Official: No V8 for Mercedes-AMG C 63 or E 63
Top executive definitively denies the return of a V8 to German performance brand’s lauded performance sedansRumours of V8 power returning to the Mercedes-AMG C 63 and E 63 sports sedans have been put to bed by none other than Mercedes-AMG CEO Michael Schiebe, who has confirmed both iconic performance models will stick with downsized electrified powertrains.
Speaking with The Drive during Monterey Car Week, Schiebe said he could “definitively deny” that V8 power would return to Mercedes-AMG’s flagship mid-size sedan, before reaffirming AMG’s confidence in its smaller hybridised powertrain strategy.
“I don’t like to talk about other manufacturers, but it seems like there are many more performance hybrids coming to the market now, or at least they’ve been announced,” he told the American publication.
“So I think we were right when we said ‘let’s go in that direction’.”
No AMG versions of the upcoming new E-Class have yet been previewed or shown in any official capacity, yet rumours have been awash for months now that the next-generation E 63 flagship will be motivated by a plug-in hybrid six-cylinder powertrain capable of vastly outstripping the existing twin-turbo V8-powered E 63 (450kW/850Nm).
However, the four-cylinder PHEV system that powers the new C 63 S E Performance already does that, chucking out a combined 500kW/1020Nm – just 22kW/180Nm less than the outputs speculated for the new E 63’s rumoured six-banger.
With V8 power now officially ruled out and our own sources suggesting the next E 63 won’t in fact come with a six-cylinder engine, the only option left for Mercedes-Benz’s latest BMW M5 fighter appears to be uprated version of the C 63’s four-cylinder PHEV system.
Given the amount research and development Mercedes has already invested in it, we can’t imagine the German car-maker will be keen to limit its deployment to just two or three models.
So you can safely expect the 2.0-litre hybrid powertrain to appear under the bonnet of the next Mercedes-AMG GLC 63, as well as the flagship CLE coupe and eventual E 63.
Just how much higher AMG can turn its wick remains to be seen, but it’ll have to be pretty high given the upcoming BMW M5 is slated to pack a plug-in hybrid powertrain based around its already-beefy twin-turbo 4.4-litre V8.
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