00:00 This week on Ignition, we find out what happens when a DTM racer takes to the street.
00:24 What Mercedes has done with the C63 Black Series is kind of fascinating.
00:28 You see, they somehow managed to get a hold of my high school notebooks,
00:31 and they've made the car I used to doodle in the margins,
00:33 what with the massive spoiler and those carbon fiber
00:36 flicks on the front bumper.
00:38 You know, come to think of it, this is actually
00:40 what every car in my Forza Motorsport garage looks like.
00:43 Well, what is it?
00:44 Think of the Black Series like a GT3 RS version of the already potent C63.
00:50 It basically continues this wonderful trend at Mercedes-Benz,
00:52 where it seems the engineers are told to just go nuts.
00:56 The engine is a 6.2 liter V8 that shares some components with the SLS AMG.
01:00 Those 6.3 badges on the side are meaningless.
01:03 That said, it still makes 510 horsepower.
01:06 The front and rear track are wider.
01:08 The tires are stickier.
01:10 The brakes are bigger.
01:11 The suspension is adjustable, and on and on.
01:13 And you know, I'm going to stop talking about it,
01:15 because I really want to drive it.
01:17 [MUSIC PLAYING]
01:20 Let's get acceleration out of the way first.
01:28 This car has launch control, but in our testing,
01:30 it wasn't any faster than just doing it yourself.
01:33 So we're going to put the transmission in S+ mode.
01:36 Traction control and stability control are already off.
01:38 I've got my left foot hard on the brake.
01:40 I'm just going to roll on the throttle with my right
01:42 and lift off the brake.
01:43 [ENGINE REVVING]
01:47 Upshifts automatically for you.
01:48 0 to 60, 3.7 seconds.
01:51 And the sound it makes on upshifts is just fantastic.
01:53 [ENGINE REVVING]
01:56 Quarter mile, 12.1 seconds at 117 miles an hour.
02:00 [ENGINE REVVING]
02:04 And now for our 60 to 0 braking test.
02:06 [TIRES SQUEALING]
02:09 The C63 stops impressively.
02:12 It took 99 feet.
02:13 For our best stop.
02:14 [ENGINE REVVING]
02:18 [TIRES SQUEALING]
02:20 Now we begin the figure eight test on the C63.
02:24 And what a car.
02:25 [ENGINE REVVING]
02:29 [TIRES SQUEALING]
02:30 When you're approaching a corner, it feels very linear.
02:33 The brakes, the steering, they all
02:35 communicate clearly what they want to do.
02:37 There's no surprises.
02:38 [ENGINE REVVING]
02:41 It has a lot of engine.
02:43 A lot of brake, too.
02:44 Very commanding stopping power.
02:46 [ENGINE REVVING]
02:50 This is probably one of the best driving AMG products
02:53 Mercedes has to offer.
02:54 [ENGINE REVVING]
02:57 [LAUGHS]
03:00 The steering ratio feels very tight.
03:03 So that means you don't have to move the wheel a lot
03:06 when you're doing corrections, which is great.
03:08 When you have a car as aggressive as this one is.
03:13 And although there's a little bit of mid-corner understeer,
03:17 you can easily fix that with some throttle application.
03:20 It's easy to keep the car neutral.
03:22 [ENGINE REVVING]
03:25 You have to work on the steering a bit to keep your line.
03:29 But that's fun work.
03:31 [ENGINE REVVING]
03:34 [TIRES SQUEALING]
03:37 [ENGINE REVVING]
03:40 [ENGINE REVVING]
03:44 And what's interesting is that from inside,
03:49 you have no idea that this is some sort of track day special.
03:52 The only indicator that this is something
03:54 more than a slightly worse riding seat class
03:57 are these red seat belts.
03:59 Otherwise, you have navigation.
04:01 You have heated seats.
04:02 You have a sunroof.
04:03 You also have back seats.
04:04 But if you don't like those, you can
04:06 choose to have the sunroof as a no-cost option.
04:09 But unfortunately, there's nothing
04:10 you can do about the sunroof.
04:12 And that's kind of a bummer.
04:13 I want more of a hardcore, hardtop model.
04:17 But that's easy to forgive because of the way
04:19 this thing drives.
04:20 I mean, the seats are wonderful.
04:22 They're both comfortable and supportive.
04:24 And the steering-- I absolutely love the steering.
04:26 And one of the things I love the most about it
04:28 is that there are no modes.
