “Around the World in Eight Days”, a nod to Jules Verne’s famous novel.
25 endurance records
But the project was more than an attention-grabbing stunt. Mercedes used the punishing test to showcase its next-generation AMG.EA platform, which will underpin the company’s upcoming high-performance electric cars.
Along the way, the GT XX concept claimed 25 endurance records, including the most significant distance covered by an EV in 24 hours. The car managed 5,479 kilometers in a single day, comfortably beating the previous mark of 3,961 kilometers set by China’s XPeng P7 earlier this summer.
Whether these skills will impress the target audience remains to be seen. Interest in battery-powered supercars remains weak, primarily due to dwindling residual values. AMG, however, strives to make technological advancements.
Prototype charger
At the heart of the GT XX lies an advanced electric drivetrain: three compact axial-flux motors producing more than 1,340 horsepower, paired with a 114 kWh oil-cooled battery designed in collaboration with Mercedes’ Formula 1 power unit division. The system operates at 800 volts and, crucially, can be recharged at a rapid rate.
On the Nardò oval, a prototype charger from Italian firm Alpitronic delivered up to 900 kW, enough to add roughly 400 kilometers of range in barely five minutes.
After each stop, the GT XX immediately surged back to 300 km/h – a speed that engineers determined was the most efficient balance between pace and charging.
The record runs demanded perfect organisation. Seventeen drivers, including F1 racer George Russell, rotated in two-hour stints, supported by more than 100 engineers, mechanics, and logistics staff.
Trackside conditions were brutal: more than 35 degrees in the shade, hotter still on the tarmac. Yet the cars held up, still separated by just 40 kilometers after more than 40,000 kilometers.
In the footsteps of the C111
Russell described the experience as unlike anything he had felt outside Formula 1. “The axial motors respond with the precision of an F1 car, but with an endurance I’ve only known in combustion engines,” he said. “This technology will change the driving experience, on the track and on the road.”
Markus Schäfer, Mercedes’ chief technology officer, was keen to set the record in historical context. In the 1970s and 1980s, the company established its reputation at Nardò with experimental machines, such as the C111, which demonstrated the potential of advanced gasoline and diesel engines.
“Now,” he said, “we are showing what’s possible with electric drive. Our goal is to redefine the limits of performance in the electric age.” As the GT XX is a concept, the passage at Nardò remains largely symbolic.
However, the interesting point is that high-performance electric cars will also be capable of traveling long distances with excellent efficiency. It’s the playbook of marathon drives across the continent in the spirit of Gran Turismo written all over again.
