Factory collection of my new C63 AMG PPP
Discussion
Here is the new member of the Palmball family; this is my second C63 AMG, the first one being a regular 451bhp C63 with Performance Pack which another forum member bought from me. This gave me the chance to buy a new one in the spec I always wanted - white bodywork with a cream interior (it looks very Beverley Hills....which is probably not to everyones taste) and leather dashboard.
Most importantly, I really needed (!!) the Performance Package Plus which has uprated composite brakes and many of the engine internals from the SLS AMG (forged pistons, lightweight crankshaft, new conrods and new ECU program) giving the car a much needed increase in power to 487bhp!
I also opted to collect the car from the factory which in itself was a fantastic experience.
I'll start with describing just how good the factory collection option is and if anyone buys a new Mercedes then they must consider doing this!
Firstly, it's free (well, in a way you're paying for it as you still pay for delivery of the car but have to 'deliver' it yourself!). The package includes business class flights to Stuttgart, all taxi transfers, one night in a 4-5* hotel of your choice (from a set list), evening meal and breakfast. They also give a you a 2-hour tour of the factory and after you collect your car, it's provided with a full tank of fuel, temporary German plates, insurance for any driver and the Eurostar / Ferry crossing home.
In effect, you could end up paying nothing for the trip except for fuel - which in the C63 meant it still cost me around £200 to get home! The whole experience was extremely well organised (they apparently process between 150 and 450 factory collections per day depending on day and time of year) and if anyone orders a new car and has the option of factory collect (not only Mercedes, I think BMW do it too??), I cannot recommend this experience highly enough.
So, what about the car? For anyone who's mildly interested, does a Performance Pack Plus C63 really go any better than a normal C63?
Well firstly, these cars are simply RUDE; it's 2 months since I sold my first C63 so I was yet again amazed at the sound these cars make. There's not a lot that sounds like a C63 from either inside or hearing it drive by....its like a proper little 'European' muscle car...if ever there was one!
The interior quality is exceptional; the leather dash option really does transform the interior into something very special and expensive looking.
Performance wise, I initially couldn't really tell much difference between the old non-plus C63 and this more powerful version but I think this was more to do with the two-month gap between driving the two.
Now I've run it in (it's already breezed past 1k miles in under a week), I can now definitely confirm the difference above 5k rpm is very obvious. So much so that at the top end the acceleration actually takes your breath away and in manual mode you've got to be extremely quick to pull on the paddle to stop it running into the limiter. In normal driving it feels just like a slightly freer revving version of a normal C63 but at the top end it feels like it has quite a bit more than the extra 30bhp that AMG officially says it has.
Compared to my previous e92 BMW M3, this car is significantly quicker. Unlike a lot of C63's, mine does have a proper LSD yet despite this, it still doesn't handle quite as well as the M3 (it just seems a lot 'heavier'). On a track, I've no doubt it would probably just about hang onto an M3 despite having 20% more power and 50% more torque but in my opinion and after owning both, the C63 is a much more satisfying road car to own. It's also fantastically easy to go sideways everywhere thanks to the diff and the huge amounts of torque. The build quality too is exceptionally good with no rattles, something I couldn't say about the e92!
Here's some pictures of the collection centre in Stuttgart....
They put out the flags of the nationalities picking up their car on that day....
The first time I saw my new car coming out from the back of the factory....
And some more pictures after a whole day detailing it with some Swissvax Best of Show!
Most importantly, I really needed (!!) the Performance Package Plus which has uprated composite brakes and many of the engine internals from the SLS AMG (forged pistons, lightweight crankshaft, new conrods and new ECU program) giving the car a much needed increase in power to 487bhp!
I also opted to collect the car from the factory which in itself was a fantastic experience.I'll start with describing just how good the factory collection option is and if anyone buys a new Mercedes then they must consider doing this!
Firstly, it's free (well, in a way you're paying for it as you still pay for delivery of the car but have to 'deliver' it yourself!). The package includes business class flights to Stuttgart, all taxi transfers, one night in a 4-5* hotel of your choice (from a set list), evening meal and breakfast. They also give a you a 2-hour tour of the factory and after you collect your car, it's provided with a full tank of fuel, temporary German plates, insurance for any driver and the Eurostar / Ferry crossing home.
