2015 Mercedes-AMG C63 Officially Revealed

Like the latest BMW M3, Mercedes will shift to forced induction to power its D-segment performance sedan. Unlike BMW, it retains all eight cylinders.

As you might already know because of the leaky Daimler mothership – a Mercedes website accidentally posted official specs yesterday – the W205 C63 will use a version of the same 4.0-liter biturbo V8 also thumping away underneath the new AMG-GT hood. Like that car, the new C63 will be available in two forms: normal and “S.” The regular model makes 469 hp and 479 lb-ft of torque while the hotter C63 S puts out 503 hp and 516 lb-ft of torque. The two cars will launch from 0-62 MPH in four seconds or 3.9 respectively. Publications clocked the old car at 3.9 seconds in the 0-60 sprint, which is slightly shorter than the 100 kilometer mark, but keep in mind that German cars are often underrated by their manufacturers with conservative acceleration times.

If you choose, the car can be outfitted with an upgraded exhaust system with an exhaust flap that opens according to the performance demands coming from the driver. There are three selectable modes associated with the upgrades breathing pipes called “comfort, sport + and race.” Needless to say, they operate as named by allowing increasingly aggressive volumes of hot gas out the back end.

Like the AMG-GT S, the C63 S gets dynamic engine mounts that are able to adjust their stiffness to better suit their current driving conditions. In low load situations, the mounts are softer and enhance the feeling of isolation from the chassis. Drive it hard and Mercedes says the car will tense those areas to further increase overall stiffness in the vehicle.

No surprise here, the only transmission being offered is a seven-speed AMG Speedshift automatic that, like the optional exhaust, is subject to drive modes that alter its shift characteristics through controlled efficiency, sport, sport + and race modes. But as you can probably guess, the adjustable bits don’t end there. Instead they continue to the suspension where there are three damping stages that allow you to range between comfortable driving and feeling every hairline fracture in the concrete.

Torque vectoring by braking is a wildly popular trend among new performance cars these days and you’ll be pleased to learn that Mercedes seems to view it with the same disdain as anyone who dealt with the maintenance bill after a serious track day on a car built by someone who feels otherwise. You see, pulsing the rear inside brake to rotate a car during hard cornering can alleviate push, but it can also play hell with your pads. Instead of Jerry-rigging torque vectoring into its cars, AMG uses a mechanical locking rear differential in the C63 and an electronic locking rear end on the C63 S that are both capable of reducing slip to the rear inside wheel without braking. That also means the C63 will be rear-wheel drive only. Oh and speaking of wheels, the C63 comes with 18-inch alloys that measure 245 in front and 265 in the rear while the C63 S gets the same width, but with a 19-inch diameter.

Sport seats are standard among the interior equipment options list, but there are also optionally available “performance” seats and the standard smattering of AMG badges in the gauge cluster, on the steering wheel and anywhere else the brand’s designers saw fit.

There is also a special “Edition 1” model being offered from launch. It comes with special wheels, red accents on the radiator grille, high-gloss black accents, black chrome exhaust tips and more. Of course that color scheme continues with the interior. If you’re early to the punch, there will also be an Edition 1 model sold from launch when they begin arriving in March.