Great car!
I’m curious - how did you find the F90 M5 and C7 RS6 to the C63?
They were both great cars, very fast but both missing something in the fun factor. It’s a bit of a shaggy dog story as to how I ended up at the C63, I’ll try and not bore anyone.
The chain went something like this: many cars -> ISF -> 981 Cayman S* -> C7 RS6 -> FK8 Type R -> F90 M5 -> 205 C63s. And all in just a couple of years.
From the beginning I’d only ever had ‘normal’ cars - hatchbacks, saloons and coupes. As a kid I was only interested in touring cars and V8 German Uber saloons, so that’s what I’d had. Then our first daughter came along in 2019 and suddenly I realised if I wanted something more sporty, I was running out of time. So I bought a late Cayman S and it was a revelation; light, great handling, good sound and huge fun. I drove it every day and even used it for nursery drop offs and pickups when that came about. Sadly after a couple of years my daughter became too tall (long!) - her feet were almost up against the dashboard and it just felt unsafe. I needed something more practical but the Cayman had spoilt me as a driver’s car.
The RS6 Performance seemed to make sense at the time; it was hugely practical, sounded awesome on the go, looked mean and had big power - 597 BHP. It had instant traction, was comfortable and well made however it was really heavy. That didn’t affect its straight line speed - it was a rocket ship - but it was a big ol’ bus to navigate around town and in traffic. A pita to park too. Also it was only really fun when pressing on, but at those speeds it was too risky if I wanted to keep my license. I decided I didn’t need a bus (the wife runs the main family wagon anyway) so the hunt was on for something less huge and more fun.
Armed with my recent Evo mag knowledge, I bought one of the last FK8 Civic Type Rs to leave Swindon before the factory closed. I couldn’t find one to drive before I ordered it, but I was sure it would fit the bill. When it eventually came I quickly realised it wasn’t for me. It was light and nimble, the seats and manual gearbox amazing, however the interior was a bit too plasticky, the tech laggy and dated. In many ways it reminded me of 80s/90s French hot hatches - light on the outside and inside. Ultimately though, I couldn’t live with the front end hop and loss of traction when trying to launch in anything but bone dry conditions. And sometimes even then. 400 miles later and it was gone.
The M5 was really just a return to type I guess. Similar to the RS6 but it felt more compact and less cavernous. Fantastic performance again (592 BHP), huge traction in all conditions and a really comfortable and well made interior. I had longed for the days of my E39 M5 and this seemed the right choice. It had everything I needed and did everything I wanted… except it just wasn’t as much fun as I wanted it to be. Very fast again but also very muted, much more-so that the RS6. You could do silly speeds but it just felt so calm and sublime. Much like my issue with the RS6 prior, I had to be quite silly with it before the car came alive and rewarded. I can only imagine other owners are simply more restrained or regularly drove on autobahns. I was neither.
It was after watching Chris Harris race the M5 against the E63s on Top Gear that made me seriously look at AMGs. A move to the E63 likely wouldnt have fixed my ‘fun at sensible speed’ issues, but more than likely would have sparked the wife to drag me to a psychiatrist, to resolve my serial car changing sickness. I then realised the C63 had a similar engine to the E63 but in a smaller package. Ultimately I hoped it would be the best of all worlds; the build quality, tech and comfort id become used too, the V8 performance and noise I craved, but still with some practicality needed for my dad roles (I have two little girls now).
Luckily for everyone involved I think I’ve found a great all rounder in the C63s coupe. There’s just enough noise and drama to entertain at normal speeds and when pootling about town. It has a fierce turn of speed when you want it - especially with the right tyres. A few months in and I’m pretty happy or perhaps content is the better word.
Apologies, I wasn’t trying to recreate War and Peace with this post.
