E63 AMG Wagon test drive

Hubby has always had a "thing" for "sleeper wagons".

 

Our MB dealer got in a 2014 E63 AMG wagon that was the MB show car. It had 30 miles on it before our test drive.

 

The seats looked like the car had 30,000 miles (no surprise for a show car).

 

Hubby wanted to love it. Very badly. I didn't feel strongly either way and left the decision to him. He ended up walking away.

 

Pros:

- roomy

- reasonably comfy seats

- loaded / lots of CF trim inside

- very responsive especially in sportier driving modes

- looks good if you like that sort of thing

- black 10 spoke wheels looked aggressive

- body trim was aggressive

- tight and responsive handling - crisp

- the most rare car MB produces worldwide so unlikely you see another one in the grocery store parking lot or at the track

- you can stand at the rear deck lid and pull a handle on each side to lower the back seats. Very convenient feature not having to lower each seat at the "middle" of the car.

 

Cons:

- stiff ride even in comfort mode

- Cardinal is not a good color IMO (too brown or something - I'm not sure what but I didn't like it)

- it's a VERY expensive, tarted up E class and has basic interior of an E class which doesn't live up to the $116K price tag

- exhaust notes were rather muted unless you really got into the throttle

- dated electronics

- upgraded stereo nowhere near worth the 5K+ price tag

 

It reminded us of the S63 AMG we enjoyed for a few years. A reasonably comfy sedan but not luxurious, and a reasonably sporty drive, but not REALLY sporty. A big compromise all the way around that burned through tires like crazy.

 

Hubby had lusted after this the E63 for a long time but never pursued it because if it's to be a DD it's gotta be AWD here in the northeast. When they made it AWD in 2014 his interest perked up and when he heard they had one that was practically brand new - he couldn't resist.

 

I would consider it as a DD if I could find a lightly used one that had taken a bunch of depreciation, in a decent color. There is a matte silver/gray at Herb Chambers that looks nice - but the ride wasn't acceptable so it's off our list (at least for now).

Dated electronics already?

 

That would wipe out the entire E class, and not just relegate the criticism to the wagon.

 

Would have figured you'd get a good deal on it being a show car and also a wagon. It's America not Europe, so figure the market is soft for these things unless they look at it the other way and gouge the only people interested in wagons.

 

I know someone who picked up maybe the very last generation E63 wagon and loves it but naturally a much lower price point.

 

Maybe not your cup of tea but a friend has a very new CTS-V wagon with manual trans that he likes a ton.

 

 

I just ordered a 2016 C63s Wagon as a DD, quite reluctantly because I am not familiar with Benzes and the car isn't in the country yet so no test drives, I hope it's a nice car to drive.

I've been driving Audi's but Audi doesn't have anything fresh until late 2016 and I don't want to wait that long, reading Cake's story makes me doubt my decision even more.

I can't say I agree...

Dated electronics and interior similar to lesser E-Class models...not true, hardly a tarted up E-Class, take a look at the brakes and the suspension difference between the AMG and the V6 models and you will see where the price differences will start to add up let alone the engine, seats etc etc...

Can you guys describe what it is that's dated about the electronics?

 

 

Can you guys describe what it is that's dated about the electronics?

- gauges were analog rather than LCD

- nav is an older generation

- stereo sounded lousy especially for big option $$$

 

I disliked the color SO much, and had a zillion things going on when he wanted to go for test drive - that once I saw the color I dismissed that particular car. It was for him anyway, so I stayed quiet and figured it was going to be his decision either way.

 

My impression of the interior is that it was nothing special at all. Looked like an E class to me. For $115K price tag I'd expect some special stitching or something to make it look more luxurious. Visually it was quite plain, even down to the really ugly thick rubber strap along the top of the mesh compartment along the front passenger footwell. The strap is intended to hold bottles (no other beverage holder available). I had a water bottle with me and it worked well but is UGLY and quite noticeable. Minor detail but when a car is six figures I expect attention to detail. Our CL has a similar mesh cargo holder by the passenger footwell minus the strap. Function is the same and it disappears into the carpet. Why MB put that hideous strap on the mesh compartment is a mystery. It's as tacky as it can be.

