The car has monster grip, allowing me take some back-road corners as fast as anything I've driven. And tires never once screamed out in mercy. The car just stuck to the pavement and went around the corner. The steering in this car, while still having a bit of play on-center, is fast and direct. On varying pavement, the monster 19-inch tires require some work to keep the car running straight, as it wants to tramline. The brakes are outstanding, too.
The flat, or matte, paint coupled with the huge fender flares and the front splitter and rear diffuser, adds another level of bad-assness to the car.
Inside, the carbon fiber trim looks great and the red seatbelts match up nicely with the red contrasting stitching in the leather trim. I really like the Alcantara-clad, flat-bottomed steering wheel and the Alcantara seat inserts. All of this screams performance, and the car delivers exactly what is expected.
SENIOR MOTORSPORTS EDITOR MAC MORRISON: In 2003, after years of watching the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM to the rest of us) on TV, I attended a round of the racing series at Hockenheim. I have ever since then wished one of the participating German manufacturers (Audi, BMW or Mercedes AMG) would build a street car in the mold of the race-spec touring cars.
Ah, guten tag, Herr C63 AMG.
This is a very special car, as much because of its relative scarcity as its price tag or performance resume. AMG allegedly built somewhere around 800, most all of which are spoken for, with only, er, some undisclosed number of those coming the U.S. Despite my best efforts badgering my friends at Mercedes-Benz USA, the actual numbers remain an internal secret. Regardless, the odds of ever seeing more than one or two on the road (unless perhaps you live in Miami or Los Angeles) are fantastically low—which explains why it seems as though every other car you encounter while driving this Black Series carries a camera- (or cell phone-) wielding occupant snapping off pics like a manic automotive spy photographer.
Photographs do not necessarily reflect just how imposing this car is in the metal, and do a poor job of capturing the evil beauty of its matte-finish paint, named officially “designo Magno Alanite Grey,” which could double as the name of one of Spider-Man's nemeses.
The well-engineered hot-rod nature of the C63 Black Series inspired a friend of mine—a hard-core car guy—to comment, “This is like a German Mustang GT500,” and I knew what he meant immediately; it was not an insult. From the heavy controls to the angry intake and exhaust noises to the seat-deforming acceleration, you know always that you are in a Mercedes-built machine, but one that tangents violently away from its base model. This car has as much in common with a normal C-coupe, in terms of feel, feedback and performance, as a base-model Mustang does to the drag-strip melting Shelby model. Not much, in other words.
The engine and exhaust sounds do not overwhelm the experience unless you punch your right foot all the way through the floorboard; otherwise, the Black Series returns surprisingly low decibel readings more than appropriate and comfortable for cruising and conversing. The only thing that will potentially disrupt a relaxing drive—should you want to use this car for such a task in the first place—is the unforgiving ride on roads that feature significant expansion joints, frost heaves, cracks, etc.—this is a stiff suspension designed to kill corners, not coddle driver and passengers. As a result, and as we've noted on other Black Series offerings, the ride frequency over certain types of uneven highway is porpoise-like at times, exhibiting a fair amount of vertical choppiness that potentially becomes tiresome on long stretches. The track-tunable suspension is adjustable manually with tools, but I did not get into messing with the factory setup.
Throttle response is strong, my only complaint being at-times sluggish response from the automatic gearbox, even in manual mode. A true double-clutch unit is called for here, though this transmission is more than adequate for enthusiastic, aggressive driving on public roads. My gut tells me that it will disappoint on the track, however. I also wished for a driver's seat with adjustable side bolsters; while this one is racer-ish in its design, it's a little on the wide side for me.
As expected, turn-in is much, much improved over lesser Mercedes products, and as Roger notes, the suspension tuning and ultra-low profile tires provide so much cornering grip that the only way you are likely to ever hear much tire shrieking is by way of power oversteer or burnouts . . . in which case, really, you're just going to hear engine noise.
Taller drivers—I'm 6'-1”—will find headroom at a premium, thanks to the large panoramic sunroof that required dropping the roof liner down to accommodate it. A few passengers were less than impressed with the passenger seat's lack of power adjustment (the driver's seat is power adjustable), and while AMG will say it went that route to save weight (perhaps the same thinking re: the non-adjustable side bolsters), I imagine more than a few buyers (and myself) would trade the marginal weight gain for the real-world convenience. This is not an actual DTM car, after all.
