Politically and environmentally correct, it isn’t. And we’re glad for that. For as much as we’re chafed that we’ll never see gas under three dollars per gallon again, we are encouraged that manufacturers still have tuning departments that are passionate about performance. This, in turn, inspires them to push the envelope further. So, of course we were ecstatic when Mercedes dropped off a 2009 C63 AMG sport sedan recently.
What is it?
A hot saloon or estate, in the Queen’s English, it is only available here in the colonies as a sedan. But no matter: It’s a hot five-seater capable of 0-60 times of 4.3 seconds and road-handling manners that will rival any of the cars in its competitive set.
What’s It Up Against?
You name it. Practically every car that winds up in any “top-five best” list for hot, high-performance sedans is a competitor. The Audi RS4, BMW M3 sedan, Cadillac CTS-V and Lexus IS-F all qualify as contenders. Do they match up? Does the C63 match up, for that matter?
Any Breakthroughs?
The AMG Speedshift Plus 7G-Tronic automatic transmission with paddle shift levers on the flat-bottomed AMG steering wheel offers a hands-on way to shift through the cogs with both mitts on the wheel. At the same time, it incorporates a rev-matching feature which powers up or down to the logical RPM for the gear selected.
Another breakthrough is AMG’s speed-sensitive sports steering. Recently seen in the newly introduced SL 63 and SL 65 roadsters, it also shows up in the C63, and enables quicker turns in tighter radius while giving more subtle feedback on wider radius turns.
How Does It Look?
Sleek. In Piano Black with chrome accents, the C63 looks like a Teutonic businessman ready for a day on the floor of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange. With discreet flash, the C63 is one sedan that holds back on braggadocio, instead letting its performance do the talking. That’s not to say it’s boring. It’s just more like the elder, more mature statesman of the group.
We are fans of this latest generation of C-Class body, with its new, crisp design. When equipped to wear the badge of the AMG division, you know that you are not just getting a standard, off-the-shelf sedan. Expect the usual roundup of front and rear custom fascia, the under-rear-bumper diffuser, and the top-of-the-decklid spoiler. Don’t forget the dual pair of chrome twin exhaust tips and the trick AMG 18-inch alloy five-spoke wheels.
And Inside?
Following the philosophy of talking softly and carrying a big stick, the C63 comes off as almost boring in its inside execution. There is black everywhere. A padded leather and plastic dashboard helps to frame the windshield, while the front seats offer the most generous bolstering we can ever remember doing seat time in. Sit in them, and you feel pretty much locked and loaded for the drive that lies ahead.
The smattering of bright work around the gauge binnacle, door panels, and stick shift surround don’t do much to dress up the interior. With a cockpit that shows more black leather than a dominatrix’s closet, it carries over the strictly business theme from the outside.
A seven-inch power-retractable monitor incorporates the harman/kardon Logic7 Surround-Sound system with GPS navigation, a 40-gb hard drive, and in-dash memory card reader holds sway over the top of the center stack. After finding the audio of your choice, you have the option of pushing a button to cause the screen to retract. Thinking that it’s just something else that might break, we would much prefer to have it visible all the time within a binnacle of its own. On the other hand, though, we find the h/k audio system one of the best available.
But Does It Go?
The C63’s 6.3-liter V8 is a work of art. And it is also the work of one pair of hands. Hand-built in the AMG works in Affalterbach, it prominently displays a build plate with the engine builder’s signature in the area over the intake manifold. The rest of the engine room is sublime, as is its performance.
About performance: Of the cars in the competitive set, the C63 AMG, with 451 horsepower and 443 lb-ft of torque, is the class of the field, and trumps its closest competitor, the Audi RS4 by 31 horses. Torque-wise, the C63 surpasses the Lexus IS-F, which is whipped handily by a 72 lb-ft advantage over its 371 lb-ft. The Cadillac CTS-V did offer a 400 hp / 395 lb-ft engine choice, but it is currently out of production. Check back in a few weeks for Leftlane’s review of the all-new 2009 Cadillac CTS-V.
Throttle up, and the power from the V8 pushes you back in the seat like a 757 at takeoff. The sound from under the power-bulged hood is throaty and deep. It’s power you can hear and feel. Speed is artificially limited to 155 mph.
The drivetrain throws down with the AMG Speedshift Plus 7G-Tronic with blipping function for immediate response. The side-to-side manual function of the shift lever is one we have never warmed to, and much rather prefer the aluminum paddle shift levers mounted on the steering wheel. Below the gear indicator is a preference selector, which allows choices in the C-comfort, S-sport, or M-manual modes to determine engine mapping for fast or comfortable gear changes. A distinctly faster shift occurs when the sport mode is selected over the comfort mode. The throttle blipping is basically rev matching—which we found to settle the car while downshifting before executing a challenging turn. It provides both an audible, and as Mercedes claims, emotionally satisfying experience at the wheel, especially while dicing through flat-graded turns, which are abundant in our South Florida test loop.