In effect, you could end up paying nothing for the trip except for fuel - which in the C63 meant it still cost me around £200 to get home! The whole experience was extremely well organised (they apparently process between 150 and 450 factory collections per day depending on day and time of year) and if anyone orders a new car and has the option of factory collect (not only Mercedes, I think BMW do it too??), I cannot recommend this experience highly enough.
So, what about the car? For anyone who's mildly interested, does a Performance Pack Plus C63 really go any better than a normal C63?
Well firstly, these cars are simply RUDE; it's 2 months since I sold my first C63 so I was yet again amazed at the sound these cars make. There's not a lot that sounds like a C63 from either inside or hearing it drive by....its like a proper little 'European' muscle car...if ever there was one!
The interior quality is exceptional; the leather dash option really does transform the interior into something very special and expensive looking.
Performance wise, I initially couldn't really tell much difference between the old non-plus C63 and this more powerful version but I think this was more to do with the two-month gap between driving the two.
Now I've run it in (it's already breezed past 1k miles in under a week), I can now definitely confirm the difference above 5k rpm is very obvious. So much so that at the top end the acceleration actually takes your breath away and in manual mode you've got to be extremely quick to pull on the paddle to stop it running into the limiter. In normal driving it feels just like a slightly freer revving version of a normal C63 but at the top end it feels like it has quite a bit more than the extra 30bhp that AMG officially says it has.
Compared to my previous e92 BMW M3, this car is significantly quicker. Unlike a lot of C63's, mine does have a proper LSD yet despite this, it still doesn't handle quite as well as the M3 (it just seems a lot 'heavier'). On a track, I've no doubt it would probably just about hang onto an M3 despite having 20% more power and 50% more torque but in my opinion and after owning both, the C63 is a much more satisfying road car to own. It's also fantastically easy to go sideways everywhere thanks to the diff and the huge amounts of torque. The build quality too is exceptionally good with no rattles, something I couldn't say about the e92!
Here's some pictures of the collection centre in Stuttgart....
They put out the flags of the nationalities picking up their car on that day....
The first time I saw my new car coming out from the back of the factory....
And some more pictures after a whole day detailing it with some Swissvax Best of Show!
Edited by Palmball on Monday 3rd May 19:18
Interesting read, thanks for posting! I can't see any of the pictures though - you may want to remove the [url] tags so you've just got
{img}http://thumbsnap.com/sc/4gouPmv1.jpg{/img}, for example.
Edit: whoops, forgot making the tag would mean the image is on my post
{img}http://thumbsnap.com/sc/4gouPmv1.jpg{/img}, for example.
Edit: whoops, forgot making the tag would mean the image is on my post
Edited by sebhaque on Monday 3rd May 18:00
Palmball said:
Thanks for the nice comments - apologies for the photo's, it's the first time I've put up photo's on here and I'm clearly utter rubbish at it!
I have amended them - are they visible to everyone now? How do you get full size photo's on this forum?
I can't see them anyway.. Upload them onto a website like tinypic.com or imageshack.us then copy the .jpg link and put it between these [pic] .jpg link [/pic] (Obviously with no spaces)...?I have amended them - are they visible to everyone now? How do you get full size photo's on this forum?
The Mercedes factory collection is something I read about a few years ago.. It's something i'd love to experience!
Cant wait to see the car!
Conor D said:
I can't see them anyway.. Upload them onto a website like tinypic.com or imageshack.us then copy the .jpg link and put it between these [pic] .jpg link [/pic] (Obviously with no spaces)...?
Thanks for helping a very dumb person out 
- it's quite simple when you know how! With any luck it should now be fixed with decent sized and viewable photo's for all!Edited by Palmball on Monday 3rd May 19:23
Palmball said:
Conor D said:
I can't see them anyway.. Upload them onto a website like tinypic.com or imageshack.us then copy the .jpg link and put it between these [pic] .jpg link [/pic] (Obviously with no spaces)...?
Thanks for helping a very dumb person out - it's quite simple when you know how! With any luck it should now be fixed with decent sized and viewable photo's for all!Edited by Palmball on Monday 3rd May 19:23
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