Mercedes S63 and S65 AMG
Refreshed Mercedes Benz S63 and S65 AMG are revealed - still powerful, even more technology
Two of the more brutish supersaloons, the Mercedes S-class-based S63 and S65 AMG, have had a bit of an update.
The pair were revealed at the Shanghai motor show and slot in nicely with the brand’s revisions to the S-class limo. It’s typically German facelift stuff on the outside, though – tweaked lights, a pointier snout (the grille’s designed to be more arrow shaped), new mirrors and the addition of seemingly obligatory daytime running lights.
Both models also get a new sports exhaust, complete with chrome tailpipes, and new rear lights which pack in 52 LEDs.
Of course, there are more important numbers to be dealt with. The S63 is the saner of the pair, packing AMG’s familiar 6.2-litre V8 engine (present in the SL63 and new E63) with 518bhp and 465lb ft of torque. It shifts the two-ton saloon to 62mph in 4.6sec and onto its predictable 155mph electronic buffer. For the full-fat AMG experience you’ll be wanting the S65, though – its 604bhp and 737lb ft are firmly in hypercar territory. The 0-62mph time is shaved by two tenths of a second over the S63. Fuel consumption and carbon emissions have both been cut by around three per cent, too, although how much this impacts on potential owners is debatable…
Also new as standard is crosswind stablisation – the ESP system’s yaw-rate and lateral acceleration sensors minutely adjust wheel load distribution to compensate for crosswinds. Another tech addition is Torque Vectoring Brake, another ESP-based system, which applies brakes to the car’s inner rear wheel to make cornering that smidgen more precise.
Lots of tech to go with lots of power, then. And precitably you’ll need lots of money – no official prices have been announced, but expect to pay broadly similar amounts to the current cars. That reads as around £96K for the S63 AMG (£100K for long wheelbase) and close to £150K for the LWB-only S65 AMG. And if you want to tell the two apart, look to the wheels – the S63 gets 19in multispokes and the S65 20in titanium grey forged alloys. The cars launch in June.
