Currently between these 3 cars; budget is $80k.

I can't find a G80 i like in this price range currently so there's none that fit my needs (full leather, buckets, exec pack and one of 3 colors). I've found a few that have full leather, carbon and exec pack for around $70-$75k but those don't exist right now. I love this car; pulls maniacally through redline, sounds decent, interior is sick, super fun & reliable. The gearbox is good & it feels DCT like with the CS map for $230.Only thing i don't love about the G80 is the steering feel and really how it's hard to find a good spec without a dealer trying to exploit you. The AWD is just a bit out of my budget.
Likely spend: $70-75k

Now the C63s coupe - i've had 2 sedans and never got the spec i wanted (had 2 poverty specs - no lights, buckets, carbon fiber etc) but loved having it. Really the only thing I didn't like was the fact it DIED above like 6200 RPM; but i had a ton of fun with mine and think i'd love the coupe for the extra dynamics; also for the 100x better look. Gearbox is mehh but there's no way i can upgrade it outside spending $2k on a TCU tune and then another few on the upgrades.
Likely spend: $60k or so

Now on the 981 GTS. I replaced my C63s with a 991.2 and absolutely loved it. I've also always loved the way the Cayman drove over the 911. The 981 gts obviously offers the sound, connection, transmission but i'm making a sacrifice on practicality and power. Plus, being in Dallas where it's mainly highway and straighaways, not being able to drive the car as it was meant (backroads, etc.) . Interior here obviously kind of bland and not much tech; just a pure driver's car. May keep value best??
Likely spend: $60k or so

About me:
Have a 3 year old. Car is mainly a toy but will occasionally be used for school transports and stuff. I live in Dallas so really no access to windy backroads and most of my driving is highway/mini-highway (like the 2 lane 45-65 mph speed limit type). Love the V8 but also love cars that pull to redline and rev high. This car will likely be replaced within 12-24 months.

Questions:
1. Amongst the 3 - which would you get and why?
2. Do we think the C63s is kind of at a low point depreciation wise? I'd be getting a 2020 with carbon ceramics and loaded outside of the drivers assistance pack for like $61k before TTL + shipping.
3. Do I need to get an extended warranty?

 

I see you are looking at a FL C63S Coupe and you said the transmission is meh. What do you find meh? Personally, I find the 9-speed great, but I mainly drive in manual mode. I drive all my performance cars in manual mode. Really the only way to properly drive one of these. That's also where the ZF8 in the BMW M models falls flat. Numb and dull experience due to the torque converter. Just fake engineered feedback to make it "feel" like a DCT, but there's no drivetrain feel like you get from an actual clutch as is the case with a DCT or the MCT.

However, to be perfectly honest, if I lived in Dallas I probably wouldn't get any of the three. I used to work for a company that had their operations in Dallas and I spent way too much time there. Some of the dullest driving I've experienced in my life. Only second to the boring straight roads in the Mid West. Your either stuck in traffic or the roads are mundanely endless and straight. The C63 is a great cruiser. I like it for its grand touring character, but it's not at home in stop & go traffic or city traffic. Fortunately, I don't commute or drive much in the city and traffic, and I have access to fun canyon roads.

The G80 is probably more pleasant in traffic as far as the transmission goes. This is where a torque converter shines, but most complain about the numbness of the current M products. Steering in particular and as I always say, it's more fun to drive a slow car fast than it is to drive a fast car slow. I just couldn't see myself wasting one of these cars in Dallas traffic, diddling from stop light to stop light or being stuck on I-635, Dallas North Tollway etc. Everywhere I had to go whenever I was there meant frustratingly sitting in traffic. After one week I was ready to shoot myself. I found not one interesting road to drive. It's suburbs, nothing in between and everybody and their mother is on the road at the same time.

 

Easy choice here is 981 GTS as they'll be more reliable to run and definitely have way more of x factor about them compared to the C63 S sedan.

If it was a facelift C63 S Coupe I'd choose that over all of them if it had at least 2 years of Mercedes warranty for (some) peace of mind.

 

It is a facelift coupe, not much warranty left though so i'd add. So you're saying you'd pick that?

