Uga Uga

My car, along with other cars built in February 2019 were held at the factory for nearly a month.
The reason given was ‘ due to quality control issues’.

This makes me believe that a software update was applied to the cars after project production,
hence the difference we are experiencing between the press cars and ours.

I am now convinced that this is a software issue.

The MB UK press car featured the the video was most likely built in 2018.

Matteus GLC AMG

Now that's interesting, and I'll tell you for why. My C63S has been on order since April with a delivery expectation of the beginning of August. The last week, I was informed that MB had put a temporary hold on my Car, which I was told was usually for quality control purposes. Could it be a new software update to reintroduce some or all of the pops and crackles back!!?? I realise of course that I am being wildly optimistic here........

Uga Uga

I hope that is the case, as we will all benefit from such an occurrence. Fingers crossed.

mrguitar

i'm sure everyone's seen/read this by now: https://www.motor1.com/news/362400/m...ts-cars-quiet/

What's interesting to note from Motor1's news is that this tamer exhaust sound will most likely be replicated to every other country (even though it was only supposed to be for the EU markets)...

losing...hope...

Uga Uga

Drip feeding of electrification has begun.

Matteus GLC AMG

My car has been released again, and will now arrive in UK on 10 August, hopefully with all the crackles/bangs/pops/snaps that God intended - like Rice Krispies on mega-steroids!

FLC63s

Everyone is rederring to the recent articles
about the c45 s , etc .

”The aforementioned hot hatch and its sedan-ish sibling, the CLA45 S, are AMG's first cars coming out under new European regulations concerning exhaust loudness. In case you're wondering why automakers can't just hide the sound away in a specific mode, it's because the regulations measure the loudest exhaust system the car has on offer. “

But as AMG has stated , the cla45 is the first AMG that is under the strict guidelines, thus pointing to the 63’s most likely being software at this point.

the aftermarket exhaust game is gonna explode

asc

If it's really just a software thing, it's pretty frustrating that we can't get a straight answer from MB. What do they care if the software nonsense is reversed out of the EU, where it doesn't matter? I would very much prefer not to modify anything other than a software tweak to get the old sound back. If it takes anything more than that, I'll just live with the tamer sound, safe and warm in the knowledge that there's a still a monster hiding under the hood.

FLC63s

Changing the exhaust (NOT DOWM PIPES) normally wont invalidate warranty etc, my dealer doest / didnt .. A couple people have asked for me to do a video of mine, so I will soon...
But mine is a 2017 no a 2019+ , so not much assistance to the new models.

I neighbor of mine just purchased a 2019, and when I pass by him in the garage, he just stares at me... (puppy eyes) :-(

Good thing is, I think the value of Pre FL c63's (s) is going up and up....

munis

I thought the north american cars did not get the GPF anyway? If that is the case I do not see exhaust mods changing anything as the sound issues are purely software. Now if Mercedes is saying it indirectly or not I do not know, that if you do get a better exhaust, the ECU will automatically adapt and you will unlock the sound.

asc

If it's truly software, someone is going to figure out how to get it back where we want it sooner or later, and then all the NA cars will be fixed (at least for those of us who care about the sound).

raudiace4

What's this fascination with pops and bangs on downshifts? Is that the only measure of what a "good sounding" car is now? SMH.

The V8 burble and aggressive exhaust note on acceleration is still there... 2019+ are still great sounding cars, when I recently drove one so this is really just an overblown issue.

asc

I completely agree that the car still sounds magnificent. But I also understand why folks are missing that signature pop/bang that AMG is known for, at least in part. For my part, the facelift is my first "real" AMG (I drove a C43 before this), so I'm not missing anything and I'm thrilled with how my car sounds. But I still get it.

FLC63s

Because its the internet :-) lol

I am with you, I run the crap out of my car, and I bought a 19' c43 for my girl, and she drives it like a bat out of hell every place she goes.. (my fuel car bill double each month because she does) lol...

