Wednesday, December 5, 2018

Next Generation Mercedes-AMG C63 Will Be A Hybrid

That's not a rumor, it's a fact.

Although the facelifted Mercedes-AMG C63 S was revealed at New York last week, there’s already information coming out regarding its successor. Speaking to CarAdvice, Mercedes-AMG CEO Tobias Moers acknowledged the BMW M3 fighter will undergo one particular change: it’ll become a hybrid. “The next-generation Mercedes-AMG C63 will be a hybrid – that’s now a given,” Moers said. Even its standard rear-wheel drive could be in doubt, meaning it could move to an all-wheel drive setup.

That’s not especially surprising, given BMW M’s move to AWD performance to better position itself against Audi Sport. Mercedes-AMG, therefore, will likely do the same. We would not be surprised, in fact, to see a pair of electric motors used to power the front wheels while the internal combustion engine would handle the next C63’s rear. This is mere speculation, of course, but the fact that Moers has already gone on record about a future generation performance car’s switch from pure internal combustion to hybrid is significant. Automakers typically keep this information under lock and key. One key area where AMG enthusiasts will almost certainly find alarming about the next C63 S is what will happen to its famed exhaust note?

Can a hybrid vehicle sound anywhere near as good as its pure gasoline-powered counterpart? Moers was quick to respond: “Obviously, if it runs electrical then there’s no AMG thunder. We are facing severe regulations, especially in Europe, but sound is very important for our customers, no doubt about that. However, I’m confident that we will find the right solution for that issue.” Meanwhile, the updated 2019 Mercedes-AMG C63 family (coupe, cabrio and sedan) retains the twin-turbo 4.0-liter V8 with 469 hp and 479 lb-ft of torque – the exact same output pre-refresh. The C63 S also sticks with the same 503 hp and 516 lb-ft.
Moers did point out that the 2019 C63 uses 25,000 new parts, so the upgrades are there. Output, however, was deemed sufficient already, and combined with the new nine-speed automatic, which replaces the old seven-speed gearbox, Moers adds the car now has “a perfect combination of power and output and gears.”

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