The Mercedes-AMG C63: Beer taste on a champagne budget? Actually, that’s being unkind, because the C63 has always been every inch a Mercedes.
But it’s also the car that proved that just because your wallet has plenty of depth, doesn’t mean you wouldn’t often prefer a good rib-eye over foie gras.
Meantime, the changing world has seen to it that the relative fuel consumption and tailpipe emissions of a twin-turbocharged V8 won’t cut it for much longer.
The vegans have spoken (although foie gras is probably off the menu there, too) and Mercedes-AMG has been listening.
The result is the C63 S E Performance which uses advanced (Formula 1-inspired, according to Mercedes) hybrid technology to deliver the same (or more) thrills as the ICE-powered C63.
Along the way there’s also a slew of chassis control technologies at work, all aimed at making this the hot-rod AMG for future decades.
But are the nay-sayers right? Will a four-cylinder ever replace a V8? And can a 2.0-litre hybrid ever produce the theatrical splendour of a large-capacity V8 grabbing huge lungfuls at 7000rpm?
Mercedes-Benz C 2024: 63 S E Performance Mhev
Engine Type | Turbo 4, 2.0L |
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Fuel Type | Premium Unleaded/Electric |
Fuel Efficiency | 6.1L/100km (combined) |
Seating | 5 |
Price From | $187,900 |
Safety Rating |
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Does it represent good value for the price? What features does it come with?
Typically, any C63 AMG is one-with-the-lot. So, no surprises then, to find a panoramic sunroof, head-up display, AMG-specific dashboard and interior fittings, heated and powered front seats, ambient lighting, full connectivity, wireless phone charging, augmented reality navigation and the race-track focussed 'Track Race Package' which includes the sportiest suspension and driveline settings as well as launch control. Twenty-inch alloy wheels are also standard fare.
The price of all this is $187,900, plus all on-road costs, the latter varying from state to state.
From there, you can go to town with the options list and Mercedes offers three main equipment packages.
There’s the 'Performance Ergonomics' pack at $6900 which gets you the multi-contoured AMG Performance seats and steering wheel, followed by the 'Interior Carbon' pack which, at $2600, adds some carbon-fibre embellishments to the interior, and finally the 'Carbon Aero' pack which amounts to a deeper front and rear spoiler, both in carbon-fibre at $9900.
Carbon-ceramic brakes will be available as an option some time down the track, but cars form the first batch (on sale now) don’t offer this at any price.
What’s missing? Not much. Cooled front seats would be nice.
Is there anything interesting about its design?
Yes, lots. In fact, you could argue this car is where AMG throws the playbook right out the window and starts again.
With its sheer level of complexity and high-tech approach to the way the car works and attempts to overcome environmental concerns, not to mention the weight penalty that comes with it, the end result was always going to be a head-scratcher.
But as well as the Einstein-spec driveline, the suspension is also tailorable with selectable drift mode, race mode (with race-start function) and computer-controlled rear axle geometry that makes this car the first C63 with rear-wheel steering.
A maximum of 2.5 degrees in the opposite direction to the front wheels is allowed at speeds below 100km/h and, above that speed, 0.7 per cent of turn angle in sympathy with the front wheels to help with high-speed lane changes.
The new C63 is also a bigger car than the outgoing model, thanks to a wider front track and 85mm extra in the overall length of the car, 10mm of which is contained within the wheelbase.
Visually, this C63 is closer to a standard C-Class than ever. Mercedes says that’s a deliberate move to take the model to the next marketing level. Even so, the C63 still gets a (discreet) bonnet scoop and electrically controlled panels in the front apron to control air flow.
Mercedes is claiming a strong technical link to its Formula 1 team this time around, too, notably in the way the electric turbocharger does its thing.
The engine of the C63, like previous models, subscribes to the one-technician-one-engine theory whereby each power unit is hand-built by a single person.
How practical is its space and tech inside?
One of the C63’s selling points over the years is that it has been just as practical as any other C-Class sedan in the Mercedes line-up. That stops here, mainly because the boot-space is now marginal rather than generous.
It’s all down to the space occupied by the battery-pack and other hybrid equipment which lives under the boot floor, raising the latter and reducing space by almost one third from the previous car.