The package provides an overall fun experience—both behind the wheel and simply as you stand around to admire the bodywork. This is a critical aspect, because despite its loud bark and 510 hp, the C63's raw straight-line speed impresses but does not overwhelm. Zero-to-60 comes up in about four seconds, with the quarter-mile falling into the 12-second range. Both figures are rock solid, certainly, but you need not spend six figures to buy that sort of drag-strip performance.
However, there is a lot more at play here than raw numbers . . . and plenty of wide-eyed people along my drive route have the photos to prove it. I think it's pretty damn cool that they didn't even need travel to Hockenheim or the Norisring et. al. to snap them.
ROAD TEST EDITOR JONATHAN WONG: After a weekend with this wicked-looking 2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Black Series coupe, I'm a buyer—that is if I happen to win the lotto and can find one. I've gone on record proclaiming my enthusiasm for the C63 AMG in sedan form and I'm going to do it again here.
The wide, composite body panels are menacing and the flat paint job only helps complete the look. No giant spoiler is needed here, but the large front air dam looks imposing coming at you like it wants to beat you up and take your lunch money. So it's safe to say that I like the DTM race-car looks.
Then there's the 6.2-liter naturally aspirated V8 that also sees duty now in the SLS AMG instead of the turbocharged V8 that AMG has been installing in other products like the E63 and S63. Throttle response is magnificent and there's just something about the all-motor rumble. Mac mentions that the seven-speed automatic gearbox is slow to response at times, which is true, but it does the job well-enough. The dual-clutch from the SLS AMG would no doubt be better—or a manual, but that's never going to happen.
Yes, the suspension is stiff and does hop around some over larger ruts but I didn't think ride quality was unbearable even on these wide, high-performance 19-inch tires. It's far from it in my opinion, and I would happily drive this around on a daily basis. Toss this thing into a corner, however, and you'll be experiencing more grip than you'll ever need on the street; and it handles side-to-side weight shifts confidently. Kill stability aids and you can rotate the rear around corners yourself easier with the help of the throttle. In the end, it's all a whole lot of fun that'll have you staying out even later at night to bomb around your favorite backroads.
Everything thing else from a performance standpoint is great with grabby brakes and weighty, responsive steering.
The front bucket seats offer a lot of side support with very large bolsters that most likely would hamper a manual shifter, but they're fine and appreciated with an automatic to keep you locked down. The Alcantara on the sides of the steering wheel at the three- and nine-o'clock positions are nice, but it does get dirty quick on street cars. Our test car's wheel was already looking kind of nasty with some scum caked on from the oils and sweat from bare hands constantly handling it. In a race car where drivers normally wear gloves, that's not much of a problem.
It's a lot of money and there are a lot of other cars that you can buy for $107,000, but the exclusivity factor sure is nice and it's an entertaining drive. Even after thinking it over some more, yeah, I would buy one if I could.
2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Black Series Coupe
Base Price: $64,005
As-Tested Price: $107,575
Drivetrain: 6.2-liter V8; RWD, seven-speed automatic
Output: 510 hp @ 6,800 rpm, 457 lb-ft @ 5,200 rpm
Curb Weight: 3,700 lb (mfr est)
Fuel Economy (EPA/AW): 15/14.1 mpg
Options: P98 Black Series package including increased engine power (+59 hp, +14 lb-ft torque), adjustable coil-over suspension, wider suspension track (+1.5 inches front, +3.1 inches rear), forged 19-inch alloy wheels, rear limited slip differential, AMG compound braking system with larger rotors (+1.1 inches front and rear), red calipers, Black Series exterior styling, wider fenders (+1.1 inches front, +1.6 inches rear), composite front fenders, aluminum hood, front/rear fascia with air intakes/vents, front splitter, side skirts and rear diffuser in gloss black, deck lid badge, Black Series interior styling, black DINAMICA/MB-Tex with red contrast stitching, carbon fiber trim, AMG sport steering wheel, red seat belts, dashboard badge ($43,570).
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