Originally Posted by racer m

Hi guys,

I want to make everyone aware before they make a purchase of an E63 AMG that this car does not perform as it is advertised, and if you are looking to buy one and drive it to the limit you will be severely disappointed.

So I have some credibility, let me give you some backround information about myself. I have been racing cars professionally for over 7 years, mostly GrandAm (GT and Daytona Prototypes), some FIA GT, and a few other smaller series. I have owned and driven just about every kind of fast car out there, including the Bugatti Veyron. Out of all the cars I have driven, never have I experienced something like this...

First of all does anyone know how to put a 2010 E63 into dyno mode? I have looked online for hours, called around and got a few suggestions that have all failed. After completing the break-in period on my car, and now trying to push it to its capabilities I have realized that ESP OFF is hardly a "traction control off" button. This is extremely disappointing to me, as after watching numerous videos online of the car doing burnouts, and driving on the track I was very excited to purchase this car to replace my 2006 M5. Since then I have found out that only the European models allow the traction control to be completely shut off because apparently MBZ USA doesn't think that anyone who buys their cars in the US is capable of pushing them to the limit without crashing them. I had a terrible experience recently when I was in the middle of a drift on an awesome freeway on-ramp, the ESP turned itself back on, caused the car to erratically change directions and make a completely unpredictable maneuver that almost caused me to have an accident. Then the car started shaking violently, and would not stop. I thought at first I might have blown the differential, or even worse the transmission but since the wheels were still turning, and the car could shift through all 7 gears it wasn't that. I noticed that engine power was way down, and any application of throttle resulted in the shaking becoming severely worse. When I pulled over, the motor died, as a manual transmission would if you forgot to depress the clutch pedal or place it in neutral. I attempted to start the car again, and it started up fine and went back to normal. This means the car went into some kind of protection/limp mode, something I have never seen an N/A motor do before. I guess the car got scared. I have also noticed that when the car does start to spin the rear wheels, especially when a tail slide is initiated the ECU implements ignition retard, cutting power to the motor even when the throttle is engaged, causing the wheel spin to stop along with the fun.

Anyway, I was curious to try the dyno mode because evidently that disables all the systems, ESP, ABS, limp mode, etc. so I can enjoy my car as much as possible before Mercedes buys it back. I am very unsatisfied with this car, and do not want to continue owning it. I have already expressed my issues with it to MBZ and am awaiting a response from them. I have never returned a car so this is a new one for me. Hopefully, they will be willing to buy it back soon, because the next step for me is to put my GOPRO cameras all over it, take it to the track and demonstrate exactly what I have described here, post it on youtube and link every car enthusiast forum on planet earth to it so everyone can see for themselves. I promise that if I take it to that level it will drastically impact the sales of this vehicle.

If you are planning to buy this car to be a burn-out machine, drifting around corners with a smile on your face sedan like I was you will not be happy. If this doesn't matter to you then here are some other things about the car that I find to be laughable on a car that costs over $100k:

1. AMG button (similar to the ///M button) cannot be programmed with ESP off
2. Foot e-brake (instead of electronic e-brake)
3. Navigation system is worthless and 5 years behind any other car
4. No key memory for seat position/mirrors/steering wheel
5. No power folding mirrors (are you kidding me)
6. iPod cord in the glove box instead of arm rest console (also iPod cord doesn't charge iPod or iPhone... lol)
7. Backup camera is terrible, it's like looking through a drunk fish's eye
8. Park sensors are confusing, no visual aid on the Command screen
9. Integrated garage door opener malfunctions and erases stored codes about once a month for no reason

There is more, but I personally think that with these issues it is a no brainer to stay away from this car. I hope I have helped stop many others from the dissatisfaction that I have had to endure so far. Unfortunately, after this I don't think I will ever own another Mercedes-Benz in my life.

-Matt

Originally Posted by zoom

would you recommend a 07 E63?

Originally Posted by 220S

Congrats on the B7. Totally different car (and a lot more $$, too.)

I'd go with a "M7" (ie Alpina B7) over the E63 any day

p.s., but it's a curious purchase if you were looking for performance over luxury. C&D said: We’re never quite sure why luxury-car owners feel the need to buy sportier versions of luxury liners, but the B7 strikes us as a nice compromise, even if it lacks the grittiness of the AMG S Class machine.

Originally Posted by racer m

...That's because C&D journalists have the insight of a 12 year old. People buy the sportier versions of luxury cars, 1. because they can, and 2. because they are faster, sound better, more prestigious and look more bad *** than the regular model.

I bought my E63 as my daily to replace my E60 M5 I sold, but after hating the Mercedes, at the time, the 7 series was the only option I was interested in... I opted for the Alpina, and it's probably my favorite car I have ever owned to this day. Not only does it get compliments and rubber-neck stares from ages 20-70 on a daily basis, but its the best combination of comfort, sex appeal, and sportiness of any car I've ever owned or driven. It has plenty of power available in stock form, awesome brakes and handling for a car it's size, and a simple dyno day with a skilled tuner can yield another 70-80 bhp from the twin turbo motor which would put it close to 600 if one desires. It fits 5 comfortably, has an awesome stereo, navigation with Google Maps, and valets love to park it in front anywhere you go at no additional charge. I highly recommend one.