Beyond that, however, it’s just as accommodating as any current C-Class which has now grown to be quite a substantial vehicle.
The driving position has enough adjustment for any body shape and the thick-trimmed steering wheel (with its two decks of buttons and switches) features Alcantara sections for great tactility. How clean those sections stay is another matter.
The all black interior makes for a bit of cave-like ambience, although the quality of the fit, finish and materials is top-shelf. Apart, that is, from the hard plastic lower door-trim sections.
Where some carmakers apparently try to make their menu-driven functions difficult to fathom, the C63 doesn’t seem to fall into that trap. Even so, Mercedes has elected to make the major functions including the drive modes accessible via specific knobs, dials and switches, making them easy to find and manipulate on the run. The standard head-up display is large, clear and works beautifully.
What are the key stats for its engine and transmission?
Pull up a comfy chair, because this gets pretty involved. The hybrid driveline is one of the more complex ones you’ll see, with lots of intricacies and some novel layouts to test your understanding of how stuff works.
For a start, the petrol engine this time around is not a booming V8, but a turbocharged four-cylinder. It’s mounted at the front and lies longitudinally.
AMG claims it’s the most powerful production four-cylinder in the world (it’s shared with the AMG A45 S) and with 350kW and 545Nm it really delivers. But that’s not all. The C63 S E Performance is also a plug-in hybrid. Which means, it has an electric motor which is part of the rear axle.
That’s fed by a 6.1kWh battery-pack which can also offer about 15km of electric-only running as well as recharge on the run by means of the car’s regenerative braking.
AMG claims the electric motor can contribute up to 150kW of power and 320Nm, but there’s a catch. The electric motor’s potential for continuous output is 70kW, while the 150kW peak is available only for 10 second bursts (although 10 seconds at full chat here will still see you in the next parish).
And here’s the even weirder part. If you add those peak petrol and electric numbers, you get a total of 500kW and 865Nm of torque. But, officially, AMG claims a total of 1020Nm of torque.
How’s that possible? Because the torque figure is an at-the-wheel number, calculated after the drive has gone through the two-speed transmission (which won’t shift to high gear until about 140km/h) of the electric motor and multiplied.
Most cars (and that includes ICE powered ones) display a similar degree of torque multiplication when tested this way, so the 1020Nm thing is a bit misleading. However, here is a car that is not lacking in the stomp department.
But here’s where it gets really involved. The front-mounted petrol engine can drive either the front axle or the rear axle or both via its nine-speed automatic transmission. The electric motor can do the same, with every combination of petrol/electric/FWD/RWD/AWD in between.
The demands of grip and traction will ultimately dictate what power unit drives what wheels and when but, typically, the electric motor will only drive the front axle in low-grip situations.
And there’s more. Instead of being exclusively exhaust-gas driven, the turbocharger on the C63 S E Performance is also initially electrically driven.
This means you don’t have to wait for the engine to build boost, and the turbocharger can be ready to go the instant you put your foot down. In theory.
It’s all extremely techy, and, frankly, a bit confronting, and it also adds weight. In fact, the car is now a 2.1-tonne proposition, which is definitely out there for a car based on a Benz C-Class. Welcome to the future. Maybe.
This level of complexity might also make some wonder why AMG didn’t just shovel the 460kW/950Nm, all-wheel-drive all-electric driveline from the EQE 53 into this car.
Maybe that’s next. Certainly, it’s difficult to see a terribly long C63 hybrid dynasty emerging in the face of ever-changing technology and Mercedes’ desire to be at the cutting edge of that.
What is its fuel consumption? What is its driving range?
There are two ways to look at the official combined fuel economy number of 6.1 litres per 100km for the new C63.
Either it’s a fairly unimpressive number for a modern hybrid, or it’s a sensational figure for something that can get to the legal limit from rest in under four seconds.
We tend to subscribe to the latter. And which ever way you cut the deck, 6.1 litres per 100km is a heck of a lot sharper than the 10.3 litres per 100km of the previous V8 C63.
Here's the rub, though. That 6.1 litres per 100km figure was recorded on the official test cycle which doesn’t always equate with performance cars, or the way their owners use them.
Get serious with the throttle pedal and start using all that the turbocharged petrol engine has to offer, and you won’t be seeing 6.1 on the trip computer.
