Mercedes-Benz CLK 63 AMG Black Series 2008 Review

Mercedes-Benz CLK 63 AMG Black Series

Road Test

RRP: $299,000
Price as tested: see text
Crash rating: Not tested
Fuel: 98 RON Unleaded
Claimed fuel economy (L/100km): 15.3
CO2 emissions (g/km): N/I

Also consider: Ferrari 430 Scuderia (more here), Porsche 911 GT3 (more here), Edge 540

Overall rating: 4.0/5.0
Engine/Drivetrain/Chassis: 4.0/5.0
Price, Packaging and Practicality: 3.0/5.0
Safety: 3.5/5.0
Behind the wheel: 4.5/5.0
X-factor: 5.0/5.0

About our ratings

My list is rather eclectic. There'd be a swag of motorcycles and a rally car -- a Group N Evo IX would do nicely, thanks. Sentimentality would insist that I purchase the MINI Cooper S JCW factory-built tarmac car in which I was lucky enough to contest the last two Targa Tasmanias. For the road there'd be something practical -- probably a near-new E46 M3 -- and to cart around the hangers-on (and tow the racecars), our long-term Touareg TDI V6 would be perfect... I'm nothing if not a man of simple tastes.

But aside from the above, very measured choices, there would be one extravagance -- a car whose purchase price would buy you all of the above, and perhaps then some... I'm talking about the Mercedes-Benz CLK 63 AMG Black Series.

Priced at a dollar under $300K, the CLK Black is a riot. It's proof Germans have a sense of humour. How else can you rationalize a racetrack-prepared 370kW-plus version of what half the automotive world calls a hairdresser's car!

The standard CLK is frankly one of our favourite around town drives. Even with the baseline supercharged four it's, well, nice... Option up to the CLK 350 and you end up with a pleasant, quick and cultured coupe. The sort of car a well-to-do Brighton or Double Bay socialite, or even a more comely lass about town, might cherish.

In building the CLK 63 AMG Mercedes throws that idea out the window. In effect it takes this pretty, feminine two-door and gives it a sex change. And then in the further transformation to CLK Black Series, the boffins at AMG's skunkworks (you can call it the AMG Performance Studio) go even further -- and give it a fully butch, bolt-on overload.

Already a pretty serious bit of kit in CLK 63 form (more here), the Black Series modifications take the coupe's performance to a different level. For a start, there's more power than the standard 63 (373kW versus 353) via new inlet and exhaust systems, the latter with an outrageously beefy note.

AMG claims the extra neddies propel the CLK Black from 0-100km/h in just 4.3sec -- 0.3sec faster than the standard model, though the accelerative difference is more likely to be due to the Black's six per cent shorter rear diff ratio. Top speed is not affected, however, electronically limited to 300km/h, the Black is well up on 250-ish for the standard car.

Even more importantly the suspension, brakes, et al get a proper working over. The car is lowered and boasts a substantial increase in track -- 66mm more up front and a whopping 75mm at the rear. Front and rear suspension bracing is added and the electronically adjustable suspension of the donor 63 AMG is replaced by manually adjustable, racetrack-quality dampers.

Rebound and compression settings are thereafter adjustable, as are front and rear ride heights. Front-end geometry is also changed and made more tunable. The set-up allows racetrack-levels of negative camber -- you can turn your CLK into a knock-kneed V8 Supercar lookalike as the spirit moves you.

The end result is a car that can deliver the sort of razor-sharp turn-in racetracks demand and feedback through the fat-rimmed flat-bottomed wheel that a 911 fan would recognize. Yet, incongruously there's still an automatic transmission -- albeit one that's fettled to sharpen changes up and down the 'box.

Inside the two rear seats are dispensed with, replaced by a carbon-fibre bulkhead that will probably support your helmet and HANS device if you're lucky and settle them gently.

There's more CF trim up front and a stereo, but it's none too flash. For those who really want to get serious the car comes sans roll cage. But rest assured, AMG will fit one ex-factory if you ask nicely and hand over a swag of extra cash.

The seats are close to racetrack quality but probably not fire-proof or FIA approved -- see the above. More cash, sir? They sit you lower in the car, adding to the whole touring car-like feel. No poofy electric adjustments here, though -- it's a good old 'grab the lever between your legs' and slide into the right spot. Electric seats would add weight and height, it seems.

Though it might look like a caricature hotrod Benz it is quite literally a serious piece of kit.

We learned about the thinking behind the Black Series cars (there's also an SLK 55 Black available in Europe and talk of a SL version to come) from the horse's mouth, AMG boss Volker Mornhinweg.

According to Mornhinweg, the idea of Black Series cars was generated from the Mercedes go-fast division's own customers. Typically owners of multiple high-end cars (they've already won the lottery?), many AMG buyers wanted a sharper, more performance-focussed car they could take to the racetrack, however, didn't want to move away from their beloved three-pointed star. Thus the Performance Studio was founded and a 'hairdresser's car' built to take on Ferrari and Porsches alike.

In time, Mornhinweg expects AMG to raise the bar further. There's talk the Black cars could get even more racetrack-focussed including, eventually,  full FIA homologation models to allow AMG customers to compete against the other GT marques in events like the Le Mans 24 Hour.

The first Black to make it Down Under officially (but not the last, we'd wager), our drive in the CLK Black wasn't quite as exciting, or long, as a day around Circuit de la Sarthe.

Alongside the Mercedes McLaren SLR Roadster (more here) we drove the CLK in the hills, canyons and bumper-to-bumper traffic in and around Los Angeles. And despite the lack of real opportunities to put the car through its paces, we fell for its wonderful soundtrack and sharp, racecar-like feel -- more racecar-like, in fact, than the SLR.

The CLK Black's throttle response is more eager than even the standard 63 and the gear changes are sharp -- 20 per cent faster than the standard seven-speed auto in manual mode, though still a notch down from the best dual-clutch manuals.

The CLK's 'drive-by-wire' throttle blips aggressively on downchanges when the revs are high, and in manual mode the car will hold gears all the way to the soft limiter. It only changes down when instructed to do so via the wheel-mounted paddles -- as a true sporting 'box should.

The big multi-piston front calipers and floating discs provide enormous stopping power and none of the 'will they, won't they stop me' histronics of the carbon-fibre SLR Benz. We can't wait to sample them on a racetrack when at least the edge of their performance envelope might be reached.

The same goes for the rest of the car. The closest we got to the CLK Black's limits on our drive were some deliberately hamfisted corner exits with the stability control turned off. Well, can you blame me?

Just 50 CLK 63 AMG Black Series have been allocated for Australia and New Zealand -- and at last count already around 45 are sold. Each bears an individually-numbered 'compliance style' plate and a certificate of authenticity, along with a letter of provenance signed by AMG and Mercedes Car Group Australia/Pacific.

The purchasers will also have the opportunity to visit AMG's Affalterbach HQ at Benz's expense as well as participate in special AMG Black Series events (the words Monaco F1 Grand Prix got my attention...)

Ultimately though it's not spectating that the AMG Black Series is all about. As good as the beefed-up CLK looks, the real charm and lure of the car is only really apparent from behind the wheel.