lja1575

Hi all,

Wondering if I could get some advice. I currently drive a 2013 Cayenne GTS, and am considering a switch to an E63 wagon. Just wanted to hear if any of you could share your real world driving experience in the snow with winter tires. I live in New York City, and frequently drive to Vermont on the weekends , and I drive to work in the suburbs at 5-5:30 am before the roads have been fully salted/plowed (this will be my sole vehicle) -- do any of you feel that the fixed torque distribution of the AMG 4matic system adversely effects snow performance? I realize that this will not perform as well in the snow as my cayenne, but just wanted to know if it is passable. Thanks.

C280 Sport

With a good quality set of snow tires or all season tires you should be fine. Keep it in C mode or E mode as I believe it is on the E63. It will start the car off in second gear causing less of a slip to the wheels. If you drive up to Vermont I87 out of NYC is usually plowed well. Or do you take back roads?

lja1575

I typically take the taconic up north, then cross over to VT on backroads. My house in vermont is on a dirt road -- another possible wrinkle in the winter.

Phoeny

Hi,don't worry the 4matic will garantee perfect traction in any condition!
If you're going to drive on heavily snowed roads you'd better buy premium quality winter tires,then select C mode and enjoy your superwagon; in case you're looking for even more traction you can purchase smaller rims.
I've tried personally how good the 4matic system is on snowy roads and on a dirttrack in the woods with deep snow(my E has 500 nm of torque),no problem at all thank to the ESP which transfer the torque immediately where is necessary.

ace10

Depending on the tires on your pepper, a properly-shod E63S might outperform it in wintery conditions.

It's all about the tires. Unless you're dealing with deep, deep snow, and then the E63S is not going to perform due to marginal ground clearance.

This is the tire thread:

https://mbworld.org/forums/w212-amg/...revisited.html

Clk63blkseries

Rockland County NY here - If you have 4 snows on it you will have no traction issues the only issue will be ground clearance in big fresh snow falls. I went from an ML63 to the wagon and loved my ML but don't look back for a second the wagon is a beast

kart125

Car is quite impressive in the snow and ice with the Nokian Hakka8 I installed. I drive up north every week end and feel safe to do so with the 3 kids in the backseat! For sure the fixed 67/33 ratio in the AMG 4matic will let you get te rear loose if not careful (or if you want to!) but if you keep it in C with ESP full on it will not be a problem. After a couple of weeks in the snow now I feel that ESP in sport mode makes the car more capable in the snow since power cutout is less intrusive.

SilveRT8

Also from cold icy and snowy Montreal, north of Vermont and impressive grip from the Nokian Hakka8, 255-35 all around, same set-up as Kart125.
Also not a squeak yet from the CCB brakes, even in -10F.

lja1575

Thanks for the reply -- really helpful info. I guess my next decision is whether to take the plunge now, or wait another year or so for a possible W213??

otakki

If some kinds of temporary snow plow attachment is available, the ground clearance issue for this car would be solved.

Lenin

In the case of W213 AMG wagon, you first need to know if there will be such a thing sold in the US. if see a major emphasis on the G versions and less on wagons. There is no C wagon in the US and Audi is not selling the RS6 in the US. Then there is the first year model problems. This is a fact of life. The reliability/quality goes up with the production years for any model and any manufacture. The last thing is the 4.0 TT vs. 5.5 TT engine. MB is putting high hopes on the 4.0 TT but time will tell how well putting the turbo in the V of the engine will work out vs. external turbo placement. Just a few things to think about.

TheOtherEric

"Passable"?? LOL. The E63 4Matic with winter tires is amazing in the snow! The fixed torque distribution has a big advantage: the car is totally predictable, a big bonus with so much power. +1. The standard ESP setting cuts the throttle and takes a second or two before the car returns control to you, which is irritating. I want to countersteer and throttle out of a slide, so I prefer Sport ESP in the snow. But you better be comfortable with your skills if using Sport ESP in snow.

