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AMG Performance — For the Water
Mercedes-AMG built its reputation creating high-performance luxury vehicles, and the brand’s latest offering certainly lives up to that rep. But unlike most AMG models, this one isn’t street legal, it isn’t drivable on roads, and it doesn’t even have wheels. Today Mercedes-AMG debuts one of the most powerful models to wear the AMG name: a Cigarette Racing 41’ Nighthawk AMG Black Series special-edition boat.
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AMG GT Black Series Inspiration
The Nighthawk is the 13th boat jointly developed through a partnership between Mercedes-AMG and Cigarette Racing, and it takes inspiration from another powerful AMG model — the Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series sports car.
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Multiple Motors
The Cigarette Racing 41’ Nighthawk AMG Black Series is powered by five (yes five) 4.6-liter V8 Mercury Racing 450R outboard motors, each producing 450 peak propshaft horsepower. All five motors are controlled with an advanced shadowing throttle system that allows them to be operated with only two levers.
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Extreme Performance
Total output for the five racing motors is an outrageous 2250 horsepower. Although there’s no published stat professing how quickly this boat will move to 60 mph, the top speed is in excess of 90 mph — extreme even for a specialized racing boat. In addition to the massive power, the Nighthawk features a unique twin-step hull design with a low center of gravity, as well as extensive use of carbon fiber on the deck and top to reduce overall weight. All these elements work in unison to increase speed as well as improve on-water ride and handling.
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Sea-Change Styling
The Nighthawk is easily spotted thanks to its Magma Beam orange and black exterior paint. Magma Beam orange is a new color exclusive to the AMG GT Black Series. The bow of the boat is swathed in small AMG logos in a repeating pattern, further enhancing the orange and black color scheme. Each of the motors carries the Magma Beam color, tying them together as an integral element of the overall design.
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Luxurious Interior
In keeping with non-waterborne Mercedes-AMG vehicles, the Nighthawk possesses extreme performance and — like any other AMG model — it has an amazingly luxurious interior. The color scheme is primarily gray and black, although designers also brought the bright exterior color into the cabin via orange accents. Two bench seats sit behind the helm, and each bench seats three. The center seat of the front bench is height adjustable so the captain commands an ideal seating position. These forward-facing seats put occupants front and center during spirited cruising.
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Lounge Space
The Cigarette Racing Nighthawk AMG Black Series has an L-shaped lounge at the stern as well as an additional U-shaped lounge at the bow. These casual seating areas allow this high-performance boat to transform into a comfortable, luxurious location for entertaining. An Audio Marine sound system and an advance lighting system add a couple of essential elements for successful on-water mingling.
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Living Quarters
A head (bathroom) can be found below deck, as well as a bed for two.
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High-Tech Helm
Operating a racing boat as sophisticated as the Nighthawk AMG Black Series requires a high-tech interface. The helm features three Garmin multifunction displays mounted in an instrument panel cut from a solid block of aluminum. The perimeter of the instrument panel features LED accent lighting for a distinctive look. The captain can control all boat operations through an advanced digital switching system that not only simplifies controls but reduces overall weight.
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The Inspiration — AMG GT Black Series
So, what kind of vehicle would one climb into after docking the Cigarette Racing 41’ Nighthawk AMG Black Series boat? An AMG GT Black Series sports car, of course. The inspiration for this extreme boat, the AMG GT Black Series resides at the top rung of the AMG high-performance vehicle ladder.
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AMG V8
At the heart of the AMG GT Black Series lurks a hand-built 4.0-liter biturbo V8 engine generating 720 horsepower and 590 lb-ft of torque — the most potent AMG V8 production engine ever. Power gets delivered to the rear wheels via an AMG Speedshift 7-speed dual-clutch gearbox. That massive power gets this sexy sports coupe to 60 mph in a mere 3.1 seconds and on to an eventual top speed of 202 mph.
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Extreme Performance — On Land
Sporting the most powerful AMG V8 engine ever offered, a 720-horsepower Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series completed a 12.8-mile loop of Germany’s legendary Nurburgring Nordschleife racing circuit in 6:43.616, making it the fastest production car in the world. This time beat the Lamborghini Aventador SVJ that recorded a time of 6:44.97 — a record the Italian supercar had held since July 2018. The Mercedes-AMG GT achieved a time of 6:48.047 for the 12.944-mile full lap — also a record.
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Aerodynamics
Granted, a 720-horsepower engine certainly contributes its fair share to a lap record, but it takes more than simply brute power to achieve a top time at the Nurburgring. This special AMG GT features a sophisticated aerodynamics setup that can be adjusted to capitalize on road, track and weather conditions. For the car’s record-breaking run last November, engineers extended the carbon fiber front splitter to its Race position, and also set the massive rear spoiler to its middle position to optimize downforce versus speed. Large air vents in the carbon fiber hood guide air out of the engine compartment for cooling as well as increased downforce.
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Carbon Fiber
Similar to the high-speed Cigarette Racing Nighthawk AMG Black Series, engineers incorporated many carbon fiber elements into the AMG GT Black Series car. The new hood is constructed of the high-tech, lightweight composite material, as well as the fenders, front splitter, rear hatch and large two-piece spoiler. The Black Series roof — also carbon fiber — contributes to a lower center of gravity.
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Tires
The AMG GT Black Series rides on Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R MO tires developed in partnership with the French tire manufacturer specifically for this top-tier sports car. The rubber gets fitted to 19-inch front / 20-inch rear AMG 10-spoke forged wheels with a matte black finish. AMG Ceramic high-performance composite brakes are also part of the setup to rein in the rocketlike speeds of the Black Series at the Nurburgring.
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Land-Based Vehicle Availability
Even though the 2021 Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series looks, sounds and performs like a race car, it is street legal and will be available for purchase this summer at a base price of $325,000. At this time there’s no word on the availability nor the price of the Cigarette Racing 41’ Nighthawk AMG Black Series boat.