I am not choosing a sedan, only for the G80

 

Dallas can absolutely suck and the roads are super boring for the most part. I don't commute for work and most of my driving outside of school dropoffs are leisure/driving to the gym. So a lot of long straights, blast aways. I really don't drive during much traffic; the only time i really hit traffic is like once a month when i go into the office; but i have another lame car for that.

I think the MCT is behind the ZF8 and WAY BEHIND the PDK. I thought the ZF8 with the CS trans flash in the G80 (for $230) was far superior to the MCT in the C63s. The main gripes i have with the MCT is near redline; if you shift above 6500/6600 you bang the rev limiter often. It's nowhere near as sharp as the M's i've driven nor the PDK.

 

Just for clarity, which MCT are you referring to, or in other words what years were your sedans? The 7-speed or the 9-speed? The old 7-speed sucked. Too laggy and delayed in manual mode. The 9-speed on the other hand is crisp and bangs the gears in Sport+ like it doesn't care if the transmission falls apart. The gearing is also much shorter in the 9-speed, so it's a lot more fun to drive and you get to shift through the gears before reaching illegal speeds. I don't have that issue with running into the rev limiter, partly because the FL flashes the entire instrument cluster red when it's time to shift.

I will say the 9-MCT is definitely not quite as quick and sharp on sequential shifts as a DCT, however it has other qualities. The main issues with DCTs is they fall on their face if they need to skip gears. It's all good as long as the correct next gear is pre-selected, but if it's not, then it first has to find the right cog. The 9-MCT drops 5 gears in a blink of an eye. It has the fastest kickdown I've ever experienced in an automated transmission. Even in automatic mode it regularly skips gears. I love DCTs as long as I can shift sequentially, but whenever I have to shift out of order it all breaks down. The engine revs up, but nothing happens until it finds the cog. This is known as gear hunting with the DCTs. Doesn't happen with the MCT.

I was a bit hesitant going to the MCT, but due to its ability to quickly skip gears it's more fun and faster on the road. Now the 7-MCT on the other hand as said was pretty terrible. I passed on the PFL for the transmission alone.

 

Interesting, even faster than the PDK? Good job AMG : )

 

I had 2 facelift sedans. The transmission is not in the same stratosphere as PDK. PDK shifts harder, faster, kicks down better, is direct and better in every possible way. Not even clunky around town.

Here's how i describe it.
With the PDK - you are literally an extension of the car. When you pull the paddle, you feel as if you are actually shifting the car with that input. It's incredibly direct.
With the 9-speed MCT - you are pulling the paddle to tell a computer to shift it. Kind of like when you're typing and there's just the SLIGHTEST delay in terms of when you hit the key and when it appears on the computer screen. It's a good transmission - but it's not in the same league as PDK. Additionally, from what i found (in the sedan) is that above 6600 RPM (i know the lights flash), you have to shift right then (i hate the rev limiter on the C63s as well, just cuts power and bogs down. Car really dies above 6250 or so anyway so i probably shouldn't shift near redline). Whereas in the PDK, if redline was 7250, i could shift at 7249 and be PERFECT.

I don't know if im explaining it well.

 

Yes, I do know what you are getting at and I don't disagree per se, but it's more nuanced in my experience. Much of what you are describing with the MCT has to do with how you drive the car and is likely related to the ability of how you can drive the car where you live. The coupe also drives different than the sedan. It has a shorter final drive for example. Downshifts with the MCT can be somewhat casual in many situations, though. For example if you downshift off throttle and are not hard on the brakes it downshifts more casually, because it doesn't see the rush. However, if you are diving into a corner in Race mode, hard on the brakes, it will click in the downshifts just like a DCT. I participated in a number of AMG Experience events driving the different models with the 9-MCT and the GTs including the GT Black Series with the DCT on the track. Was just in Germany last month driving the new GT63 coupe. If you are on them, there's very little between the MCT and a DCT, even the PDK. When I hit up the canyons around here, I'm also in Race mode and bang through the gears. Up and downshifts are instant then, because I'm on it and on the brakes going into corners. You can't really drive like that where you live.

