(Readers Reviews) Mercedes C63 AMG: An American Muscle Car made by the Germans #dreamcar

Wow.
I can’t believe it.
Who would’ve thought that I’d get to drive this?
To some people, this is their dream car, and I get to drive it?
Me? Some random Canadian college student?
What kind of man in this world is insane enough to let a college kid pilot an AMG Mercedes?
Dad. I love you, I’ll try my best not to wreck you car, please don’t kill me if I do.

How's the Performance?

Since it’s an AMG, why not start with the performance? The C63 is powered by a 6.2L V8. WOW. 6.2L. I’m pretty sure the earth’s mantle isn’t even powered by 6.2 liters. You also may be asking: “Why is there a 6.3L badge when the engine only displaces 6.2 litres?”. I don’t know, maybe it’s just another German car manufacturer being deceitful again…ahem

Just kidding, I’m not sure of the full story, but the reason for the 6.3L badge is because it pays tribute to a racing car they had back in the 60’s, it’s quite honourable! But dammit, I deserve that extra 0.1L if I were to drop almost $90,000 on a car.

Other than that, many positives! The 7-speed DCT makes gear changes snappy, the traction control keeps you out of the crash barriers on a wet day and the rear wheel drive lets you have some drifting fun in the corners. Honesty, the only problem I have with it is the power.

WHAAATTT? “That’s preposterous!” you may say. How dare I? “450bhp is plenty of horsepower!” you may say. This is true, but hear me out. Let’s not forget that the C63 is a heavy car. After adding a full tank of fuel, a driver and a passenger, the car can weigh in at almost 4,000 lbs. That being said, it wouldn’t be a bad idea for the C63 to hit the treadmill every once and a while.

On top of that, it’s clear that the C63 AMG has fallen victim to some detuning witchcraft. The SLS AMG of the same year has the same engine, but puts out almost 130 more horsepower more coming in with a figure of 583bhp. I can’t help but think that they held back on this car a little.

If you watch Top Gear (UK) as religiously as I do, you may remember they did a review of this car back in 2008. Our lord and saviour Jeremy Clarkson claimed it an “axe murderer with headlights” as he slid uncontrollably from corner to corner with the mighty V8 screaming the whole way. So you may be thinking that the car has too much power, maybe even that less power would be a better solution.

But I don’t think so. To be honest, I’m not sure if this car was meant to go around corners in the first place, It’s a big, heavy muscle car with a large V8 motor in it, normally these cars are only good at one thing: Straight lines. Problem is, I can’t help but feel that it’s not very good in that department either. Even after setting the launch control and matting the gas pedal to the floor, the car pulls hard, but I imagine that the sensation would be so much more if it had the same power as the SLS.. I still cant fathom it… Why couldn’t they just let all the horses loose with this engine like they did with the SLS? Ah Germany, you and your sneakiness.

Is it Comfortable?

What do I have to say about the comfort? I’ve gotta say, it’s very comfortable in here! And its so stable! Even going along a really bumpy road, I don’t feel a thing! It just feels like driving over pillows! This may be a beastly performance car, but you still have everything you’d need! I mean, you got sat nav, air-conditioning, bluetooth phone connectivity, heated seats for when your butt gets chilly, it’s perfect!

And it’s not even impractical either!

If you want to put your kids in the back, the front seats slide forward, and then return to where you left them after. In the trunk, there’s enough room for golf clubs, and enough room to pick up groceries on the way home.

In fact, I only have one issue with the comfort of this car, and it’s the seats…

Now i’m a pretty skinny guy, I’m about 5”8 and only weigh around 140 lbs. That being said, It’s safe to say that most of the male population is much larger than I am, and that brings a problem. Don’t get me wrong, the seats in the C63 are very comfortable… for me. They seem to cradle me like one of grandma’s hugs. But I can imagine that someone a bit “wider” than me could have a hard time being comfortable in these seats, as the side supports would be constantly digging into the driver’s sides the entire way. And since a this is the a North American market, where people tend to be a lot “larger” it makes me think that there are some C63 owners out there that aren’t sitting as comfortably as I am.

My verdict?

I LOVE this car, but out of all the problems it has, there is a big one, and it’s the same problem that I have with every big V8 muscle car that I’ve ever driven. It just feels like a big car.. and it is! It is heavy, and it’s pretty noticeable! It feels like I’m driving around in a big lazy cat, and if you do anything to provoke it, like step on it’s tail (gas pedal) it’ll just try to attack you! And in my opinion, it is a big problem, a lot of the big V8 cars these days, they have a sort of really brash, burly feel to them. It makes sense, these cars appeal to big, burly men, and sure, it’s fast in a straight line, but what happens when it comes to a corner?

This is the reason that I always call this car: The American Muscle car made by the Germans. Traditional American Muscle cars, as we know them: are sometimes heavy, have very large V8 motors, amazing sound, and prefer to move in a straight line. And as we’ve seen on Top Gear, this car doesn’t like to go round corners with the precision and finesse of a lightweight sports car. In fact it does quite the opposite. This is why I think that it is essentially an American Muscle car, which has has been blessed with the engineering and luxury benefits that the German auto maker is known for.

Which isn’t a bad thing at all! With my preference, I would’ve liked it more if it was a little better through the corners, but that’s just me.This is still an amazing car which is sure to put a huge smile on the face of anyone who sits in the driver seat and the car is the PERFECT combination of performance and luxury. You can put it in sport mode, go to the track or a drag strip for a day, smash it round all you want, and on the ride home, put it in comfort mode, sit back, relax and enjoy the ride, cause it’s a Mercedes! It’s what it does best! It really is the best of both worlds. And Mercedes, I applaud you for that. You have made a great car here, you really have.

Thanks guys! That’s my time,

Performance and Luxury

Automotive Students. Automotive Enthusiasts.

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