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😌 Facelift Vs Prefacelift C63s: My honest test drive & why I'm keeping the old one
I was looking at trading my 2017 Coupe for a Demonstrator 2020 Coupe C63s and test drove one today at Mercedes in Toowoomba (QLD, Australia). They said they would accept a trade in for mine plus $33,000 cash.
What I liked about the FL:
- New menus and steering wheel dials that are actually little screens. They are fu*king cool and easy to reach. I really love them. - Interior feels special and modern. Especially when opening the door you can see the brighter ambient light straight away - even in the daytime. It's way more brighter than in the PFL. - The new car looks better than the PFL. It's just simply a work of art & looks staunch. - There is so much more road presence in the FL and it gets 100 times more looks around town. The front end, particularly the grille gives the new FL car a very angry look and makes the front seem even more wider and muscular than before. It looks jaw dropping in person and surprises me how just much a redesigned grille can completely change the whole look of a car. But that's just an exterior thing which can easily be done to our PFL models. - Suspension is nicer. Especially in Comfort. It seems more spongy and absorbs the road indentations, I wish my PFL had this comfort. The car I tested was uing Michelin Pilot Sports with 38PSI all round.
What I didn't like about the FL:
- ARTIFICIAL ENGINE NOISE FROM INSIDE Driving with the AMG Exhaust setting on loud (Powerful) and from inside it sounds artificial now. The piped-in sounds through the speakers make the sound a bit louder (from the inside) but it's just too digital. Not only that, but the actual engine note that comes in through the speakers makes it sound more like an American V8. Rough and old school carby bruiser sound which sounds a bit try-hard due to the synthetic vibe of it. - Gone is the exotic, deep German V8 sound from the inside. This really upset me. Can they fix this with an update? lol - No backfires or crackles anymore. What the heck. It really is gone! Now, I know some of the FL owners here say that the backfires and crackles on overrun appear after several thousand miles of driving. How that works, no one can explain. Not even Mercedes themselves (when I questioned them). One thing for sure is this car I was looking at had 7,650KM on the odo and the entertaining pops and bangs are not there. - No more "burp" noise when upshifting at higher RPMs? It's completely gone too, and I really missed it when I was driving. It was such a satisfying and terrorising sound. Yes, I know the DSG burp is so 2009 and even though our 7G Transmission mimicked this burp sound upon upshift, it is just glorious. Without it felt unsatisfyingly "blank". - Power 100% certain felt down. As others have pointed out, power seems just a tiny bit lower. I don't have that stomach-churning feeling on WOT in 2nd & 3rd gear with the FL. Mind you, the FL I test drove had new tyres and did not wheel spin at all. This was shocking to me as I am so use to being able to spin the rears in 2nd & 3rd in my PFL.
From the outside the car sounds identical to the PFL at idle and takeoff (minus the "burp" on upshift). I couldn't really notice a difference in volume.
Summary:
This car would have been good for me but I really can't get over the artificial noise and lack of backfires. I also prefer the old Dynamic Modes and descriptions. The new Dynamic Modes from "Balanced" to "Dynamic".... man i don't know, it's all too complicated compared to the old system, but that's okay. I probably just need to spend more time with it. Everything else is very nice, but . Who knows, maybe I'm just expecting too much from the newer model but one thing is for sure, I am not letting go of my PFL. I'll be updating the front and rear to look like a newer model but that's about it!
PS: I am sorry if this review offends anyone. I don't mean to, I just thought I would like to share my honest review. I love the FL car but it lacks the rawness of the PFL even though I feel the FL is more suited to my mature driving style.
Power 100% certain felt down. As others have pointed out, power seems just a tiny bit lower. I don't have that stomach-churning feeling on WOT in 2nd & 3rd gear with the FL. Mind you, the FL I test drove had new tyres and did not wheel spin at all. This was shocking to me as I am so use to being able to spin the rears in 2nd & 3rd in my PFL.
Yeah bro remember what the tech at International Autohaus said? The facelift coupes always dyno lower and are always around 15kw down a from the prefacelift coupes.
Overall a reasonable review. The sound is what it is. The pops&bangs are still there, but they are more tied to how the car is driven. It's more purposeful now instead of just for the sake of it. Car needs to be driven aggressively above 4000-4500 rpms and it will pop&bang on the overrun. As I previously stated, I'm one who prefers the sound of the FL. I'm not a fan of the artificial pops&bangs for no purpose other than annoying the neighborhoods.