You also have to learn a few tricks. For example with the PDK and other DCTs you can rapidly press the downshift paddle in consecutive order to drop two gears instantly. You can do the same with the MCT, but you have to keep the foot slightly on the throttle, otherwise it drops one gear at the time. The 9-MCT is very controllable via the inputs from your feet. You can change how it shifts by simply altering your brake and throttle inputs. Gives it much more of a manual transmission flare as opposed to a video game feel. If you are lazy on the brakes/throttle it does what I like to call Mercedes shifts, but if you give it throttle and be assertive on the brakes it bangs in the gears like a race car. It's all up to your inputs. These are things you have to discover with the MCT. I do miss the instant downshifts while off throttle with the DCTs, but I've gotten used to how I have to do it with the MCT. Having driven manual transmissions for over 20 years, I like how the MCT character changes with my inputs. It's the most manual transmission feeling automated transmission I've driven so far. DCTs feel more like video games. With the MCT if you screw up the throttle input around town the car bucks, just like a manual transmission would. The PDK is clinical in comparison as there isn't much you can do wrong. It pretty much always sorts it out. I much prefer a transmission where my inputs matter. Keeps it interesting and engaging.

Now, as far as redline shifting goes. The M177/178 engines are more mid range torque monsters. Winding them out to redline isn't really the thing they like to do. I'm mostly short shifting actually, because there's just so much mid range torque. This was something I wasn't all that hot about at the beginning, because my prior car was an Audi RS5 with that 8500 rpm redline V8 and winding that thing out to redline was a daily activity of mine, however it lacked shift lights, so I often ran into the rev limiter. With the C63, I don't actually pay attention to the exact rpm where I need to shift. I shift by ear mostly and the shift lights. So yes, when the shift lights flash, it's time to shift, and for me it shifts instantly when I pull the upshift paddle. If I try to look at the rpm at that moment, then it's too late and I run into the rev limiter. There isn't much of a point to look at the actual rpm if you have the shift lights.

I will say if you like the instant shifts of the PDK when you are just driving moderately in a straight line as you will mostly do, then perhaps that's what you should go with. As said, where you live, you can't really stretch the legs of these cars, but the PDK might be more satisfying in your situation.

 

Have you considered the G87 M2? You can get a decently equipped car for around 70K and you have a warranty. It still has the S58 which pulls to redline and feels like its trying to kill you. If you go light on the options I dont see you losing too much if you plan on dumping the car soon. Not sure if you can put a 3yo in a 981 GTS unless you plan on strapping the booster chair to the frunk.

Honestly if I am going to consider the C63 again I would wait and find the car with all of the options that you want and jump on it fast. Since these cars are getting up there in age an extended or aftermarket warranty is a good idea since you do not know how the previous owner treated the car (I am glad the previous owner treated my car very well but sometimes **** happens. I have not seen my car for more than a month because the A/C went out & because of a coolant leak). I do like the character of the M177 (powerband & sound) on the street better than the S58. Its a solid midrange motor & I feel I can let others drive my car without any worries since the traction control is so good. Not too sure if I can say that about the G80 since so many are being wrecked.

 

Before considering an M4, recommend watching this video on an previous owner's perspective I found on youtube:
There is also this thread that people went from the M3 to the CLE 53, all owner's perspectives: https://mbworld.org/forums/cle-class...-cle-53-a.html

 

have you by any chance driven any among amg gtc/gtr/gtr pro at the amg events? Is the ride comfort that much different amongst them?

would a gtr/gtr pro drive around town with same harshness as a c63 coupe or even worse?

 

I have driven the GT S, GT R and GT BS. Can't really assess ride comfort on a track and I don't know what the roads are like where you live. Furthermore, your reference is the PFL C63. I don't find the FL C63 harsh on our roads around here at all, unless I find myself on a road littered with moon craters. But the PFL was definitely punishing. Tires do make a difference, though, and so does tire pressure. I didn't like the stock Pilot Super Sport. The PS4S I have now are much better, especially the BMW Star marked I have now, and I run them at the normal load pressure of 33f/32r with the 19/20 setup. FWIW, the GT R Pro has a fixed suspension, so the ride comes down to how you adjust it. It's not made for the road, though. The others have AMG Ride Control. The BS supposedly has a much better spread between Comfort and Sport+ due to the newer generation dampers. It's said to ride much better in Comfort than the GT R. On smooth roads they all ride fine, so it comes down to your specific roads.

 

Define harsh? If you are using a C63 as a benchmark then you will probably hate life on anything other than a smooth road. Compared to my other car which rides on RE-71's year round and has spherical bushings & solid subframe mounts all around I thought they rode fine lol.