 

Yes - the brakes are GREAT and the engine sounded nice although much more muted than we expected (unless really dipping into the throttle). That's okay - on a long road trip I don't want to hear engine sounds for hours on end (unless it's a Lambo). The AMG engine is great. But our S63AMG sounded much better than this E wagon. This E wagon had loads of torque and was fun from that standpoint. No complaints there.

 

Yesterday we spent some time in the newly refreshed 2015 Panamera GTS. Refreshed in that they removed the "hump" from the rear glass so the car is much less ugly than before. Still maybe not beautiful - but I like the newer version enough that I'd own one. The GTS sounds SPECTACULAR, and has an exhaust button that can mute sounds when you want peace and quiet. Rode extremely well - not harsh like the AMG - but is very nimble - especially for a large sedan. Not nearly as torquy as the AMG - but had enough to be fun and effective. Again - how often do you drive it in a "performance" manner? It also missed in a few key areas but between the two the Panamera wins by quite a margin. Price tag new on P is $125 but there is a hefty discount because it's been there since early January. The interior feels more refined, more expensive and "finished" compared to the E class. Maybe not apples to apples in terms of platform - but certainly in terms of price.

 

Electronics in the Porsche at least were LCD although the nav is probably the same generation as MB (possibly slightly more updated). Seat adjustability was fantastic in the P and ventilation feature worked really well (I'm not usually a fan of ventilated seats but in this case it was good). Negative was that P doesn't show DVD video so only plays music (our CL550-4 has split screen and shows vid to passenger while driver is looking at nav or whatever). P car only plays the music but really - who watches video while driving along? It's illegal for the driver (hence split screen in CL) and it would be nauseating for me as a passenger so I don't really consider that a big negative.

 

Both cars had hits and misses but for the same money as the E class AMG wagon you can have a loaded S class. Okay - it's not an AMG - but how often when driving it do you REALLY drive it like ya stole it? Usually its mundane daily driving - but you want something that puts a six figure smile on your face with a bit of comfort and luxury thrown in. For same $$ I'd buy the S class with LCD electronics, newer gen nav and all the goodies and very comfy interior.

 

The problem with S class is it'll be worth half the value in 3-4 years, and the Panamera of course depreciates too but not as much.

 

Another pro/con with the Ewagon AMG is that they make so few each year it is very exclusive (pro) but tiny audience for resale (con). Prices don't tank quite as badly as other MB's but it could be difficult to unload because so few people (in the States) seek out a performance wagon.

 

Obviously it boils down to personal taste but I find lately that MB doesn't have much in the line up that intrigues me. I love our dealer - we get fantastic treatment there from everyone (service, sales, parts) so we'd buy from them if they had something we really wanted. We also have a fantastic Porsche dealer and we've not bought a car from them but I service the Cayman there and I'm very close to their "inner circle" of clients so I get premium treatment because I'm a track junkie and I'm friends with people who buy lots of cars from them. We would buy a car from them if we can find what we want.

 

 

 

 

 

A friend of mine has one, he loves it. I think it looks like shit but it sure is fast.

A friend of mine has one, he loves it. I think it looks like shit but it sure is fast.

Went to Merc world last month. Lots of fast stuff sure but the interior was really bad.

I went with a group of friends, one worked at bmw said had buttons fall off brand new GL and c classes when people part exchanged cars less than a year old. The interiors were really bad, very plastic feeling.

Think the money has been spent on the power plant.

 

Went in an M4 on the way home and it felt so much better inside.

I had a '12 E63 AMG Wagon for a long weekend and loved it. Interior was good, but I could see the writing on the wall as they slowly transitioned to the now "dark time" for the guts of the car.

 

I'm bummed to hear the new ones are crap, I really started to like the new Benz model with gobs of power -despite being a life-long BMW fan.

 

 

 

Found this thread after the one where you picked up the GTS. I know how much you and the hubby love MB but it looks like you guys are turning in to Porschphiles.

 

I've never really been a fan of MB's design language when it comes to interiors. I always felt like it was lacking when compared to BMW and especially Audi (A6/S6 and the first gen Q7 excluded). The SLS was well done and the new AMG GT is decent but the rest just never stood up to the price of the car.

 

However forgetting all of the for the moment I am glad to here Mr. Cake (you can tell him I said that too is feeling well enough to go on test drives of crazy MB and P-Car wagons! This is of itself is big news. Please give my best to him!

 

Oh and we need some pics of the GTS in that thread!