Mercedes-AMG has been testing V8 CLE prototypes for years, teasing enthusiasts with spy shots that never quite promised a production car. Now the promise is real, and it’s far wilder than anyone expected. This is a limited-run, flat-plane-crank V8 monster with aero that belongs on a GT3 homologation special, not a luxury coupe.
The car will be the second entry in Mercedes’ Mythos series, following the PureSpeed SL. Just 30 units will be built. New images reveal a machine that has abandoned any pretense of grand-touring civility.
The Panamericana grille has been stretched to its most aggressive proportions yet, swallowing the entire bumper face down to a pronounced splitter. Canards jut from the corners, and massive intakes flank the headlights. The front fenders are pumped wide with functional vents reminiscent of a Porsche 911 GT3 RS or Ford Mustang GTD — serious track hardware grafted onto a car that shares a platform with the comparatively restrained CLE53.
Out back, the widebody rear fenders have a bolted-on, almost RWB-style flare that signals this is not just a styling exercise. A large rear wing sits on substantial metal arms in a swan-neck configuration, with what appears to be an adjustable angle and a separate center flap that could function as a DRS-style system. A proper diffuser and oversized exhaust outlets complete the picture.
Under the skin, the CLE Mythos is expected to carry AMG’s latest twin-turbocharged 4.0-liter V8 with a flat-plane crankshaft. Rumored output sits around 650 horsepower, significantly more than the AMG GT63’s cross-plane V8, though Mercedes has not confirmed specifics. Suspension revisions, upgraded brakes, and the probable deletion of rear seats all point to a car engineered to be driven hard, not admired in a collector’s garage.
The timing tells its own story. Mercedes spent the last several years loudly pivoting toward electrification, trimming its combustion lineup, and signaling that V8 engines were on borrowed time. Now the strategy has reversed.
AMG is leaning back into V8 power, and the CLE Mythos is the clearest signal yet of how far that pendulum has swung. This isn’t a farewell tour for the eight-cylinder. It’s a recommitment, wrapped in carbon fiber and downforce.
There’s also strong speculation that a standard CLE63, without the extreme aero and production cap, will eventually slot beneath the Mythos in the lineup. That would give Mercedes a proper two-door V8 competitor for the first time since the old C63 coupe disappeared, filling a gap that BMW’s M4 and Porsche’s 911 have exploited for years.
Mercedes first teased the car in January with a single vague sentence about “an even more uncompromising appearance.” The new images make that language look almost quaint. A debut by late summer seems likely.
Thirty cars, 650 horsepower, a flat-plane crank, and aero aggressive enough to embarrass a dedicated track car. Mercedes isn’t tiptoeing back to the V8. It’s kicking the door down.
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