The C63’s wide track, coupled with the AMG speed-sensitive sports steering and multi-link front and rear suspension helped us to basically “will” the car wherever we wanted it to go. I guess this must be the emotional part that Mercedes speaks of, where the good stuff on board instills confidence so that the car and driver become one. Poetically hokey stuff for sure, but it really does feel as though the car becomes a part of you. After all the fun has been had, reality can be grasped at again by way of the cross-drilled and ventilated braking system which performed flawlessly once we had to apply the binders. And oh, how we hated to do that.
As we stated when starting this joint, it is a politically incorrect consumer of fossil fuels. The 17.4-gallon tank will hold enough go-juice to get 12-mpg city/19-mpg hwy. That, of course, is if your right foot behaves.
The amazing thing about the C63 AMG is that before we pulled out the Monroney window sticker to check on pricing, we were anticipating an as-tested price north of $72,000. We were too high. All this could be had for $66,160, transportation included.
If you like your speed un-tethered, order the AMG performance package. For an additional $3990 simoleans, your C63 will be outfitted with a stiffer suspension, limited-slip differential, compound brake rotors, Alcantara trim inside and a 6.3-liter V8 without the speed limiter. In the words of Spinal Tap’s Nigel Tufnell, this one goes to 11. Well, actually, 186 mph.
Why You Would Buy It
You need a five-place sedan that looks conservative but when pressed, goes like snot, and you can afford to laugh at the $4.50 per gallon signs at your local gas station.
Why You Wouldn’t
You can’t get your head around paying $66,000 and change for a C-Class. Conservative styling doesn’t fit with your idea of 450 horsepower.
Words and Photos by Mark Elias.
08/04, 3:05 PM
posted by:
xyunya
“It’s a hot five-seater” my a…, no better someone else’s. Not to be confused with political campaign but only Paris Hilton’s 5 seats could fit into this car
08/04, 3:10 PM
posted by:
t-ak-box
The back of those seats look odd. 72K that a lot of Frankfurter’s.
08/04, 3:49 PM
posted by:
mayer_ray_nagin
Looks like a cheap rendition of a Chrysler dash.
08/04, 4:04 PM
posted by:
Jon
This is significantly more car than the W203 C-class AMG. Some of the notable improvements include cross-drilled rotors on the rear wheels (they were solid in the last generation to save $$), and the incredible rpm-matching transmission.
Some negatives, in my opinion, are the drooping rear lenses which don’t seem to match the aggressive front clip. Also, the transplanted front end of the car has resulted in increased length over the regular C-cars… certainly noticeable in metro areas.
And some advice for those with families, unless you are very short, two rear-facing car seats will force the driver to move the seat unnaturally close to the wheel. The back seat is not large. If your kids are old enough to be in boosters, it works just fine.
08/04, 4:13 PM
posted by:
Jon
@mayer_ray… Valid comment, but you should hear this thing start in a parking garage!
08/04, 4:24 PM
posted by:
snoboardguy21
The interior looks surprisingly dull. Maybe it’s better in person, but my ‘94 3-series looks as good as that.
08/04, 5:04 PM
posted by:
dracolnyte
it is a 6.2 litre engine
08/04, 5:17 PM
posted by:
DeansterTJ
Mr. Mark Elias!!!!!!
“Goes like snot…” “In the words of Spinal Tap’s Nigel Tufnell, this one goes to 11. Well, actually, 186 mph.”
Kudos my man, now THIS is a review!!!!!! You have arrived!!!!!
08/04, 6:17 PM
posted by:
brassmonkey
I like how the engine size is printed on the face of the tach. How often do I need to know I have a 6.2L V8? Even better, I like how the speedo is huge and in the middle with the tach and other gauges on the sides a la Honda Accord.
08/04, 6:44 PM
posted by:
EEAlex
Ha agreed on the 5 seat my arse. My S550 doesn’t seat 5, never mind a C!!!!!
Personally, I still find the C interior very cheap looking, especially compared to a 3 series (don’t get me wrong, I’m not a BMW fan, because the 7 series interior is the same as the 3 and for what your paying you would think you’d get an upgraded interior than a 3 series…but 3 interior looks classy…rant sorry)
Looks like a fun weekend or “kid” car though.