All is good in AMG land

B3NS_C63s_AMG

Saw this earlier today. E63 AMG UBER driver

cyberorth

So if the reports are saying that this will first affect the 2020 cars, I suspect that 'some' of our cars are serving as a test bed for this phenomenon. Also I hear that the CLA 45 of 2018 sounds tamer that the previous model. This specifically from the owners that have owned both cars.

superswiss

I'm assuming the interviewer isn't aware of this and the guys from AMG probably didn't explain it well, but these new regulations have already been in effect for a couple of years. The law is much like with the fuel efficiency standards, the limits get progressively more stringent over the years. I've posted this somewhere else before or maybe it was here. The EU law targets exhaust noise of 68 dBA. Before the new law took effect it was 86 dBA and by 2019 it was already in the low 70s. I believe 74 dBA if I remember correctly. I forget what year the 68 dBA target is for, but basically it's now getting to the point where these cars are really getting quiet and the models that were mentioned are subject to the most stringent limits so far. This stuff didn't come overnight. I forget what year the law went into effect, but it was a couple of years ago. AMG said that the 2019 C63S due to noise laws is quieter. They said this at the unveiling on the Bilster Berg. I guess the question is what was the status of those press cars. Were they pre-certification and AMG couldn't get the production cars passed or did they really try to hide it. I suspect the former.

mrguitar

I wouldn't put it past AMG to have actually used both reasons to their advantage...i.e. "conveniently" not tuning down the early press cars and then hiding that they did it later...making car sound special for marketing/advertising purposes is a no-brainer strategy for any car company, in my opinion.

The thing that keeps perplexing me, however, is why other 2019s apparently have the "full" sound effect...like when Roken reviewed the GLC63. how does that explain a fleet-wide approach to dumbing down the sound?

superswiss

Passenger cars vs SUVs/Crossovers. In many countries there are different regulations for light trucks/SUV vs passenger cars. These categories are historically separate as SUVs/Trucks used to be commercial vehicles. The laws really need to be updated, but commercial vehicles are on different schedules and have different rules. Same in the USA. The fuel economy standards are different for passenger cars and SUVs etc. In the USA it's even sillier. SUVs and Crossovers have to have a certain ride height to be categorized as such. If they are too low, they'll get categorized as cars. That's why the US spec German SUVs and Crossover all have a higher suspension than in the EU. With car sales dropping as they are and SUV/Crossover becoming the top sellers, the regulations should really be flipped and made more restrictive for SUVs etc. and relaxed for passenger cars, but this is all politics and a shell game to a large extent.

Radon

roken's (Remove Before Race) 2019 AMG GT63S 4 Door still has the exhaust theatrics. At 13:45 of this video.

superswiss

While both are 2019 models, the GT 4-Door was unveiled in March, while the C63S was unveiled in July. I'm not familiar enough with the law to know where the cutovers are, but chances are the GT 4-door most likely got certified under less restrictive noise regulations at the time.

Profomo

Is the new GLC63 even out yet?

Have seen a few people use the new GLC63 as a basis of comparison asking why the GLC63 can sound like that when its a new model and the facelift c63 can't.

But the GLC63 isn't even out yet, so how is that a fair comparison?

mrguitar

ah didn't know that...we'll have to see then if they do the same thing with the sound on that one.

PD46AG

Superswiss - It seems you know more about this stuff than most, so I have a question....I have a 2020 C63 (USA Spec) on order, build date to be October 2019. Can I expect it to sound the same as the 2019 model that I test drove, or are the noise regulations even more restrictive for 2020 models than they were for 2019? Based on what I've read from you and others, it appears the big change was carried out in 2018/2019 so hoping that 2020 doesn't make matters even worse. Your thoughts?

superswiss

That's a good question, and one I've been trying to find an answer for myself. At this point, I don't know, but there is a strong possibility that the 2020s will be quieter and the 2021s even quieter. The noise limits get progressively lower every year until they reach the target of 68 dBa, however, I currently don't know if every model year is subject to the new limits or only when the manufacturers release a new generation or do a mid cycle refresh.