PS: I'll also add that the automatic transmission in the Alpina when placed in the sport mode, almost always chooses the appropriate gear for any situation, unlike the E63 (I always drove mine in M mode because of this, which is not always preferred). The BMW always carries the RPMs through a corner, and down shifts at the correct times, by itself, while the E63 (regardless of what mode the transmission is in: C, S, S+) will upshift at 2k RPMS or less all the time unless you mash the throttle... and if you do so it gets confused and leaves the car revved out at almost red-line for a prolonged period if you decide to coast, before realizing to make a jerky up-shift which is highly annoying. BMW wins every time.

Originally Posted by 220S

Matt, I agree with the point about C&D (and most auto media for that matter.) I was just curious as to the luxury side of it (you seem more performance oriented in your desires.) Also when they felt the S Class AMG was "grittier" than the B7 (although who really knows what the hell that means anyway.)

The B7 is really more in line with the S65. The B7 costs a LOT more than the E63, too. It's up there with the CL65 and S65. Not arguing it's not a better choice over the E63, but that it's just in a different league.

When I saw your post I assumed you'd be saying you were getting rid of the E63 for the F10 M5. But yeah, the B7 is a great ride. Enjoy.

Originally Posted by g.smiley

What would you recommend instead? An M5 or GTR? Interesting point of view.

Originally Posted by mikey boy1

g. smiley..

please dont tell me that you have crossed, or are considering crossing into the dark side of BMW and Nissans.

These cars are fast and might perform marginally better the the Mercedes-Benz E63/////AMG but dont let that fool you.

Those cars consist of ultra low quality parts, and are poorly assembly.

I feel that it is necessary for me to raise the plag on OP

Originally Posted by racer m

I do agree on one thing, you cannot compare an M5 to a GTR, and even if a Nissan is built with "cheap Japanese parts," it will hand every Mercedes on the planet its *** on a platter around every race track and drag strip in the world. That is one car you definitely don't want to f**k with.

Originally Posted by racer m

For someone else in the performance sedan market I would recommend a BMW M5, Porsche Panamera (if you can handle the look), or a CTS-V. Basically, anything besides a Mercedes.

I will never own another Mercedes in my life, and I feel sorry for people who are shelling out $100k plus for a car that is far inferior to the competition

Kind regards.

Originally Posted by racer m

I opted for the Alpina

Originally Posted by racer m

The only quality part in a Mercedes is under the hood, and if you feel good spending $100k on a $30k motor surrounded by over priced garbage for a brand name that was a big status symbol in the 80's (when they actually made a decent car) then so be it. Most educated car enthusiasts know this, one of which you are obviously not.

Originally Posted by 503C43 ////AMG

True, unless it blows its engine or tranny

in which case I will hand every GT-R on the planet its *** on a platter around every race track and drag strip in the world on my Schwinn. That is one bicycle you definitely don't want to f**k with

Thought I would throw this one in to lighten the mood:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOAXJTTc__w

The "a$$hole in the R8 deep staging" comment had me CRYING

Originally Posted by racer m

I'm assuming all these vid links are of GTRs blowing up (I didn't watch any of them)... FYI, tranny failures on GTRs are always due to driver error aka abuse, they don't just pop on their own. Mostly, this abuse involves using the launch control repeatedly, which is very hard on 1st gear as the car launches with brutal force, has an extremely strong clutch and after the clutch the next thing to snap is the tranny. Also, idiots turning off the t/c and doing donuts (with the rear torque bias this is quite easy) is another easy way to over heat and blow up the GTR trannys. Add some engine mods to the equation and it's even easier to grenade it. However, a simple $2k or so and you can get the PPG 1st gear and input shaft with associated hardware upgrade and blowing up trannys is all in the past. Running a high end transmission oil is also recommended, Willall Racing oil being the best (its not cheap, but better than buying a $22k tranny). However, most people are too lazy, cheap or ignorant to do so and they are the ones who destroy their drivetrain.

The fact that people can spend $80k on the car, but are too cheap to fork over another couple grand to protect their transmission is beyond me. My GTR makes over 700whp and I've tracked the **** out of it and never had one failure (I pay attention to the temp gauge also). Besides my engine mods, my car runs on active aero downforce and R compound tires which will make over 1.6 lateral Gs on nearly every corner over 50mph that has the car loaded up for over 2 seconds, putting an ever bigger strain on the transmission... yet still, no failures.

There is no doubt that Nissan built a sub-par transmission in the first few years, especially in the cooling department, but a few mods can take care of that easily. It's pretty simple, if you don't want to have a failure don't use launch control, don't do donuts, or spend a few bucks.