Mercedes C63 AMG: C-Class next to get AMG’s huge V8
Massively powerful Mercedes C63 AMG could blow BMW M3 and Audi RS4 away
While we’ve all been eagerly anticipating the impending scrap between BMW’s new M3 and the Audi RS4, the up-coming Mercedes C63 AMG has rather slipped under the radar. It will be unveiled at the Frankfurt show in September, and with a 6.2-litre V8 producing around 475bhp it should blow the doors off its German rivals.
AMG is determined that the C63 won’t be just a sophisticated dragster. The standard C-class is a solid dynamic base and cars like the E63 and the Black Series SLK and CLK show AMG's ambitions for its super-Mercs. The C63 will feature significant changes to the front axle and steering system, to improve feel and response, and there will be the option of a ‘Performance Package’, which will include a multi-plate limited-slip differential.
AMG acknowledges that the current 7-speed automatic gearbox has its limitations, most notably the lack of a downshift-smoothing throttle blip, and we were told the C63’s 'box will ‘combine the best of a torque-converter automatic and a DSG-type gearbox’. That should mean quicker gearshifts and more control.
The C63’s unapologetically aggressive dynamic set-up will be mirrored in its styling, which is said to be much more confident than the previously very subtle AMG products. In fact some within Mercedes are concerned that it’s a bit too outrageous.
At an estimated £55–58,000 the C63 AMG will cost slightly more than its home-grown rivals when it goes on sale in early '08.
