RE: Mercedes plots potent C Class
Thursday 3rd November 2005
C55 AMG packs a mere 367bhpMercedes is plotting an even mightier version of the C-Class 55 AMG, if reports are to be believed. A prototype packing AMG's new 6.3-litre V8 with 510bhp and 465lb-ft of torque -- compared to the standard car's 367bhp and 376lb-ft -- has been reported in Autocar.
Mercedes plots potent C Class
New C55 AMG aims to banjax BMW and Audi
C55 AMG packs a mere 367bhp
Aimed straight at the upcoming BMW M3 and Audi RS4, the car won't produced in volume, says the report. Instead, it'll be made in a limited run for 'a preferred set of customers'. Compared to the standard car, pictured above, it'll gain width at the rear with a widened track by using the rear axle from the DTM (German touring car), plus additional cooling vents at the front for that monster motor.
The standard C-Class 55 AMG costs £48,765, while the RS4 is priced at £49,980. The bill for the new prototype seems likely to be a tad more.
But then, who would want a car with so much power that they couldn't use? Not PHers, surely?
Discussion
It's not really aiming at the same driver of an M3, the Mercs are aimed more at the refined muscle car market, monster engine mated with a slushbox and to hell with handling. Should go down well with the Americans then. The M3 is about a great drive, a delciate balance between, power, grip and handling, whereas the Merc is about burnouts, acceleration and bragging rights.
A very nice car indeed but not really the same philosophy as an M3.
A very nice car indeed but not really the same philosophy as an M3.
r988 said:
It's not really aiming at the same driver of an M3, the Mercs are aimed more at the refined muscle car market, monster engine mated with a slushbox and to hell with handling. Should go down well with the Americans then. The M3 is about a great drive, a delciate balance between, power, grip and handling, whereas the Merc is about burnouts, acceleration and bragging rights.
A very nice car indeed but not really the same philosophy as an M3.
Nothing wrong with the handling of various C class AMGs I've had a go in (Early C36 and recent C55).
DAZ
don logan said:
yeah, "nothing wrong with C class handling"
unless you DON`T like premature understeer
unless you`d actually like to have some rights with regard to traction control!!!!! (please don`t tell me you can switch it off)
It`s going to be a fast C class, that`s all it`s going to be!
I own one( C32AMG) I love it but it has massive understeer and very poor traction in the wet and inert steering. It is NOT a drivers car
maff said:
Traction Control (ESP) can be 100% switched off on recent AMG models, it's called the ESP Test/Dyno mode and is accessed via a number of keypresses from the instrument cluster and steering wheel buttons....... should you want to switch it off alltogether.
Hell yeah i'd have one. And with regards to the above quote, would you be able to tell me how? I quite often run trackdays here in australia and we get cars on loan from AMG - a 'how to' guide would be great!
to me it seems like mercedes is trying to push for a last few sales of the current c-class model before the launch of the new model. anyway, with the overlap of many models (in terms of price) wouldnt it be better to get the e55 amg even if it is slightly more expensive, as i would have thought the c32amg was more than enough for a c-class to handle.
medic_02 said:
Traction Control (ESP) can be 100% switched off on recent AMG models, it's called the ESP Test/Dyno mode and is accessed via a number of keypresses from the instrument cluster and steering wheel buttons....... should you want to switch it off alltogether.
Hell yeah i'd have one. And with regards to the above quote, would you be able to tell me how? I quite often run trackdays here in australia and we get cars on loan from AMG - a 'how to' guide would be great!
The DYNO mode disables ESP, BAS and ABS.
This is how you get into the hidden menu in the MFD.
1. Insert your key and turn to position 1.
2. Press the trip odometer reset button three (3) times.
3. The first screen you will see on the MFD is the battery voltage in the following format - UB: 12.0 V
4. Press the UP arrow button on the steering wheel.
5. You will now see other information such as Software Version, etc. If you turn the key to position 2 you will get a oil reading by QTS and other info will appear.
6. If you want to put the car into DYNO mode which will disable ESP and BAS, leave the key in position 1 and hit the up arrow until you see the screen that says "ESP Dynamometer Test".
7. At this screen use your + or - steering wheel button to turn this mode ON.
8. You will get some malfunctions due to ESP, BAS, etc. being off, but this is not a problem and they will go away once you disable the DYNO mode.
9. You can start you car now to DYNO it without all the electronic wizardry getting in the way.
CAUTION: DO NOT DRIVE LIKE THIS OR BAD THINGS MAY HAPPEN. ESP, BAS, ABS are desirable when driving
10. To exit out of DYNO mode, simply turn your car off then back on and it will reset to normal.
I'm not sure this really counts as news; it's something AMG have offered for quite a while. Provided you can foot the bill, they'll build a bespoke combination of chassis and engine for you. For example, somebody had an A32 AMG made of the previous A-Class with the Supercharged 3.2 V6 out of the C32 and SLK32, and there's a CLS32 AMG that I've seen around with the same motor (obviously someone with interesting tastes, it probably cost more than the CLS55. And no, it's not a rebadged diesel).
So there's already a mechanism in place for getting bigger power if you want it. That said, I can't see Merc dropping the high power derivative of their brand new unit in (arguably) the vehicle with least prestige (it won't fit in an A-Class). And 510bhp is a bit silly really, not only is it more than 25% more power than the yet-to-be-released M3, it's more than an M5 and an E55.
It may be a special of the upcoming all-new C-Class, but I'd imagine that will have the existing 5.5 V8 Kompressor engine, which has a 500bhp derivative (in addition to more sane outputs), rather than dropping in the 6.3 and stealing the thunder of the future SL63, CL63, ML63, S63, and probably E63.
So there's already a mechanism in place for getting bigger power if you want it. That said, I can't see Merc dropping the high power derivative of their brand new unit in (arguably) the vehicle with least prestige (it won't fit in an A-Class). And 510bhp is a bit silly really, not only is it more than 25% more power than the yet-to-be-released M3, it's more than an M5 and an E55.
It may be a special of the upcoming all-new C-Class, but I'd imagine that will have the existing 5.5 V8 Kompressor engine, which has a 500bhp derivative (in addition to more sane outputs), rather than dropping in the 6.3 and stealing the thunder of the future SL63, CL63, ML63, S63, and probably E63.
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