First Look: 2019 Mercedes-Benz CL65 AMG

First Look: 2019 Mercedes-Benz CL65 AMG

This isn't about a car; it's about an engine. Forget Vipers, Ferraris, Bentleys, all those rumbling turbodiesel-powered American trucks, and anything else you think has punch. The CL65's handbuilt, twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V-12 spanks them all, grunting out 738 pound-feet at just 3000 rpm. And that's only because Mercedes-Benz electronically limits it to that number; fully unleashed, it'd be good for a transmission-shredding 885 pound-feet worth. Its 604-horsepower rating almost gets lost in the blur. Aside from a muted burble at idle, there's little to give away the Russian weightlifter clean-and-jerk-like lunge that shoves you back in the Nappa leather seat. Squeeze the throttle at any rpm, and scenery blurs. Use the paddle-style buttons on the back of the steering wheel, and the modified five-speed automatic hustles between cogs about 35 percent quicker courtesy of AMG Speed Shift technology. This elegant locomotive's 3.8-second 0-to-60 time toasts that of Viper's and Vette's, all of which average in the low fours. The Ford GT is but a tenth quicker--and remember, the Mercedes is a 4500-pound hyper-luxury four-seater. Along with the driveline mods, AMG ups the game with larger brake discs and calipers, wheels, and tires. It also firms up the struts on the CL65's Active Body Control suspension, and further upgrades the CL's cabin. 180 grand might seem like a lot for an engine, but they throw one helluva nice car in with the deal.

The giant pillar-less window is trick and makes blind-spot checking easy. Visibility is great all around. 4,000 option, seems like a bargain when it's literally 2 percent of the price. It's an intimidating coupe, and people like to see it run. Some tried to goad me into dropping the hammer a few times over the night. The interior looks supremely upscale with the Designo leather. The quilted look always blows me away. Like the other AMGs, this has the active seats that hug you during cornering, which is a good deal if you're quite a bit skinnier than the seat. The massaging function is a little gimmicky; it's better than sitting in traffic without being massaged, but it won't actually heal your achin' back. Price doesn't even matter. You're looking at the Bentley Continental GT; maybe a BMW 6-series Gran Coupe and possibly a Roller. 150K for this beast. They also both loved the paint job, until I told them about the care.

But again, the person who buys this won't have to wash the bird crap off his car everyday; he certainly has someone to do that for him. EDITOR WES RAYNAL: I consider the weekend in the CL65 a success -- I didn't get a speeding ticket. With 621 hp on tap it would have been easy to get one. Simply put, it's a beast. The 6.0-liter twin-turbo V12's 621 hp -- a crazy amount of power -- is actually easy to live with, thanks to the ESP and traction control systems, and they work well. The thing is insane off the line and while I wouldn't exactly say active body control gives it finesse per se, it does help. This is probably as close to borrowing a Lear jet for the weekend as I'll get. For high-speed cruising, there's nothing better. The cabin is excellent; the seats adjustable enough to fit darn near anyone. It will embarrass base Porsche 911 owners with its speed, and coddle you like an S-class sedan, which is an interesting combo. ROAD TEST EDITOR JONATHAN WONG: Being able to say your car has a V12 engine is neat I must say.

60,200 get you in the CL65 compared to the CL63? There's the additional 85-hp (621 versus 536) and 148-lb-ft more torque (738 lb-ft versus 590 lb-ft). 7,300 AMG performance package that cuts the CL65's advantage to 58-hp and 74 lb-ft of torque. If you compare Mercedes' claimed performance numbers of the CL63 with performance package and the CL65, you'll see that both will hit 60 mph in 4.3 seconds, and both boast a top speed of 186 mph. On the transmission front, the CL65 uses a five-speed automatic, while the CL63 gets a seven-speed multiclutch gearbox. The extra gears and obviously smaller engine give the CL63 an EPA fuel economy rating of 15 mpg in the city and 22 mpg on the highway. 2,100 gas guzzler tax. Of course, consumers considering a CL65 AMG won't bat an eye at the extra couple of grand. Enough numbers stuff. How does this big boy drive?