At least with the 60 litre fuel tank, range will be a useful 900 or more kilometres if you can get near the claimed consumption. It’s also worth mentioning the C63 requires the more expensive 98 RON premium brew at the bowser.
Recharging the battery for silent getaways next morning will require one hour and 39 minutes to go from completely discharged to fully charged, while the friendlier (to the battery) metric of 10 per cent to 80 per cent charged takes an hour and nine minutes. Charging is via a normal household wall socket or an optional Mercedes-supplied wall-box.
What's it like to drive?
A quick look at the spec sheet should be enough to tell you that this car has all the performance we’ve come to expect from a C63. And then some.
Which means the big question deals with what it sounds like. While the AMG engineers could have produced a synthetic V8 soundtrack, there’s a view at AMG HQ that that would be an illusion too far.
No, they say, it’s a four-cylinder car and should sound like one. So it does, but in a good way. The exhaust note is augmented through the stereo and via speakers under the car but what you’re hearing is the actual sound of the zingy, zangy little turbo-motor.
You’ll still elicit a pop, bang and brrrrr on full-bore upshifts if you choose the right mode and drive aggressively enough, but overall, the C63 displays a new-found civility that is hard not to appreciate.
The other big improvement wrought this time around is in the ride quality department. Frankly, this is the first C63 in which we could live with the ride.
More than that, the suspension copes effortlessly with anything the road throws at it and the whole demeanour is relaxed and controlled. Just like the C63 probably always should have been.
The ride is best on Comfort, but even on Sport or Sport+ where you can feel the adaptive dampers sharpening their act, the overall ride remains composed and nicely damped.
The steering is a delight, too, and you can feel the steerable rear axle working with you rather than forcing you to second guess what its next input might be.
The steering ratio is fast enough to be sporting, yet the feedback and weight is also spot on. This combination of steering response and ride control is surely one of the reasons the car hides its 2166kg so convincingly.
Warranty & Safety Rating
What safety equipment is fitted? What safety rating?
As a world leader of automotive safety for many decades, you don’t expect anything but the best from Mercedes-Benz. Fair to say, then, you won’t be disappointed here.
The full suite of driver aids including active cruise-control, active lane-keeping, traffic-sign recognition, 360-dgeree camera system, pre-safe accident anticipation and adaptive headlights are just some of the features designed to keep the car, its occupants and everybody else safe. There’s also blind-spot monitoring and rear cross-traffic alert.
You’ll also find eight airbags including side curtain airbags, a knee airbag for the driver and a centre airbag to prevent head clashes in side-impact shunts.
The C-Class has been crash tested by Euro NCAP and achieved the full five stars, but the C63 has not been individually tested, nor does Mercedes-AMG have any intention of doing so in Australia.
What warranty is offered? What are its service intervals? What are its running costs?
Mercedes covers the new C63 S E Performance with the same five-year, unlimited-kilometre warranty that applies to the rest of its passenger car range. The exception to this is the C63’s battery which is covered for six years or 100,000km, whichever comes first.
Service intervals are every 12 months or 20,000km, and fixed price servicing will be offered at $7085 for the first five years of ownership.
Verdict
Fundamentally, AMG has been forced to play the enviro game this time around. And while the C63 S E Performance certainly produces the numbers, there will be plenty of people who will lament the fact that their favourite car brand has turned its back on the hot-rod ethos of a big engine in a little car. You know, the very thing that made the successive generations of C63s such cult heroes. Of course, it’s not that simple.
Looking only at the data, it’s possible to see advancement in many areas here, but even through the prism of a feel-good performance car, the new C63 definitely makes the grade. It may have lost a little of the blood and guts and the aural theatre that made the original franchise such a successful one, but those omissions have been replaced by something decidedly different, but something just as good, rather than simply papered over by technology.
Explaining the new car to existing buyers will not, one suspects, be an easy sell. Especially when those cashed-up traditional C63 buyers have proven themselves to be rarely content with “We had no choice” as an answer. Even if it’s true.
This is a great example of a car that needs people to test drive it. Once they’ve had the chance to sample what it has to offer, there will be less of the rose-tinted yesterdays to hamper sales of what is a very resolved, extremely capable machine.
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