I'm puzzled by your comment regarding the power supposedly being down. First I hear such a thing. The FL is faster than the pre-FL. Faster 0-60 etc. Partly due to the new transmission with shorter lower gears, and all the work AMG has done to the suspension, TC and rear differential to help it actually put the power down. I felt mine was opening up somewhere around 8000-10000 miles. I regularly had wheel spin all the way to 3rd gear and it's why I got rid of the stock PSS and replaced them with a set of PS4S. Now the power mostly goes to the road. You might have felt the effects of the new 9-stage TC, which proactively manages the torque if you don't have enough traction. That can all be dialed back, though. I mostly use ESP Sport Handling mode with AMG DYNAMICS in Pro, which allows just enough wheel spin to get maximum traction, but if you are so inclined you can turn off ESP and start dialing down TC to your desired level. The FL is much much more adjustable, which takes some time to realize the full potential. Could also be that this demo car wasn't particularly well run in. I stretched the legs of mine on the German Autobahn for a few weeks.
Overall the FL has gained more GT attributes, which I like a lot. It's become a better daily and long distance cruiser, while continue to be a raw animal if you open it up and make the right adjustments. It's a hoot to drift thanks to the new adjustable TC for example, and the driving dynamics thanks to the new AMG DYNAMICS system are vastly improved. I can totally understand, though, if you like the artificial theatrics of the PFL, that you might no like the FL in normal driving.
Last edited by superswiss; 04-30-2020 at 11:41 AM.
I'd rather have the PFL also, the FL seems lacking in the important sound department. This is the main reason people buy AMGs in the first place. Piping in fake engine sound through the speakers is for BMW, not AMG. It's a disgrace how tamed the engine sound is, I'm not just talking about the burbles or crackles it's much quieter at idle. It lost it's bark. The couple I drove were FL sedans, but they felt slower and sluggish compared to the PFL, the 9 speed was jittery and always searching for the right gear. Glad I decided to keep my PFL. Just pop on the panamerican grille and you have the best of both worlds.
That steering wheel is nice though, but the analog gauges are much better than digital dash.
Mine pops and crackles in race mode and a bit in sport. Nothing in comfort.
Secondary decat coming soon though. Sound is the easiest thing to fix.
Surely fake noise can be coded out.
Seriously, sound is an easy fix and the fake noise is a simple coding job. The plus column FAR outweighs the negatives and there was no mention of the phenomenal new transmission in the OP.
To each his own. Sound is easy to fix. Everything else is just better in FL.
If I owned a pre-FL I would’ve upgraded to FL. I’ve done the same with F10 M5. I also owned an F90 M5 and now thinking about buying the FL even though pops and crackles are gone in that platform also. As far as sound goes, this is the new normal across the board. Luckily we can fix that pretty easily.
To each his own. Sound is easy to fix. Everything else is just better in FL.
If I owned a pre-FL I would’ve upgraded to FL. I’ve done the same with F10 M5. I also owned an F90 M5 and now thinking about buying the FL even though pops and crackles are gone in that platform also. As far as sound goes, this is the new normal across the board. Luckily we can fix that pretty easily.
Not unless you consider spending $XXXX and voiding your warranty "easy".
Voiding warranty for exhaust work?? That’s a new one. People will always find something to complain about. We won’t even have ICE engines in the next few decades so enjoy while you can.
Voiding warranty for exhaust work?? That’s a new one. People will always find something to complain about. We won’t even have ICE engines in the next few decades so enjoy while you can.
Good luck getting a MB mechanical warranty claim paid with downpipes and a tune (a catback won't fix the sound).
Good luck getting a MB mechanical warranty claim paid with downpipes and a tune (a catback won't fix the sound).
Who said anything about a tune? Just opening the valves and removing secondary cats opens up the sound drastically. DP’s with high flow cats is all that’s needed to maximize the sound. No tune necessary unless you want all the artificial pops and bangs which IMO are annoying.
2023 Urus Performante - 2021 Ferrari Roma - 2017 Ferrari 488 GTB - 2022 GLE 63 S Coupe
Funny how we all have the things that resonate differently within us on these cars. Superswiss is a master of all the nuances and I'm pretty sure knows more about these cars then 99.9% of the salesmen. Sound is important to me also. With that said I do like a lot of the FL improvements. One thing I could not get over was that I couldn't get the Designo white interior and silver seat belts in the FL. If I could have I may gone for one. However it seems like the consensus is I might have been ultimately disappointed in the sound. So keeping mine for now and all is good. Happy that everyone is happy with their respective rides and choices.
