The Ultimate Version of Ultimate Benz

Top Gear’s Ollie Kew heads to the South of France for a date with the ‘jolly exciting’ 577-horsepower S63 Cabrio.

Top Gear’s Ollie Kew recently jetted off to the Côte d’Azur to sample the ultimate version of the ultimate Benz. The Mercedes-AMG S63 4Matic Cabriolet makes use of a twin-turbo 6.3-litre V8 producing a stout 577 horsepower and 663 pound-feet of torque – “one solitary foot-pound less than a McLaren P1,” writes Kew.

Mercedes-AMG S63 4Matic Cabriolet

On the speed:
“Over the £25,555-cheaper S500, this S63 weighs in with an extra 700cc of capacity, 128bhp and 148lb ft of torque. The result is 0-62mph in just 3.9 seconds, and a suitably quicker arrival at the limited 155mph top speed. Not to mention your destination. And they’re going to do a V12. For £192k. Our minds are duly boggled.”

On the magnitude of the feat:
“This is a 2110kg, five-meter long machine. It has massaging seats, heated armrests, heated headrests, and computing intelligence to leave Sky net looking dense. Yet it’ll do 0-62mph in 3.9 seconds. We’re used to monster performance numbers these days, but come on: a soft-top S-Class that’ll out-accelerate a Porsche 997 Turbo has to be worth a slap on the back for AMG’s engineers.”

On the enormity:
“At some point, you are going to have to get the thing stopped, or around a corner, and though the S63 has all the necessary hardware, you notice the weight of the thing, big-time. All of this intimidation results in one uncomfortable truth: you don’t end up driving the 577bhp S63 Cabrio that fast. Or if you do, it’s a brief, naughty thrill, unless you’ve got the sort of space that lets Veyrons reach their upper echelons. Be in no doubt, an S63 Cab is a magnificent means of transport – a truly feel-good motoring experience. But this isn’t a performance car first, cabrio second. It’s more a big luxo-cabrio that happens to do almost 200mph if you’re feeling silly.

On the noise:
“When you remember the gargantuan thrust under your right foot, the S63’s not quite as audible as you might imagine, roof up or all fresco. It’d be nice if, once Sport mode is selected, the engine bellowed just a little harder. The less powerful S500 is actually more rumbly and cockle-warming when you’re just mooching around.”

On the price:
“There’ll soon be an S65 AMG offering a surfeit of V12 fury, but this £135,675 S63 soft-top is all a sane person could ever really need. It’s £8000 more expensive than the coupe – a bit of a favourite here at TG – but due to packaging the triple-layer electric roof, you can’t have the clever suspension that reads the road ahead for bumps and leans into corners.”

On comparisons with the S-Class Coupe:
“This is a noticeably less sporting piece of kit. Obviously a fair proportion of the people who buy an S-Class Cabrio will default to the AMG because it’s the most expensive, not necessarily because it’s quickest or best at overtaking.”

On comparisons with the lesser S500 Cabriolet:
“[The S63 is] jolly exciting, but the non-AMG S500 is possibly sweeter still. Less power, a less frantic race to get it slowed down, and a truly blissful motoring experience as a result. Question is, will anyone ready to drop over a hundred grand on a V8 Benz drop-top notice it on their way to the AMG end of the brochure.”{source BBC}