FlyByNight

Interesting article. What stood out for me was the discussion of reduced torque and WHY that was necessary for the 7 speed anyway:

"In its state of tune for U.S.-bound E63 sedans and wagons, the 6,208cc four-valve DOHC V8 puts out 507 horsepower at 6,800 rpm compared to the E55's 5,439cc three-valve SOHC supercharged V8's rating of 469 hp at 6,100 rpm. Well and good. The newer car should be more powerful. Torque? The bigger V8 twists out 465 pound-feet of torque at 5,200 rpm compared to the (what's this?) 516 lb-ft of torque from the outgoing V8. The E55's torque also peaked earlier, at 2,650 rpm. Sounds like a step backward.

However, there was good reason for the reduction in torque. This allowed Mercedes to fit its new, sophisticated seven-speed automatic in place of the old five-speed. Though the new gearbox is far more efficient than the five-speed, and though it was not built to handle the massive torque of the supercharged engine, its limit of 542 lb-ft, say Mercedes engineers, gives it the required durability to handle the 6.2's far-from-paltry crank twist."

So, what are people going to do who want to mod / are able to mod their E63 past 542 torque? That is the big question for me.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...ticleId=115406

There will more reviews to come, and they say the E63 is a tick faster... but I still think the 4.2 and 4.3 tests to 60 in the mags may put them neck and neck.... I don't buy Mercedes factory claims...



Loren

dragonAMG

That definitely sucks for the e63 owners. This is one reason why I belive the E55 will hold it's value after the debut of the E63.

FlyByNight

At least for people who mod, like most people on this board. That tranny limit is scary... I mean, just my K2 setup is well over 600 torque now.

This also means that if there were to be some TT version of the E63 someday... or anything approaching the power of the 65s... that we'd see a completely restructured tranny / torque converter as part of the change. Otherwise it would fall apart...



Loren

SoxFan

OK...so what percentage of the people on this board mod, or intend to mod?

Interesting, Edmunds is wondering whether the new E63 will be able to run with the Audi S6?

"Would it be able to run with the 10-cylinder BMW M5 and Audi S6 sport sedans?"

I didn't think the new Audi was in the same league.

After reading the review, it does seem that the E63 is a "better" car...but then, it will be $10+K more than my E55, or on a lease basis about $4-500month more, so I am not complaining...and I love driving my car...but it could be a genuinely better car. One would think, if MB had years to work on releasing a comparably priced replaced for the E55 to better compete with the M5, it would be a better car.

SGEM

SoxFan, I think you left out the rest of the sentence…..

As per the author:

“Would it be able to run with the 10-cylinder BMW M5 and Audi S6 sport sedans? This driver discovered the answer — yes!”

Also, some of you folks keep saying that the E55 is the better car because of the modding characteristics but, let’s face it, how many of the E55 owners have modded their cars? Looking at most of you folks on this site….not many.

My opinion and, please, take it for whatever is worth….the E63 will sell just as good as the 55 did and most of the owners will be very happy (even without the mods).

SoxFan

My point is that I thought it was surprising that the author put the S6 in there at all? It doesn't seem nearly the same car as the E55, or the E63, or the M5.

Is it a cool car, and a good value for $75,000 MSRP...probably...I considered it...especially is 1-2 years if you can get it for $65-70K. But I didin't think it was in the same league, snob appeal and badges aside.

istewart

Did anyone realize that the edmunds article states that the E63 will retail for around the same price as the E55? Curious as to how accurate that is. My dealer told me almost a $10 K premium over the E55. I can only hope that the MSRP would still be in the 80's. Time will tell.

SoxFan

The MSRPs wil be comparable, with base units in the low $80s and loaded units in the $90s.

These cars will be competitive with the M5s on price and performance.

