The new Mercedes-AMG C 63 arrives, this time without a V8, but with an even wilder electrified heart
Published by The team in News the 20/09/2022 at 11:08
Mercedes-AMG has already revealed the presentation date of the new C 63. It has done so through a teaser published on the social network Twitter which shows the silhouette of the sports sedan, which will arrive two years after the launch of the generation current Mercedes-Benz C -Class.
Along with the image, the German brand revealed key information about the future rival of the BMW M3. The #EPERFORMANCE hashtag makes it clear that the new Mercedes-AMG C 63 will be a plug-in hybrid, like the most brutal models from the German brand's sports division.
Same recipe as their elders
The first was the 863bhp Mercedes-AMG GT 63 SE Performance four-door coupé and the Mercedes-AMG One was the second plug-in hybrid from Mercedes-Benz's high-performance division. Both play in much higher leagues, but have taken their technology to more earthly models. Or rather less exclusive.
And it is that the C-Class signed by AMG is the next step in the compact Mercedes-AMG. Of course, until now the Mercedes-AMG C-Class has been available with huge V8 engines , but that will change from Wednesday, when the most brutal fifth-generation version of the German sedan will be presented.
This time, Mercedes-AMG will not rely on a V8 block, so we can already say that sports sedans with eight cylinder engines are dead . The BMW M3 has long since abandoned this type of mechanics and the same thing happened with the Audi S4 (the RS4 is only sold with a family body and is not V8 either).
Only the Mercedes-AMG C 63 and Lexus IS remained; the German will abandon this type of engine with the generation that will be presented on Wednesday and the Japanese, which is now called Lexus IS 500 F Sport Performance, is no longer marketed in Europe.
But just because the new Mercedes-AMG C 63 doesn't use a V-shaped eight-cylinder engine doesn't mean it's going to be slow. Rather the opposite. Right now, the rival to beat is the BMW M3 Competition with an inline six-cylinder engine and 510 hp. Well, it looks like his star rival is going to far surpass him.
The inhabitants of Affalterbach have already claimed on several occasions that the one responsible for animating the next C 63 will be the brand's well-known M139 block , that is to say the turbocharged 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine that brings life to the 45 and 45 S. versions of the Mercedes-AMG compact range. In all, this block develops 421 hp, always coupled to a dual-clutch automatic transmission and 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive.
That's a lot of power for a compact, but not for a 4.75 meter long sedan. This is where the E Performance part , i.e. Mercedes-AMG's plug-in hybrid technology, comes in.
And according to British outlet Autocar, the C 63 could use the same electrified system as its big brother, the aforementioned four-door, 843bhp Mercedes-AMG GT.
In this way, the four-cylinder engine would be joined by another 150 kW (204 hp) electric motor and a second electric motor which would act as a generator/starter via a 48 volt supply network. A lithium-ion battery with a capacity of 6.1 kWh would be responsible for supplying energy to the 204 hp engine.
In addition, the combustion engine would be placed in a longitudinal position and could deliver more power than in the compacts that have been using it since 2019. Rumors speak of a total power of more than 650 HP , which would be transmitted to the asphalt by an all-wheel-drive system.
This wild package would be accompanied by a radical configuration and a design much more aggressive than that of the other variations of the Class C. What is still not known is if the Mercedes-AMG C 63 E Performance will only come with a sedan body or we'll see it in a wagon version.
On other occasions it has also been available in a convertible and coupé variant , but the latest generation of the C-Class has yet to see the light of day in these formats.