Funny how we all have the things that resonate differently within us on these cars. Superswiss is a master of all the nuances and I'm pretty sure knows more about these cars then 99.9% of the salesmen. Sound is important to me also. With that said I do like a lot of the FL improvements. One thing I could not get over was that I couldn't get the Designo white interior and silver seat belts in the FL. If I could have I may gone for one. However it seems like the consensus is I might have been ultimately disappointed in the sound. So keeping mine for now and all is good. Happy that everyone is happy with their respective rides and choices.
Designo is really nice and if it was still available then it would’ve been one of my must haves. Enjoy your car, looks great.
designo is MB's individual customization program. You can get any interior you want on the C Class. On the E Class and higher you can even get any exterior color you want. It's just an extra cost. MB occasionally offers some pre-selected designo interiors as convenient options in the order guide, but pretty much anything is possible otherwise.
2023 Urus Performante - 2021 Ferrari Roma - 2017 Ferrari 488 GTB - 2022 GLE 63 S Coupe
Originally Posted by superswiss
designo is MB's individual customization program. You can get any interior you want on the C Class. On the E Class and higher you can even get any exterior color you want. It's just an extra cost. MB occasionally offers some pre-selected designo interiors as convenient options in the order guide, but pretty much anything is possible otherwise.
Not worth it for these cars at this price point. You'll hit a brick wall. Some did in the GT forum and moved on. Not worth the trouble. Porsche, Lamborghini, Ferrari and others are more set up for customization because of their lower production levels rather than MB. Although you are right it can be done - just not easily as the others is all.
Going back to analogue dials now is just a massive step back, the ability to swap and change the information as my mood/goals see fit is just brilliant.
If I'm out for a hoon, I'll display all the performance data and supersport tacho, of I'm traveling with the family I can display nav and eco, it really is superb.
I've never bought a new car, so when I go shopping I look at the options available and decide what I want and prioritise them. The main thing though, is what can or cannot be retrofitted if I really want them. Out of all the cars I've ever owned, I don't think I've ever had a problem with making them louder, it's the single most easiest thing to do to any car. Even W204 owners carry out a res delete to open them up.
The first thing I would retrofit in a PFL would have to be the small screen, that really is shabby and low rent, but I'm sure it's an easy fix.
If I was going to buy a PFL, and it was a consideration btw, would be because it's cheaper, saving money is nothing to be sniffed at. If I could live without the refinements, I would have bought one, but there are too many things that just can't be retrofitted to improve the ownership experience.
Anyone who uses sound as an excuse is just kidding themselves.
Not worth it for these cars at this price point. You'll hit a brick wall. Some did in the GT forum and moved on. Not worth the trouble. Porsche, Lamborghini, Ferrari and others are more set up for customization because of their lower production levels rather than MB. Although you are right it can be done - just not easily as the others is all.
I've never looked into the cost for MB, but volume isn't really the issue I think. It's a pretty popular program with Audis. An individual exterior color is like $3000 or so. I don't recall what the individual interiors go for, but folks have done it successfully on cars cheaper than a C63. It does add extra time to the order. Audi lumps the individual orders together towards the end of a production run, so it takes some patience. I definitely noticed that it doesn't seem to be a popular thing with MB. Other brands seem to be making a killing of off the individualization programs.
Going back to analogue dials now is just a massive step back, the ability to swap and change the information as my mood/goals see fit is just brilliant.
If I'm out for a hoon, I'll display all the performance data and supersport tacho, of I'm traveling with the family I can display nav and eco, it really is superb.
I've never bought a new car, so when I go shopping I look at the options available and decide what I want and prioritise them. The main thing though, is what can or cannot be retrofitted if I really want them. Out of all the cars I've ever owned, I don't think I've ever had a problem with making them louder, it's the single most easiest thing to do to any car. Even W204 owners carry out a res delete to open them up.
The first thing I would retrofit in a PFL would have to be the small screen, that really is shabby and low rent, but I'm sure it's an easy fix.
If I was going to buy a PFL, and it was a consideration btw, would be because it's cheaper, saving money is nothing to be sniffed at. If I could live without the refinements, I would have bought one, but there are too many things that just can't be retrofitted to improve the ownership experience.
Anyone who uses sound as an excuse is just kidding themselves.
Yes I totally agree on the screen...wish I could retrofit it
04-30-2020, 03:20 AM
😌 Facelift Vs Prefacelift C63s: My honest test drive & why I'm keeping the old one