04:30 There's no comfort steering option or sport steering
04:32 option.
04:33 And that's great, because there's
04:34 no sport steering, there's just good steering.
04:37 And that's what this car has.
04:39 In fact, besides the transmission shift program
04:42 selector dial thingy here, there's
04:44 really not a lot of options on how to set up the car.
04:47 You just turn stability control off,
04:49 and bam, you're ready to go 10/10 on your favorite track.
04:52 That's great.
04:53 You can adjust the suspension the old school way
04:55 by going underneath the hood or into the trunk
04:57 with an Allen key.
04:58 You can change the shock compression and rebound
05:00 if you're into that sort of thing.
05:01 But as is, it's set up to have fun.
05:03 [TIRES SCREECHING]
05:05 And this car also has a track package,
05:09 which means it gets upgraded cooling and stickier Dunlop
05:13 tires.
05:14 But if we have a track package, I
05:16 think we need to visit a proper race track.
05:19 And I think we need to invite a proper racing driver.
05:21 [ENGINE REVVING]
05:24 [MUSIC PLAYING]
05:33 Hey, Randy.
05:34 So this is the C63 Black Series.
05:37 It is--
05:38 Very nice.
05:39 --AMG's ultimate expression of what the C63 should be.
05:43 I have the specs here.
05:44 So I'm going to tell you what they are.
05:46 This has a-- whoa.
05:47 [LAUGHING]
05:49 This has a 90 degree V8, kind of like the SLS.
05:53 It's a 6.2 with 510 horsepower, 457 pound feet of torque.
06:00 Redline is--
06:00 Feels like more, Carlos.
06:02 You sure about those numbers?
06:04 I got the printout right here.
06:06 7,200 RPM redline.
06:09 It definitely gets sideways.
06:11 Oh, forget this.
06:12 [LAUGHING]
06:14 This car is tight, you know, like a race car.
06:20 Yes.
06:20 It's not soft like a street car.
06:22 And yet it still has a sunroof.
06:25 It's not like any Mercedes I ever drove before.
06:29 Really enjoyable car.
06:30 You got to be treated with a little bit of respect
06:32 on the power.
06:33 It's not a light car either.
06:35 Look at it, over 3,700 pounds.
06:37 No kidding.
06:38 Yeah.
06:38 It isn't-- it feels lighter.
06:40 It's because of those tires.
06:42 Yeah, it's got a lot of tire grip.
06:44 Are these racing tires?
06:45 They basically are.
06:46 It's a special double op, basically for this option
06:50 that we have on this car.
06:51 Yes.
06:56 [LAUGHING]
06:58 Put it on the curb.
07:00 Down into two.
07:02 Couple of downshifts.
07:04 Power down.
07:06 [LAUGHING]
07:08 I do enjoy wheelspin.
07:09 The C63 is a welcome addition to the all too short line
07:25 of black series models.
07:27 They are highly capable and extremely focused cars
07:30 that are just as easy to admire from the driver's seat
07:33 as they are from the curb.
07:35 The C63 black series is a special, rewarding,
07:39 and engaging driver's car that's just as fabulous on the track
07:42 as it is on the road.
07:44 So it's unfortunate that there will be less than 1,000
07:46 of these made.
07:47 Buyers then should take comfort in knowing
07:50 they'll have their own piece of Mercedes-Benz history
07:52 in their garage.
07:53 [MUSIC PLAYING]
07:56 [ENGINE REVVING]
08:00 I got to try.
08:01 You can't have all the fun.
08:02 OK.
08:03 You're up.
08:04 I will be nowhere near as fast, though.
08:06 I think you're going to like it.
08:07 I think I will.
08:09 This is the first time I've ever ridden with you, Carlos.
08:11 And you're doing a great job.
08:14 Much slower, I'm sure.
08:15 You haven't killed me once.
08:17 Hit the curb.
08:18 Hit the curb.
08:19 Nice.
08:20 Right in there.
08:21 And the power.
08:22 Beautiful.
08:23 Remember, this starts as a taxi in Germany.
08:26 It's a C-Class.
08:27 They have great taxis in Germany.
08:29 [LAUGHS]
08:30 None quite like this, though, huh?
08:34 All right.
08:35 Thank you very much.
08:36 Thanks for the ride, Carlos.
08:37 Great job.
08:38 Thank you for the ride.
08:39 Great job.
08:40 Thanks.
08:41 [MUSIC PLAYING]
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