Benz S 63 AMG |
The S 63 AMG has been around for over three years now, but Mercedes' recent changes to
the S-Class line-up have been applied to the AMG version too, bringing some styling revisions along with technical and specification improvements across the range. There are no changes to the S 63 AMG's engine performance - the 6.2-litre V8 hardly lacking - but economy and emissions are improved - even if it's difficult to get too excited about 19.5mpg and 347g/km CO
2. All this does give us an excuse to drive it again - as if we need persuading to spend a day in a 518bhp saloon.
In the Metal
Merc's facelifted S-Class range benefits from a slightly more angular grille, the incorporation of LED lighting front and rear and some trick new equipment like an infotainment screen that can display different outputs to the driver and front seat passenger. The visual changes on the outside are pretty difficult to spot - unless your job title includes some combination of the words 'Designer' and 'Mercedes-Benz S-Class'.
That's no criticism, as the S-Class was a good looking car before its mid-life refresh. Naturally, along with a screaming V8, the AMG model features some styling additions. The usual deeper bumpers, side skirts, driving lights, AMG badging and quad tailpipes make sure you're left in no doubt the S 63 is something altogether a little more potent. The expensive optional matte finish paint on our test car only added to the air of underlying menace.
What you get for your Money
As one of the flagship models in the range, the S 63 comes with a bewildering list of acronyms to help you use its performance effectively and safely. The interior is awash with buttons and the seats are moved, massaged, cooled and shaped by more electric motors than you'll find at a Scalextric convention. At around £100,000 you'd expect that of course, the S 63's real talking point being the fitment of AMG's 6.2-litre V8 powerplant, which allows it to sprint to 62mph in just 4.6 seconds - that's quicker than a
Porsche 911 Carrera S. All in four-seated, leather-lined luxury. This thing's a cruise missile, for managing directors in a hurry.
Driving it
The S 63 AMG delivers an interesting conundrum as it sounds fantastic from the outside (the 6.2-litre V8 a real performer aurally from the side of the road) and while it can be heard inside, at all but the extremes of its rev range it's muted so it's not overpowering. Five hundred and eighteen bhp makes this one rapid way of conveying four in real luxury, though being naturally aspirated the AMG's V8 needs plenty of revs to deliver its startling performance. That means you'll be busy with the paddle-shifters on the steering wheel, constantly swapping the seven cogs in pursuit of high revs for instant response. You can leave the gearbox to its own devices, but you'll often find its choices frustrating, leaving you to intervene to sort it out.
There's a choice of suspension settings, the ABC body control system delivering either taut responsiveness or a more comfort-orientated ride. It's unusual to find yourself pushing the Sport button simply because of the S 63's size. It's not a car you'll naturally feel inclined to hustle, bar the odd exploration into the upper rev-range to enjoy the noise and fairground-ride acceleration. It feels huge on the road though, so it is enjoyed better as a dragster on the straights than in the bends. That's not to say there's not talent to its chassis; switch off the ESP - a long-winded process involving lots of sub menus on the instrument panel - and the S-Class will power oversteer like a drift machine, but with the lifeless steering it's not something you'll ever feel inclined to do.
All which begs the question as to the point of the S 63 AMG. It lacks the easy nature of its lesser relatives and doesn't really deliver much more in terms of driver involvement. It's mightily quick, but the S 500 isn't exactly lacking in performance either and the latter does the 'luxury' car bit better, too.
Worth Noting
The S-Class comes absolutely loaded with technology. There is a blind spot warning system, attention assist, radar guided cruise control, pre-safe (which prepares the car in the event of an unavoidable collision) and more airbags than they used to lift the Mary Rose from the bottom of the English Channel. Many of those driver 'aids' prove rather distracting and detract from the S 63's aim of being an involving driver's car. The lane assist system that vibrates the steering wheel when you cross white lines without indicating is particularly distracting, though thankfully it is easy to switch it off.
Summary
AMG's 6.2-litre V8 undoubtedly adds performance to the S-Class range, but its high-revving nature is sometimes at odds with the S-Class's otherwise refined demeanour. For all but a handful of AMG fans the S 500 is a more rounded, more useable proposition - and hardly slower against the clock. It's also around £25,000 cheaper.
Thanks to Elsenham Spring Water.