The price difference between the E55s and the E63s will not be based on sticker, it will be determined by how dealers sell them vs. MSRP; while E55s can be bought for a BIG discount to sticker, the new E63s will be going for prices close to MSRP, or at a premium to MSRP (as we know, there are some dealers who will use this as an opportunity to gouge their customers).

So, there you have a difference of $10-15K, or more.

E552006

Did anyone else catch the quote about weight?
Article states that the E63 will be 45 lbs heavier! I thought it would be lighter since the engine is supposed to weigh less?

MB Fanatic

More sound insulation, Pre-Safe, bigger brakes, larger tranny, and a myriad of other things have cause the weight to go up, but 45 lbs is nothing.

Blocktrader

I find the fact that the car gained weight truobling. I would have though they dropped 100 lbs off the car by elminating the supercharger and aftercooler. It appears they also dropped the 8 piston front brakes down to six. All these things would appear to be to help reduce the weight and make it handle better. It's going to be a shame if they didn't accomplish this.

RJC

[QUOTE=Blocktrader] It appears they also dropped the 8 piston front brakes down to six.
QUOTE] More decontenting perhaps...

FlyByNight

[QUOTE=RJC]I may be wrong, but I thought I remembered reading or hearing that they went with floating rotors in the front and the new brake setup... thus the 6 piston setup.

In other words, I don't think the rotor is the same either... anyone know if that's true?



Loren

RJC

[QUOTE=Loren] Did you mean floating calipers?

medici78

I'm not really buying the review. Obviously these people are the type to only believe manufacturer marketing hype and report accordingly. To say the 6.2 litre is more "durable" than the 5.5 Kompressor motor without any justification just reeks of ignorance.
IMO, it seems the "official" E55 0-60 times were the conservative ones and the E63 are probably more on the money. SGEM is right, though. E63 owners will be more than happy with the vehicle stock. Not knocking the E63, either. I'd love to have one, but I wouldnt give up my E55 for it.
The true enthusiasts will still lean towards the E55, the rest are those that base purchase decisions strictly on whats new and availabe at the time.

FlyByNight

[QUOTE=RJC]No, floating rotors... rotors with the detachable center hub mounted via screws in an oval hole so they can expand and move as they heat up, as opposed to a solid single piece of steel like our existing rotors. I thought I heard they were going with floating rotors on the E63s... adn that the smaller 6 piston caliper worked fine in that setup... dunno...



Loren

FlyByNight

EXACTLY. If anything, the E55 factory times were proven to be WAY off compared to testing by just about every mag. With the E63, maybe they're pushing a slight improvement for political reasons. Any review that merely quotes factory times will not be accurate... never have been. What I want to see are actual mag & GPS based tests like all of those 4.2 and 4.3 results in mags. I'm sticking with my original prediction that the E55 ends up tied or faster 0-60....



Loren

toro4me

whats the redline on the E53?
low 7's?

BlownV8

I think you will be correct in a 1/4 mile race. However, from a roll at higher speeds due to the 7 speed tranny, the E63 should prevail.

RJC

[QUOTE=Loren]Something else to go wrong with MB brakes LOL!

JLP

[QUOTE=RJC]AMG use's the 2 piece rotors on the 65 models already.

RossN

It's not a big mystery about Mercedes Factory times being conservative. IICR Mercedes post acceleration times with;

- A full tank of gas
- One passenger

Each Car company does it a little differently for there is no Universal Standard when it comes to posting 0-60 or 0-62 times.

vixapphire

when are the 63's expected in showrooms?

also, is their arrival in dealerships the same time that parts begin to arrive, or does one predate another?

i have an interest in replacing my taillights on my wagon with the tinted taillights on the 63 wagon. since one of the taillights is cracked, i've got to replace them anyway, so it might as well be with the tinted versions for the cool look.

anyone have an idea of what the parts would cost for a set of 4 wagon taillights?

thanks,
vic

SleeperX

In the next 30 days we should see some real test figures in the trade rags as I believe the car is suppose to be in showrooms in June..