This is the 2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, the performance version of the facelifted C-Class, which will make its official show debut at the 2011 Geneva Salon in early March. Available in both sedan and estate body styles, the C63 AMG receives a styling makeover as well as a series mechanical and chassis tweaks.
On the outside, the C63 AMG sports the same design changes as the rest of the range including the new L-shaped headlamps, adding to the mix a new aluminum hood, restyled bumpers with LED day time lights up front, a revised grille and specific alloy wheel designs. We don’t have any photos of the interior yet, but the cabin will feature the standard model’s revised dashboard spruced up with AMG-specific trim.
For the 2012 model year, the C63 AMG keeps the pre-facelift’s naturally aspirated 6.2-litre V8 engine with 336 kW and 600 Nm of peak torque, but gets the firm’s new AMG speed-shift MCT 7-speed sports transmission, which helps improve fuel consumption by around ten percent to 12 L/100km for the sedan and 12.3 L/100km for the Estate. The four door model completes the 0 – 100km/h sprint in 4.5 seconds, while its Estate sibling in 4.6 seconds.
An available performance package pushes output to 358 kW, allowing the sedan to reach 100 km/h in 4.4 seconds and the estate in 4.5 seconds.
AMG engineers have also tweaked the suspension settings promising improved handling characteristics.
