M3 vs 2012 C63 AMG Coupe

[graider]

the c63 amg sedan looks better than the coupe, and the practicality of 4 doors cannot be ignore. i rather go for the sedan.

[Black Gold]

i drove the sedan today. it was an 09 amg package.

WOW, that car is fast. it blows the doors off the 6mt m3 (test drove both back to back). the torque and overall power is unreal in that car. it feels as fast as my friends 997 turbo.

i am still struggling to decide whether i can dd a car that is an auto, but man, this amg has me thinking about it. no it doesnt handle quite as well as the m3, but it sure is a fun drive, and actually rode pretty smoothly imo considering the type of car it is.

fun car!

[DiscoZ]

Funny. When a friend and I test drove a C63 AMG and a M3 back to back, we did not find the C63 blew the doors of the M3. If anything, the M3 felt more visceral, the C63 just pulled a bit harder and sounded more like a musclecar while the M3 sounded more exotic. Loved the C63, hated the tranny and rear space (huge seats). In the end, the M3 won.

[1MOREMOD]

Originally Posted by DD GT3 RD

Here I am

i just meant personally. i know its been done before. see tons of m3s, corvettes, and porsches primarily but never a MB yet.

[Ateam]

Originally Posted by KennyPowers

i drove the sedan today. it was an 09 amg package.

WOW, that car is fast. it blows the doors off the 6mt m3 (test drove both back to back). the torque and overall power is unreal in that car. it feels as fast as my friends 997 turbo.

i am still struggling to decide whether i can dd a car that is an auto, but man, this amg has me thinking about it. no it doesnt handle quite as well as the m3, but it sure is a fun drive, and actually rode pretty smoothly imo considering the type of car it is.

fun car!

I see you do not even have an e9x m3 so not sure you really have an actual experience with how much power the e9x actually has. Unless you have consistently been up to 8400 rpms, then you have not experienced the "pull" of the m3. I have driven both numerous times as well and I can promise you a 2009 does not feel much faster except when going from a standstill in the really low rpms. But once moving and when the RPMS can be past 5500, the m3 pulls like a train in such a linear way that the pull only gets stronger and stronger until redline v. the Merc pulls hard but you can notice it pulling less and less as you approach redline.

Now compared to your e46 m3 the merc will absolutely destroy that so perhaps that is the feeling you are used to.

[gthal]

Originally Posted by KennyPowers

i drove the sedan today. it was an 09 amg package.

WOW, that car is fast. it blows the doors off the 6mt m3 (test drove both back to back). the torque and overall power is unreal in that car. it feels as fast as my friends 997 turbo.

i am still struggling to decide whether i can dd a car that is an auto, but man, this amg has me thinking about it. no it doesnt handle quite as well as the m3, but it sure is a fun drive, and actually rode pretty smoothly imo considering the type of car it is.

fun car!

The 2012 with the performance upgrade is even faster again and the handling has supposedly improved due to suspension tuning as well. It is a very coimpelling car for those who don't insist on a 6MT especially with the improved transmission in 2012... still not a true DCT but damn close.

I'm as big of an M3 fan as there is but I have to say that I am very tempted based on my experience. The power and torque is just insane.

[TheKosherStogie]

here is my stock C63 w/ P31 vs DLSJ5's M3 N/A w/ catless exhaust and stock mufflers
1st race from a dig I spun tires and lost, 2nd he got the jump but I still gain alot. I know its not a 2012 C63 but you guys were discussing the P31 speed so, figured you get an idea of how fast it is this way, if its still giving a beating to a modded M3, to a stock one its ridiculous.
My p31 runs 60-130 in 9.6, dct m3 about 12+, and M3 modded as below ran 10.7

[tcal69]

That AMG exhaust was close enough for me to buy it, but the dealer didn't want to let me test drive it, so bought a M3.

I don't regret it at all, but still maybe 1 day I'll have the AMG

[Black Gold]

Originally Posted by DiscoZ

Funny. When a friend and I test drove a C63 AMG and a M3 back to back, we did not find the C63 blew the doors of the M3. If anything, the M3 felt more visceral, the C63 just pulled a bit harder and sounded more like a musclecar while the M3 sounded more exotic. Loved the C63, hated the tranny and rear space (huge seats). In the end, the M3 won.

The transmission is what is holding me back. I am still undecided and am going to spend more tome in both cars. I was much more impressed in the c63 than I thought I would be.

To me, the amg was much faster. Now to be clear, I have only driven 6mt m3, not a dct. The m is still fun, I was just surprised how big the power difference seemed to be.

