Beefy 670 HP Mercedes-AMG C63 Breaks Cover at Goodwood Festival
Electrified AMG super sedan concept drops four cylinders, gains 200 HP.
Mercedes-AMG’s life changing next-generation C63 super saloon broke cover at the Goodwood Festival of Speed in England over the weekend. The car that many believe controversially drops its traditional biturbo V8 for hybrid-charged four-cylinder power, was teased in ‘concept’ form ahead of an imminent full production-spec reveal.
C63 Adds Mad Gas & Electric Boost to A45 4-Pot
Sporting a garish disguise paint job, the prototype is set apart from more mundane Mercedes C-Class kin. As one would expect it has an aggressive body kit, chunky AMG sports alloys framing drilled and ventilated disc brakes. Add those four fat signature AMG exhaust tips, that’s about where the familiarity ends. C63 will be the first AMG to gain a radical new hybrid drivetrain in place of the accepted and much loved biturbo V8 power the model has long and proudly benefited. The new one instead gets a wild new electrified turbo 2-litre M139 four-pot.
You will know the 412 HP and 369 lb.-ft rated gas fueled four-cylinder in non-electrified form from the Mercedes-AMG A 45 and its kin. That engine was however developed from the outset to be swung into a longitudinal position and accept hybrid electric boosting. Now, the petrol unit has been tuned up to 470 gas HP for the new C63. That not only matches the outgoung V8, but it comfortably makes it the most powerful four-cylinder engine ever to go into series production.
A 201 Horsepower Electric C63 Boost
Best of all, the M139 is now coupled at the tote with a 201 HP electric motor on the rear axle. This endows Mercedes-AMG’s new P3 drivetrain (above) with a total of 660 HP, or almost 200 horses more than the V8 it replaces. Torque is also 37 lb.-ft up on the outgoing V8 to now muster 553 lb.-ft. And all that in spite of a 50% reduction in swept capacity and cylinder count.
The C63’s M139 engine will additionally adopt a 48V integrated starter motor similar to the 20 HP and 184 lb.-ft unit employed in the turbo 3-litre straight-six-cylinder CLS 53 4Matic+. The Mercedes’ nine-speed torque-converter MCT Speedshift gearbox mounted unit will deliver an additional electric boost in the new C63. Albeit tuned to deliver significantly more power at a similar torque rating.
Lighter, Leaner, Meaner and Faster
The new AMG C63 will complete an all electrified four-cylinder Mercedes C-Class range. Besides fuel consumption, another significant new C63 AMG plus is 49 kg less weight over the front axle. The 160 kg M139 four-cylinder weighs considerably less than the current M177 V8, even with all its hybrid architecture.
The new power unit’s weight is also spread lower, for a much improved centre of gravity. And the all the dynamic advantages that will bring. Just in case, the fully variable all-wheel drive next C63’s 4Matic system will be able to deliver all of its power aft for pure rear-wheel-drive. Mercedes-AMG is yet to reveal performance figures for the newcomer. We expect its 0-60, quarter-mile and the rest to be considerably quicker than before. And at a fraction of the fuel used too. Get used to that future. it’s almost here…
Photos: The Auto Page