Tom in Austin

What would I notice different about owning an S63 compared to my S550? The things I already know about:

• Stiffer Ride and uses more gas
• Very costly brake replacement
• Very costly lithium-ion battery
• 4MATIC vs. rear-wheel drive

I drove one around the block once but have never owned an AMG car. Anyone owned both?

carlosinseattle

Hi Tom, I had a 17 S550 and now have an 18 S63. Very different cars. To your points:
Definitely stiffer ride and thirstier, even if you drive gently.
Brake replacement costs are the same, unless you find one with CCB brakes - kind of rare to find one with CCB's. And if you wrench yourself, the AMG brakes are easier to change than non AMG brakes.
You can go with the OEM Li-Ion battery or ask Benzninja to mod it so you can use an AGM battery.
AWD is much better in the wet. Accelerating a big heavy car with 4 wheels verus 2 is awesome. Probably not a big deal for you in Austin, but it is here in rainy Seattle.

I did not set out to buy an S63, I just wanted a very "well-optioned" S560. At this time last year they were practically non-existent. I only found one S560 optioned highly, it had roughly the same mileage as the S63 I was looking at, but it was less than $10K difference so it was a no brainer to go with the S63.

To me a "face-lifted" car was my driving force behind changing vehicles, so I'd suggest going with an 18-20 model. Luckily you're in Texas so you should have some great options within your state.

Tom in Austin

Yes, my motivation is just what you said ... I want to upgrade and get more of the cool features and I see so few cars out there loaded with the desirable stuff ....

carlosinseattle

I wish I had come back to this forum several years ago, I really don't like the term "face-lifted" version for the W222. I personally call it the W222 V2. The differences are trememndous, especially when it comes to the S63, it has a bespoke rear subframe. But all the other changes from the V1 to V2 W222 make a huge difference; lights, driver assistance, cruise control, telematics, etc. That's on top of the engine and drivetrain upgrades, and other mechanical features. I think there are 5K plus different part numbers between the 2, that's not a small thing. You're in such a better area for these cars than me. Lots of people here already opted for electric already, and MB doesn't dominate the luxury car market like in some areas of the country. I saw 2 cars in Texas that I liked before I bought mine; I found my S63 at a dealership in Georgia, and it had been owned by a guy in Alabama. Point is, you'll be able to find one in your area. Park Place in Dallas/Plane always has a nice selection; you might want to connect with somebody there and see if they know of one coming in. You definitely won't get the best price there, but they usually have cars that are well maintained well equipped and with low mileage.

My main things I'd share with anybody are this:
Drive it first, for as long as possible
Hand wash it before you buy it if possible, that way you can "really" see/feel the car
Get a VMI if possible and go over it point by point with your friendly neighborhood Service Advisor
Get a full PPI performed
Check with @Highline-Autos.com about extended warranty prices/options, especially if there's a way to get it financed in - probably not an option, but doesn't hurt to check.

carlosinseattle

Ponder this thread before you make a decision: https://mbworld.org/forums/s63-amg-s...ft-points.html
MB put a transmission in a car whose best attribute is that it can shift VERY QUICKLY at the expense of smoothness. You can forget about forgetting about how to drive a car smoothly, like in your S550. You have to pay attention, similar to driving a manual car, just no stick shift and clutch pedal. Ever since I bought a 2001 S600 AMG back in 2004, my wife has always been reluctant to drive my cars. Mainly because of the size and expense, this is the first time I've said OK, I don't want you to drive my car. If you want details let me know, it's a conversation.

Highline-Autos.com

Agreed, have some sort of inspection report, even if it is from the dealership upon bringing the vehicle into inventory.

Thanks for the shoutout Carlos, @Tom in Austin you can send me a couple online S63 AMG listings you're interested in, if you'd like some extended warranty information and pricing to keep in your back pocket while you search. My contact information is below if you have any questions.

Trenton O. Gibson
tgibson@highline-autos.com
Highline Autos
Direct: 602.909.9216
Office: 480.348.0777

JohnLane

Tom be sure to drive an S65 as well. They are all well optioned. CCB much easier to find. The seven speed is less temperamental than in the S-63 with it’s wet clutch.