08/04, 8:26 PM
posted by:
melias
DeansterTJ,
You skipped entirely over the part about being chafed! And damn, I wanted to mention that there was as much leather as in a certain racing official’s closet, but he is currently on a tear to sue anyone who defames him. Damn, again! But thanks for all the huzzzahs!!!
dracolnyte,
I know what the engine sizes in at, but M-B wants to call it a 6.3, let them enjoy it. It’s much the same way that my laptop’s hard drive is rated at 320gb. Really, though, it only has a capacity of 298gb! (where’s my other 22 gigabytes?)
Mark Elias
08/04, 8:46 PM
posted by:
jayjc08
I have a couple big issues with this car…
First of all, how the hell do they build nearly 18,000 of these by hand? They pump out 18,000 “hand crafted” 6.2’s from the AMG factory monthly?
Secondly, what’s up with those seats? Did they come out of a 70’s arcade game or something? I can’t imagine the frustration being in the rear seats, trying to look over those huge things… let alone having enough room back there.
Lastly, just basically the interior. I think a lot of you have picked up as well, it looks really cheap. Pretty much everything has this cheap, glaring sort of plastic. They weren’t very creative when thinking about the layout, either. However, I think the fore mention is due to Mercedes-Benz trying to be “different” from BMW, who everyone seems to be striving for.
Am I the only one who somewhat misses the round headlights Mercedes had going for a while? They looked really nice on some vehicles, and gave real character. Now, they look like Audi or BMW lights.
And hey, suprisingly I like the underdogs more. The Mercedes C class has been around for such a long time, and hasn’t really had any serious competition up till now, so they’ve let it slip. BMW’s new to the game, but Infiniti and everyone else is right behind them playing BMW’s tune in terms of design. The Lexus IS looks a little weird, but it’s a nice car in and out. But my personal favorite is the CTS. Real design language going on there, great quality, and so far has been extremely competitive. Also, the new engine in the CTS-V will be producing 550 horsepower, and 550 foot ibs of torque, the vehicle is equipped with magnetic suspension that reacts to driving conditions, longer wheelbase, etc.. Of course, the CTS is much larger, but also has shorter overhangs. If only the Cadillac lost about 600 ibs, around where the AMG C-class is.
08/04, 9:15 PM
posted by:
jayjc08
And yes, good job writing the article, Melias! I’m not sure if you put the pictures together, but I notice a lot of your articles don’t have a lot of rear pictures. Two rear quarter pictures would be good instead of the usual one or none.
08/04, 9:34 PM
posted by:
melias
Jayjc08,
Yes, the photos are mine, but you make a valid point. I will try to put more emphasis on the arse of the car, although personally, I like the other sides more!
Cheers,
Mark Elias
08/05, 8:00 PM
posted by:
jayjc08
Well, of course I do too, it’s just frustrating trying to get a 3D image of sorts in your mind what the vehicle looks like overall.
09/11, 9:03 AM
posted by:
darthbenz
BTW, about a week ago, I finally got rid of the ole’ Dinan Stage 2 M5. Although It was an 01 it only had 35k/miles on it which is like only 2 years or so of wear. It was a sad day indeed, as I loved that car. On a positive note, I replaced it with a 09 C63 Benz.
1st impressions: it freakin rocks!. Let me give you the Denis Miller / car mag editor breakdown.
First, It has the best seats on the planet. The amazingly soft and supple, yet grand canyon deep adjustable bolsters cradle your torso and ass like a mother seeing her newborn for the first time. The hides feel like they are from a pampered Kobe beef cow which was massaged in butter every day of its life. The 7 speed shifter with the throttle blip downshifts is amazing. Although it is technically an “automatic”, you would never know it. It works way better then the BMW SMG, which sucks BTW. The up shifts are really quick, yet freakishly smooth unlike the BMW tranny which snaps your neck on ever shift, not in a good way. In sport auto mode, as you stomp on the breaks, it automatically sequentially downshifts with perfect rev matching throttle blips. Each one sounding like a formula one car decelerating from the back straight of the Montreal speedway. Very quick, bang, bang, bang, each one producing a small little backfire and “Burble”, half expecting to see the tell tale flame shooting out the back of the 4 ginormous exhaust pipes. The exhaust note is pure evil. Go to youtube and search for c63 sound. You will understand what I mean. It barks when you start it, and the idle sounds like a 69 Dodge Hemi Roadrunner. Very throaty… Low end torque is really strong. You can easily spin the tires in 1-3 gears. The C63s 450ft lbs of torque at 2k/RPM feels as if you are counter rotating the very earth we stand on, but as you approach about 5k/min on the tach, it feels like a 1978 Porsche 911 turbo kicks in (you know the one I refer to…) and there is an unexpected rush of additional push and the rate of acceleration increases big time. With the exhaust and engine now screaming like it was born from a one night stand between a Nascar and a Ferrari 599GTB, the sudden additional rush is unlike I have felt before in the M5 or my viper. Going from 5k to 7500/rpms takes way less time than 2-5k/rpm It takes some getting used to. 7500rpm on the tach comes pretty quick. When I drive it hard and run it to redline 1st through 3rd, it gets about 6-8mpg. Overall I am averaging about 14mpg which isn’t too bad. I will definitely be getting another Christmas card from Opec this year. There was no evidence of global warming this year in Chicago as it was the coldest year on record since 1973 from January to current…
When you stomp the binders the 6 piston cross drilled, slotted breaks and huge PZERO tires directly challenge the very tensile strength of your optic nerves, with virtually no front end dive. It is as if you ran into a large block of ballistics gel.
