First Drive: Mercedes-AMG C63 S

A car with a superhero complex. Yes it does sound a bit dramatic but the Mercedes-Benz C-Class in it's AMG performance avatar has oodles of character and its not hidden behind a mask.

By P S Balakrishnan

1 mins read

Published on June 5, 2015

Highlights

A car with a superhero complex. Yes it does sound a bit dramatic but the Mercedes-Benz C-Class in it's AMG performance avatar has oodles of character and its not hidden behind a mask. But all the madness and oomph is right beneath the hood and built into its body. This is the Mercedes AMG C63! Yes they've dropped the suffix Benz from the name and that will be the signature style of all future AMG models. The older model was a legend by itself in the performance car segment and this new generation version has been beefed up to take the BMW M3 & M4 and the Audi RS5 head on. The gorgeous C-class design hasn't been tinkered with much but there is ample change to let you know it's an AMG! Reshaped front and rear bumpers, new side skirts, front AMG grille pattern. The C63's nose is longer than the regular sedan and the stance is quite aggressive but not over the top. At the rear, the sporty rear diffuser, chromed quad-exhaust tips, and an integrated trunk-lid spoiler blend well with the character. Globally the car is available in 2 variants, the C63 and the C63 S, the latter is the one lined up for India. The S version gets more performance dynamics and that's we are testing out on the legendary Portimao circuit. And one of the big reasons we were quite keen to get this car on the track was to check how the new biturbo 4 litre V8 performs, the same engine also powers the new AMG GT incidentally. The earlier naturally aspirated 6.2 litre V8 engine was quite a beast and the new C63 is equally potent and does look to offer a supercar experience and did manage to come quite close. The base AMG C63 delivers 476 horsepower and 650 nm of torque, while the India-bound C63 S puts out a 510 ponies and 700 Nm. And yes, we did experience all of that out on the challenging Portimao track. The V8 engine comes mated to multi-clutch, seven-speed automatic transmission which is quite precise on this rear wheel drive. Acceleration on the S model is slightly faster than the regular AMG C63 to reach 100 km per hour in just 4 seconds. We also drove the C63 out on the roads outside the track to get a true feel of the car in daily road conditions. The C63's Ride Control sport suspension with three-stage adjustable damping can be tuned for either ideal long-distance comfort or track-style feel. The speed-sensitive sport steering is lots of fun and the carbon ceramic disc brakes provides good stopping power. The ride quality is decent with the 'Comfort' mode offering the best soft ride but that doesn't say much as the smooth tarmac is hardly the kind of roads the car will see in India. Keeping you comfortable inside the beast the plush and luxurious interior of the C-class now a bit more in the style of a true AMG. Meaning the dash boasts of black, hand-crafted leather with crystal grey stitching, race style seats, flat-bottomed steering wheel and touches of carbon fibre. The AMG-exclusive analogue clock and the AMG Dynamic Select switch next to the touchpad are quite eye-catching. Most of the interiors can be customised depending on customer preferences but suffice to say it would be tough to go wrong with this beauty. Expect the C63 S to hit the Indian roads by the end of the year and it could be priced around Rs. 1.2 crore directly against the BMW M3. Now that will be a monstrous battle worth waiting for.