Nico9182349

Interesting topic, I have been thinking about S63's as well. The market is ravaged as far as certified pre owned with low mileage and facelift models go in Germany though. Especially if you want one from a direct Mercedes dealership and not a franchisor. There is literally 6 cars online in all of Germany right now. So, even if I decided to upgrade I wouldn't be able to find the right car. I'm guessing this is because the W223 is a plugin hybrid now so a lot of people bought the late W222's. I did also think, maybe a tuned S560 could be more what I want. Mine is too high mileage to put a tuning on it now (77k miles, anybody experienced with that?). But I do wonder if that is an interesting option. Buying a low mileage S560, getting it tuned to about S63 power. The smoothness of the S560 with a similar power to the AMG. However if something goes wrong, warranty won't cover it. You'd have to be brave or stupid to do that probably. Or rich enough but then you'd just get the 600 probably.

JohnLane

If you have been good about oil changes there isn't any reason to not give your car a tune. Make it more fun!

Bummer you Germans have so few to choose from. A feller could purchase one here in the states and send it home. Peter can help with software to make things right for the home market.

Nico9182349

There are many more S63s available. I'm referring to certified pre owned facelift cars with low mileage. Only those are super rare at the moment. But it would be important for me since I would want to minimize the risk of a bad purchase. There's about 300 cars on the market for the W222. Importing is not an option because of that as I doubt I could get warranty for it.
I looked up ECU tunings for the 560 and it's quite cheap but I'm sceptical. Supposedly a stage 2 is good for 540hp and over 900NM. That does sound pretty impressive but I do wonder how noticeable it really is. Might have to give someone a call. Plenty of shops who do ECU tunings around. I'm in the South, we have a lot of well established experienced Merc tuners around. MKB, Lorinser etc. all at my doorstep more or less. AMG is a 35 minutes drive. Maybe they can hook me up. Hey, I'm really cheap, help me out AMG!

Tom in Austin

I'd love to try a tuned M278. People on here say you really notice the difference at highway speeds so perhaps not a lot of low-end beneft.

carlosinseattle

IMHO none of the W222 variants lack power. When I had my S550, the easiest and most cost effecient modification was increasing the power. But I thought that was the "last thing" that car needed. I love my S63, but mainly for the options, even the better leather feels so much better. Good thing is that if more power is what you're after, you've got tons of vetted options.

Lou B

Have never even thought of spending the $$$ it would take to own an AMG - but with both of my 2012 S and 2018 S, I have never had a problem overtaking any vehicle in front of me if I chose to. Buying more power is a concept completely foreign to me.

Nico9182349

When you have the autobahn, you can hardly have enough power. It's absolutely useless but a lot of fun.

tx170754

Yeah, but we are here in the US "autobahn " !

Lou B

Having never driven (nor will I) in Germany, as I said, "...Buying more power is a concept completely foreign to me."

carlosinseattle

LOL....

kafklatsch

I currently have both

I drive the non-amg as my daily... its very potent, and as stated here, you can pretty much point it and get anywhere in the traffic... I love the quiet, the smooth, and the generally more luxurious ride... i prefer that ride more than my AMG ride quality... but...but..

BUT... THE GRIN!!!
driving the amg turns me into a kid... its grunts, it pops, it snarls... AND i dont red light drag, nor do i hardly ever get into it ... but when you decide, it pushes me back into the nice leather in an Exhilarating fashion..there something about seeing the needle move so swiftly to higher speeds..it's also deceptively nimble..
But i dont like the harsh ride in general..and its garaged most of the time.... owning both makes me realize id love to have the top of the line MB experience .. combination of monster power with ultra smooth ride...but the thought of the maintenance costs makes my nose bleed..

The grin!!!!
I can't imagine anyone regretting the grin....

