Mercedes-Benz realized that more and more people these days are finding their full-blown high-performance AMG models a bit unnecessarily rich in flavor. But they are also not ready yet to let go of the joys of AMG motoring. For these guys they created the 450 Series, the latest member of which is the Mercedes GLE 450 AMG, unveiled at Detroit Motor Show.

Mercedes GLE 450 AMG joins the other twin-turbo 3.0-liter V6-powered members of the 450 family including, so far, the SL and the C-Class. In the GLE Coupe that engine is tuned to make almost 370 horsepower and 520 Nm of torque, and it is hooked up to a 9-speed automatic transmission and AMG 4MATIC four-wheel-drive system.

Even styling-wise the Mercedes GLE 450 AMG is fairly similar to the GLE 63 AMG, only a bit less extravagant and with smaller wheels.The same applies to the interior where you find an abundance of leather, Alcantara and carbon fiber as well as AMG seats and steering wheel and sport instruments and pedals. You even get the AMG racing display with all the track goodies.

So come to think of it, Mercedes GLE 450 AMG delivers 80 percent of the fun you get from a full-on 63 AMG model, at a fraction of the cost, and it’s not as wasteful! This car does render the AMG big boy kind of pointless.