Cornering is like riding on the Wizard at Great America. It just sticks without body roll. I haven’t fully explored the full handling capabilities yet with the ESP turned completely off. The sport mode will let you hang the back end out by about 30 degrees before pulling you back in off the ledge and guardrail. You can easily drift this car in 3rd gear. I opted out of the hardcore sport/track package which included 40% stiffer shocks and limited slip. It is “plenty” stiff as it is and given the roads around here, it would have reduced any of the passenger’s dental work to dust. I am however, a bit pissed that you could only get the limited slip with the super hard suspension. That is about my only nit along with the very flimsy thin wiperblades which look like they are from a 1972 toyota.
The interior is really good. the entertainment center really works. The voice activated everything works great. You can just say an address and it enters it into the nav system destination. The HK speakers aren’t bad, they are however a bit peaky. Huge base and treble, but seem to be missing a little in the midrange. I’ll live… The steering wheel has a flat bottom and about 15 buttons on the steering wheel. At low speeds it turns as easy as a 72 Cadillac Eldorado. At higher speeds it gets much firmer.
I drove the M3 alot and although I can see why the car mags like it at the track, around town it would not be nearly as fun. You have to floor it and wring that engine out to like 6-8500k to really start having fun. The low end torque, 283ft lbs, just does not cut it in normal, semi aggressive around town driving. The M3 sounds great and handles amazing. The interior of the M3 is a bit disappointing though. A lot of the materials they used felt like the plastic and the leather felt like elephant skin. There are few steering wheel buttons which mean you have to use the ridiculous Idrive for just about everything and take your eyes off the road to do it…
In the lastest road test on youtube comparing the M3 and the C63, although the M3 beat the C63 around the track by a few tenths, the look on the drivers face and sheer “giddiness” and outright laughing from the fun he is having while driving C63 vs. the more subdued response of the M3 says it all.
If you are going go racing alot, get the M3. I race in my Vipersrt 10 at Gingerman and Blackhawk here near chicago and used to have a Ferrari 550Maranello which I tracked alot. After owning a Ferrari, Viper and M5, I can honestly tell you that the c63 is one of the funnest cars I have ever driven. The best thing about it though is that unlike the Viper, the M5 and even the Ferrari, when you want to just cruise around or are not in the mood to drift, the C63 requires Zero effort to drive. It is a truely bi-polar car. You just throw into drive an go, knowing full well that Mr. Hyde is only a slight nudge of your big toe away.. The other cars always required effort. Rush hour sucked with the heaver clutches. II have always been a manual shift guy, but this tranny is the first I can say rocks..
That’s my two cents….
10/07, 2:59 PM
posted by:
pavlindrom
Those cents are huge, btw.
I like the car.
My 0.00000002 cents
11/11, 1:28 AM
posted by:
rlatimerc
just to put my 2 cents in…
jayjc08-
can you explain how bmw is “new to the game” when the 3 series has made car and drivers 10 best list for 17 straight years?
11/14, 5:13 AM
posted by:
nkay
Predictable interior, aweful exterior styling, terrible HUD and menu navigation and nasty looking chrome. Simply put, an aesthetic failure. Then it drives past you at full tilt…The orchestra is a combination of a growl and an african drum. Its loud and aggresive, yet clean and perfected. This car will shag your brains out in public any chance it gets.
12/19, 5:07 PM
posted by:
bradleygt
“Politically and environmentally correct, it isn’t. And we’re glad for that. For as much as we’re chafed that we’ll never see gas under three dollars per gallon again, we are encouraged that manufacturers still have tuning departments that are passionate about performance”
LOL! nice predictions on the gas prices there LLN!!!
to bad it took a damn recession for it to happen though