Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Cabriolet 2017 Review

If the latest C 63 S Coupe is the AMG to drive, then its Cabriolet counterpart is the one to be seen in.

The C 63 S Cabriolet is anything but an exercise in understatement. Pumped out guards, wide rims with alloy highlights and an exhaust note that turns every enthusiast's head, this is not a car in which to attempt to arrive unobserved.

But then observed is exactly what $179,900 cabrio buyers want to be…

Powered by the same 375kW/700Nm twin turbo 4.0-litre V8 as its coupe counterpart, the 63 Cab is claimed to accelerate to 100km/h in just 4.1sec, which is impressive for a 1925kg cabriolet, and has a top speed that is better measured in sentencing terms.

A great number of AMG boxes are ticked. It gets a full AMG chassis makeover, staggered 19 and optional 20-inch wheels, active dynamic engine mounts just like the AMG GT, electronic-controlled locking differential, high-performance brakes (including carbon ceramic options) and, of course, that bimodal exhaust all as standard.

And there’s just about every luxury mod-con you’d ask for, including sat-nav, DAB+ radio, a television tuner (though I just don’t get TVs in the front of what is in practical terms a two-seater), high-spec super-supple Nappa leather and a special anti-pollen air-filtration system (yep, in a convertible – d’oh).

To keep you comfy with the roof down there’s a system that limits buffeting in the front and rear seats, which Mercedes calls Aircap. Activate it and there’s a genuine difference to air movement in the cabin as the twinned windscreen top and rear seat wind deflector and ‘dam’ raise.

The excellent, well bolstered AMG sports seats are also “climatised” in the 63 S (heated and cooled) and the Benz-pioneered Airscarf system blows warm sweet nothings in your ears (actually down your neck) to keep you warm on those perfect still chilly autumn days.

Topless? Hot stuff!
It was, however, 38 degrees the day we jumped into the latest AMG so there was no scarf air or otherwise required. Indeed, after an hour and a half of fighting Sydney traffic on the way out of town to trek to the recent Bathurst 12 Hour, once we reached Windsor I was jack of the open-air in general.

Fortunately, Benz’s latest C-Class Cabriolet has arguably the best cloth roof in the business.

Slow to under 50km/h and it’s a one-button process to raise the beautifully engineered structure – and then given the top’s excellent thermal and acoustic properties, it’s just like being in the coupe.

Except the rear-view mirror shimmies and shakes over anything more than minor bumps.

Are you getting the message I’m no fan of four-seater cabriolets? Sure, I get the Mazda MX-5, Porsche Boxster and even Merc's own SLC. But these big things? Give me a coupe with a panoramic sunroof instead any day.

The pace of the C 63 S is not in question. The stomp of the AMG 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 is mega. Cliched as it is, overtaking is effortless. But there are times when too much is too much.

Dynamic? It moves you
Behind the wheel of the 63 S Cabriolet it's clear that cutting half the structure away has had its effect. On the at-times bumpy Bells line of Road from Kurrajong to Bathurst and back again, the AMG Cabriolet was happiest when not hurried.

That's not to say it doesn't have the grip or mumbo to go fast, it's just that to do so starts to degrade the quality of the experience -- significantly.

There are shimmies from the mirror in a straight line. With the car loaded up in corners bumps soon have the steering column moving perceptibly in your hands. By this stage, the reflection in the windscreen header-mounted rear mirror is more than a touch hazy.

The flexibility is nowhere near the Tupperware-quality exhibited by the last Audi RS 5 Cabriolet yours truly drove, but it is a far cry from the hewn-from-solid feel we’ve come to expect of AMG's sedans and coupes.

Apparently that and $179,900 is the price you pay for the pomp and ceremony of a four-seater convertible with supercar performance.

Is this a sexy, fast and fabulously tuneful attention-seeking missile? You betcha.

Is it my cup of tea? Far from it.

AMG has to make these cars because buyers demand them. I can’t for the life of me believe, however, that the Affalterbach gang’s minute-detail-obsessed engineers like doing it.

Some people will appreciate the fact the Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Cabriolet will provide almost the same sort of entrance you’ll make in a twice-as-expensive Italian, Aston or Bentley.

But frankly, there are far better ways to spend your dollars than on ANY four-seater cabriolet.

2017 Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Cabriolet pricing and specifications:
Price: $179,900 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 4.0-litre twin-turbo petrol V8
Output: 375kW/700Nm
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Fuel: 9.2L/100km
CO2: 202g/km
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP)