Not every Mercedes-AMG fan is happy about the half-sizing of the new C63’s engine, even though it has gained more muscle.
Much of the sports sedan’s appeal was in the emotive sound and feel of its 4.0l biturbo V8, and the idea of it being replaced by a 2.0l four-cylinder mill does not sit well with some, even though it is the world’s most powerful four-cylinder engine and is backed by an electric motor.
Has the new C63 S E Performance become too vanilla, or does it still deserve the AMG badge? We assembled the old and new C63 for a shootout at the Gerotek test circuit to settle the argument.
Standing outside and hearing them rev, it’s the old V8 that wins the day in terms of acoustic charisma — no surprise there. Its deep-timbred sound is a heavy metal rasp that elicits gooseflesh. In comparison, the cheekily sporty chortle of the four-cylinder car is like a pop-rock boy band.
Sitting in the cabin, the new C63 sounds a lot better than from the outside with the help of acoustic enhancers. Whatever your view may be of “fake” sound, it gives the car some hair on its chest, vocally speaking.
Power-wise the new C63 is an impressive effort. Packing outputs of 350kW and 545Nm, the 2.0l petrol turbo engine is the most powerful series-produced four-cylinder in the world. Adding to the mix is a 6.1kWh battery pack and an electric motor that sends power to the rear axle, providing a continuous output of 70kW and a peak output of 150kW for 10 seconds, boosting the new car’s outputs to a mighty 500kW and 1,020Nm of torque.
It’s a solid jump over the old V8’s 375kW and 700Nm, but the weight of the hybrid car’s electric motor, batteries and all-wheel drive system has seen mass increase from 1.7 tonnes to a portly 2.1 tonnes.
Even with the added weight, the new C63 solidly trounces its predecessor in acceleration. With all-wheel drive, the new C63 blasts off the line neat and quick, with not a chirp from the tyres. The rear-wheel drive C63 doesn’t have as much grip and develops a touch of wheelspin, especially on cold rubber, and sometimes bogs down as the traction control kicks in.
In our 0-100km/h test the new C63 posted 3.6 seconds versus the old car’s 4.6 seconds — the one second advantage translating into several car lengths. In overtaking acceleration the difference was slightly less pronounced as off-the-line grip didn’t come into play, but it was still a solid victory for the new car.
Those sportscar-like sprint times are easily repeatable using the simple launch control system, and the hybrid C63 feels instantly responsive whether blitzing off the line or overtaking long trucks on the open road. The turbocharger has an integrated electric motor that acts as an anti-lag system for improved boost pressure at lower revs.
As with the straight-line acceleration, the added mass does not diminish the sports sedan’s cornering ability. Its 2.1 tonnes are competently harnessed so the car adopts a mostly neutral feel through fast bends, with exceptional grip and minimal body roll.
In tight corners and under hard braking the weight is more evident, but rear-axle steering helps the car turn more crisply into corners.
The Merc’s 4Matic+ system doesn’t succumb to early, fun-spoiling understeer, as with all-wheel drive cars of old. Pushed to the traction limits on a handling track, the Benz is an entertaining drive and you can alternate between over- and understeer by varying throttle and steering interactions.
In all-wheel drive mode the tail can be playfully teased out without snapping, while the car can be set to a rear-wheel drive drift mode for drivers wishing to bring out their inner Gayton McKenzie. Best of both worlds.
What surprised me was how civilised the new C63 is with its fangs retracted. Driving in the suburbs, it’s smooth and refined and the ride isn’t jarring, especially with the AMG Ride Control set to comfort mode. It’s a luxury sedan you could use as a daily driver, only to haul out its inner demon from time to time when a hot hatch needs to be taught a lesson at the traffic lights.
The hi-tech cabin is the typical modern Mercedes fare, with a huge infotainment screen, an MBUX infotainment system with AMG- and hybrid-specific displays, ambient lighting and metallic accents.
The sports seats are a highlight, with grippy material and prominent side bolsters providing comfort and great cornering support.
I didn’t like the finicky haptic controls on the steering wheel which did not always react promptly to finger swipes. The audio volume at least had a manual controller as backup.
The cabin is spacious and lush, and has most of the gizmos one would expect for R2,488,889 — though that price carries a substantial premium over the R2,198,000 of its main rival, the BMW M3.
The new C63’s 280l boot is smaller than the 455l of a regular C-Class due to the battery pack and electric motor taking up space, but the rear seats flip down to create more room.
Though it’s a plug-in hybrid, it’s not really necessary to charge the C63 S E Performance at a wall socket or public charger, as the car regenerates sufficient battery power while driving — especially in its sports or track modes.
With the battery fully charged the car has an electric range of about 10km, which helped keep the fuel consumption down to a respectable 11.4l/100km in normal driving. During higher-adrenaline exploits it shot up to over 16l.
Has the new C63 sold its soul?
It has certainly lost some sonic charm, but those who miss the sound of the old V8 might find solace in the extra g-forces the newcomer generates — power corrupts, after all. It remains an immensely appealing sports sedan that blends luxury with supercar-like performance.
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