One more thing: sliding through snow shows you just how well balanced the E63 wagon is. Really well done by AMG.

grimesch

Took delivery of my E63 ('15) in January, after ED in November. It replaced my '11 E350 wagon, which is one of the few cars that can make it up my son's driveway, so I gave it to his wife! E63 is different in handling. It goes anywhere but handles a little more skittishly, particularly when accelerating after turning. A little fishtailing, then straightens right out. It came with Perelli Zero Nero tires, which I replaced with Hakkapalitas for the winter. My last car has Michelin X-Ice for winter and has never been stuck (while under my command). Unfortunately, X-Ices are not available for the E63 tire size. I will use the Pirelli's after March. The E63 is VERY complicated. Requires the manual and the CD manual plus a lot of playing around. Most cerebral car I have had. I have the drive assist options which I have de-activated as the snow covers the lines in the highway and the dirt and salt covers the sensors and cameras. What a crime that is. Having said that, I have no regrets, except that I live in a place with 5-6 months of winter and 3 months of poor sledding. No worry as we head to Florida in 4 weeks for a couple of months. Snow/mud should be gone when we get back to Vermont.
Apropos your comparison with Cayenne, one is an SUV the other is a luxury car, with the relative clearances. I have done the SUV route (Jeep), and the sports car route (Maserati) but now have the ULTIMATE! Nuff said.

benyl

Not sure why you turn off all the driving aids.

My car works perfectly fine. The only problem is the cameras on the 360 view get covered in mud. All other sensors work as they should. Snow or mud covered. Sure, lane tracking doesn't work, but it doesn't interfere with anything just because it can't see lines on the road.

grimesch

Love your pics. Actually white looks better in road crap than my mocha black, but unfortunately my car was worse. Anyway, when I picked up the car in Shelburne, VT, (Automaster), I headed the 40 miles to my home on I-89. I had forgotten that I had left the lane keeping assist on when I turned the car in in Frankfurt. I put it in cruise control, and within a couple of miles the car started weaving seriously all over the road. It was crappy weather and the effect was alarming. I pulled over and scrolled through the menus, finally getting the setting off. No more problems. But a week later, driving back from Newport RI in a sleet storm on I-93 through Boston, everything shut down. Virtually none of the sensors was working. I had to stop and chisel off the ice and slush, but then operation was only intermittent. I was familiar with that from my E350 wagon that also got covered in ice in our fabulous NE winters. My wife was driving and …well you get the idea. Dumb car, we paid 114k for this nonsense, our last car was just fine, yadda yadda. She had a point, of course. I have had to wash our car twice a week for the last two months, just to be able to hold my head up. Whatever..This is my fifth wagon and is by far the finest car I have ever driven, so all in all, no complaints. And, by the way, it is fantastic in snow, absent the mud.

lja1575

Good to know that a native Vermonter approves of the snow performance! That's definitely reassuring. Right now I'm about 50/50 between buying the E63 vs buying a Range Rover sport. I've been able to negotiate about 10 percent off msrp on the E63. Only able to negotiate 1500 off msrp on the Range Rover. Similar offers on the trade in. All in I'd be spending about 12 grand more on the E63. I know they are very different cars -- I just have to figure out what's more important to me: better performance or little more practicality. I know, first world problems...

kart125

For a car with such incredible performance (600 + HP stock on dynos) it's a blast to drive in winter. It feels safe and planted in C mode with full ESP, and feels completely wild in S+ with ESP off... I prefer S+ with ESP in Sport mode.

mad141

What snow tires are you using on your OEM wheels? I have the exact same car that I am going to be using in Park City, Utah this winter and I need snows, but I don't want to get new wheels. Let me know! Thanks.

herpderp

just look up whats available for a snow tire via tirerack.com.

SilveRT8

Nokian Hakka 8, size 255-35-19 all around.
The best of the best for the toughest winters, from all the serious winter tire tests !

iconoclast

Now that you all have a few winters under your belt... How has the E63 4matic held up through winter? Does it handle well with dedicated snow tires and wheels? Outside of getting "high centered" from the lack of clearance are there any traction issues?

e65

i got hakka 8. E63S. excellent in the snow and ice. ive gone off the road on snow hills to park when our parking lot is full, those spots have trucks, SUVs and an E63. it will handle anything on paved roads.

SilveRT8

4 Quebec winters done so far, car is just amazing !

iconoclast

Glad to read. Thank you gentlemen.

thesaintusa

Just ordered a set of Nokian R3 / winter wheels for the E63. If I didn't have an epoxy finished garage floor I would have gone with the Hakka 8/9 studded. Previously had a set of studded Hakka 4 and they were AMAZING!!!!!!!!

Not expecting any issues at all with the E63.


Based on my experience driving my C63 for 3 winters with just RWD and never having an issue, the E63 will manage even better.

Anything approaching 6+inches of snow I will just take the Subaru STi or the Jeep.