Mercedes – eventually – unveils the new AMG C 63 saloon.
[Not a valid template]Right about now, somebody in Stuttgart is receiving a massive bollocking. Leaking images of the company’s brand new Mercedes-AMG C 63 will no doubt have made several of the company board members distinctly unhappy bunnies. And with good reason, when we consider – now that Mercedes has ‘officially’ unveiled the images – what the new saloon has to offer.
Yes, good spot. Like the recently unveiled Mercedes AMG GT, the new sports saloon comes with a slight name change, the ‘Benz’ now being dropped and AMG being hoiked further forward. This wouldn’t be of particular interest were it not for the fact that the two models share the same 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 engine, which produces 476hp in the ‘standard’ C 63 and 510hp in the slightly more hair-raising ‘S’. Performance figures are therefore as brutal as you would expect, the S hitting 100kph from standstill in four seconds flat.
Power from the C 63 AMG left me in therapy for a few weeks after my first drive and Davison with slightly more grey hairs after an AMG Driving Academy run at Yas Marina. There is though slightly more to Mercedes’ axe-wielding psychopath than lunatic amounts of grunt (peak torque at 1750rpm in the S is an astonishing 516lb ft). The newboy for instance comes with a brand new aluminium and steel chassis structure at its base, three-stage adjustable dampers and a bespoke steering set-up further additions for improved performance. There’s also new brakes, a revised AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 7-speed transmission and updated four-link/multilink suspension front and rear. Power hits the tarmac via 19-inch wheels on the S model, one inch larger than its 476hp counterpart.
As well as being slightly wider than its predecessor, the new AMG C 63 also boasts new front and rear bumpers, an AMG grille and a new bonnet with power domes. Deeper, more contoured seats and recalibrated AMG dials are the highlights in the cabin.
