Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Review

Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Review

At full throttle when the tacho needle is nudging 7200rpm it鈥檚 hard to think of anything that sounds better than this thing, and that includes some of the world鈥檚 most exciting supercars. The four large AMG-badged pipes at the back produce one of the most glorious exhaust notes on the planet that you simply never tire of. That Holy Grail of combinations: big engine with a truck load of grunt in a small body, is already producing that 鈥榤ust have鈥?feeling, and at well under 160K (before on-road costs), the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG is all yours. That need to own becomes even more desperate when it suddenly dawns on you that AMG鈥檚 junior heavyweight also doubles as an entirely practical four-door family chariot, complete with a decent-sized boot and enough room for five adults. With a no-nonsense 358kW (if you chose the optional AMG Performance package - and you must) and a stomping 600Nm, the C 63 AMG might well be considered one of the world鈥檚 least expensive supercars - well almost. Dial up the 鈥楻S鈥?(that鈥檚 short for Race Start) and give the throttle a boot full and you鈥檒l go from 0-100km/h in 4.4 seconds.

You can thank the SLS AMG for that extra performance by way of a technology transfer that includes forged pistons and connecting rods, as well as a lightweight crankshaft from the gullwing supercar. All these inclusions help to lighten the load and reduce friction, allowing the naturally aspirated powerplant to redline at an unusually high 7250rpm. Who says you need turbos? Even without the AMG Performance package, the 6.3 litre V8 is still a bespoke piece of engineering and is said to be extremely robust. It also falls into the category of properly hand-built engines, under AMG鈥檚 philosophy of 鈥榦ne man, one engine鈥? You can see the engraved plaque on top of the engine cover - that鈥檚 the signature of the engineer who built this particular engine, or at least oversaw its build and assembly. Although it鈥檚 been around since 2005, it鈥檚 actually AMG鈥檚 most popular engine to date with more than 68,000 units built, and is the recipient of numerous 鈥榖est engine鈥?awards.

Equally rewarding as far as driveability goes is the seven-speed multi-clutch transmission. AMG calls it the AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT seven-speed sports transmission, and again, this is a superb piece of engineering that鈥檚 new to the 2012 C 63 model. Comfort mode (鈥楥鈥? is perfect for suburban duties or peak-hour madness. Standing starts are performed in second gear for silky smooth motion and there鈥檚 a gentle throttle response. Of course, even in C mode, the C 63 AMG can morph into a virtual DTM car, if you choose to drop the throttle in anger. It鈥檚 what makes this car so easy to live with on a day-to-day basis. Twist the small rotary dial next to the drive selector to 鈥楽鈥?and throttle response is instantly more rapid. The shift points change too now that the engine is allowed to rev higher in each gear ratio before shifting up. 鈥?or 鈥楳鈥?- that鈥檚 when up-shifts at full throttle happen in just 100 milliseconds and things go by in a blur, literally.

You can use the perfectly good paddle shifters, but once you鈥檙e in any of the Sport modes, there鈥檚 almost no point. This AMG MCT box will do it better than you, and that includes the downshifts. Several times I came into turns at high speed and under late braking, and was rewarded with some seriously quick double-declutching downshifts from sixth down to second without lifting a finger off the steering wheel. It鈥檚 one of the most addictive in-car processes you are likely to experience in anything short of a Ferrari 458 Italia, but for that kind of money you could buy a fleet of C 63 AMGs. It鈥檚 also one of the smoothest multi-clutch transmissions going, with none of the nervousness displayed by those used by several other European manufacturers. You鈥檒l notice the RS setting, which allows for full-traction off-the-line race starts for track days and such, but wasn鈥檛 tested during this strictly on-road evaluation.