Nico9182349

Jup, makes sense. If I lived in the US I wouldn't care much about power either.

carlosinseattle

You might not realize it but LouB is 91 years old. He's got more than enough miles under his belt. That's why he's not into driving fast.
But living in the US is AWESOME for speed freaks!! The US is a gigantic country with many open roads in suburban and rural areas. I live in Seattle and the next large city to my East is almost 2000 miles away across I-90. Plenty of stretches of open road to open up the taps. I've (known someone who has) averaged 100mph several times on a drive East, on a 500 mile trip and a 300 mile trip.

tx170754

Yeah, it could be fun until the cops are showing up, and they are there all the time !
Then the "real" fun begins !

JohnLane

Rumor has it police have been instructed to not give chase in Washington. I’ll leave it to you to verify.

Lou.... Just cuz YOU can’t imagine going faster doesn’t mean others don’t enjoy letting their cars with a LOT more horses than yours RUN!

Years ago I needed to get from North of Bellingham to Wazzu to deliver a dog for spinal surgery. One can make big average speeds East of the mountains.

Nico9182349

Please elaborate. I've been in the US many times, mostly Florida and California, and people often go over the speed limit but still, it is very slow compared to the autobahn. I remember going up I5 for example and thinking how crazy it would be if there was no speed limit. Just go 150mph until the tank is empty. I know people get these radar warning devices etc. but does that really work well enough? What would going fast in the US actually look like if you don't want to go to jail or face some draconic punishment. Have also been to the pudget sound twice but still wondering where you'd go fast there.

superswiss

This topic is interesting. I'm originally from Europe and regularly drive in Germany even today whenever I go back. I've also done European Delivery with my current AMG and my previous Audi RS5, so I have driven my own cars over there. Yes, the German Autobahn is an exception, but outside of that I find I can drive faster in the USA than in Europe. This is for a couple of reasons. We don't have speed cameras in the USA for the most part. They are starting to introduce them in some parts of the country. They just passed a law here in California to allow some cities to install them on the most notorious roads, but they are only allowed to issue tickets if you go 15 mph or more over the speed limit. It's gonna be a pilot for several years.

To get a speeding ticket here, a cop has to witness your speeding and spotting a patrol car on the side of the road is much easier than a speed camera. Radar detectors are legal except for VA. I know Lidar is commonly used in many places, but mainly in metropolitan areas with high traffic density so they can pick out individual cars. Once you get out of the metropolitan areas it's still mostly radar. CHP in their cruisers driving around with the radar turned on and my radar detector picks them up miles before they come into visual range. Despite the German Autobahn, I've collected more speeding tickets in Europe than I have in the USA for all the above reasons. Usually I get one every other trip, because of sneaky speed traps they set up only meters after a lowered speed limit.

In the USA it's also relatively easy to get a ticket dismissed. The cop who wrote the ticket has to actually show up in court, or if you contest the ticket in writing, they have to respond in writing within 30 days or it gets dismissed. It's well known that about 2/3 of cops do not respond if you contest in writing. I've gotten most speeding tickets dismissed this way. I got my last speeding ticket during the pandemic. When the cop submitted the ticket to the court, the court wrote back to him requesting a later court date. He never responded and the Statue of Limitations expired after 12 months. This never happens in Europe. My last speeding ticket I got in Europe was for 1 kph over and they mailed me a fine all the way to the USA. It must have cost them more to process all this than the fine itself.

In summary, driving in Europe is not much fun anymore outside of the German Autobahn. Overall, I'm having much more fun driving my AMG in the USA, because I don't have to constantly worry about speed cameras around the next corner, and I've gotten pretty good at spotting cops. I would likely not own this car if I moved back to Europe. It was actually frustrating to drive it in many parts of Europe, especially my home country of Switzerland. I had to constantly hold back and the increased NVH of an AMG starts to become not worth it. I'm having more fun in a rental Golf with manual transmission, which is what I typically try to rent. I'm going in September and already booked another Golf with manual transmission.

Nico9182349

Oh well, yeah. Switzerland is not fun for speeding at all. Especially the income adjusted fines. When passing through Switzerland I always let the distronic take over. In Germany traffic prohibits going really fast often. Where I live the autobahn is very busy and seems to be getting busier all the time. Tons of trucks and sprinter vans blocking the take over lanes. It's much worse than when I started driving almost 20 years ago. So, very interesting, I never knew that about the US highways.