I still will likely end up with the m3.

[Black Gold]

Originally Posted by Ateam

I see you do not even have an e9x m3 so not sure you really have an actual experience with how much power the e9x actually has. Unless you have consistently been up to 8400 rpms, then you have not experienced the "pull" of the m3. I have driven both numerous times as well and I can promise you a 2009 does not feel much faster except when going from a standstill in the really low rpms. But once moving and when the RPMS can be past 5500, the m3 pulls like a train in such a linear way that the pull only gets stronger and stronger until redline v. the Merc pulls hard but you can notice it pulling less and less as you approach redline.

Now compared to your e46 m3 the merc will absolutely destroy that so perhaps that is the feeling you are used to.

I had about a 20-30 minute test drive of both yesterday back to back without a salesperson in the car for each. I also have driven 6mt m3s many times before. To be honest, the m3 at speeds between 0-60ish doesn't feel much faster than my tuned e46 was.

The c63 on the other hand felt much stronger. I also did not notice any loss in power at the top of the rpm range for the merc.

Not being critical of the m, just being honest. The merc on the streets from speeds of 0 all the way through 100 feels like a monster.

I loved driving both. Still am undecided.

[adc]

Originally Posted by KennyPowers

I had about a 20-30 minute test drive of both yesterday back to back without a salesperson in the car for each. I also have driven 6mt m3s many times before. To be honest, the m3 at speeds between 0-60ish doesn't feel much faster than my tuned e46 was.

The c63 on the other hand felt much stronger. I also did not notice any loss in power at the top of the rpm range for the merc.

Not being critical of the m, just being honest. The merc on the streets from speeds of 0 all the way through 100 feels like a monster.

I loved driving both. Still am undecided.

If your preference starts tilting more towards the power side of the equation, why not test a CTS-V? It will blow the doors off the Benz in a straight line, handles well, and comes with a manual transmission too.

To me these are just very fast cars that handle well, where the M3 still manages to feel more special than both. The handling edge, the responses, the engine, it all adds up. It simple gives me more satisfaction, more thrills, and taking it to the track is an amazing high, every time.

There is no right or wrong decision - all these will do well as daily drivers, they will work on a racetrack and cost similar money. So pick the one that gives you the most butterfly's, the one you cannot wait to get back into - the one that makes laugh out loud.

[gthal]

Originally Posted by adc

If your preference starts tilting more towards the power side of the equation, why not test a CTS-V? It will blow the doors off the Benz in a straight line, handles well, and comes with a manual transmission too.

To me these are just very fast cars that handle well, where the M3 still manages to feel more special than both. The handling edge, the responses, the engine, it all adds up. It simple gives me more satisfaction, more thrills, and taking it to the track is an amazing high, every time.

There is no right or wrong decision - all these will do well as daily drivers, they will work on a racetrack and cost similar money. So pick the one that gives you the most butterfly's, the one you cannot wait to get back into - the one that makes laugh out loud.

Good advice. You really can't go wrong here and it is largely personal preference.

[DiscoZ]

It is personal. I loved the C63, but hated the tranny, rear seats, no LSD (except for with package), skinny tires and it just didn't feel much faster. Just torquier. I can tell the difference now as I've had a few heavily tuned turbo cars that were super torquey, but not necessarily that fast in the past.

I might still find myself in one.

[Z K]

I did not know the C63 did not have an LSD without the optional package. That really kills the deal.

How can you have a performance RWD car without an LSD? Get on the gas hard and you'll be spinning 1 wheel. Not to mention the losses in cornering!

[-=Hot|Ice=-]

Originally Posted by Z K

I did not know the C63 did not have an LSD without the optional package. That really kills the deal.

How can you have a performance RWD car without an LSD? Get on the gas hard and you'll be spinning 1 wheel. Not to mention the losses in cornering!

The C63 is all about hooliganism. An LSD really spoils the fun.

[Z K]

Originally Posted by -=Hot|Ice=-

The C63 is all about hooliganism. An LSD really spoils the fun.

I hope you aren't serious. The LSD makes hooliganism fun. When is a peg leg 1 wheel burnout fun? You can't even drift effectively in both directions with 1 wheel drive. No fun at all.

[-=Hot|Ice=-]

Originally Posted by Z K

I hope you aren't serious. The LSD makes hooliganism fun. When is a peg leg 1 wheel burnout fun? You can't even drift effectively in both directions with 1 wheel drive. No fun at all.

The LSD spoiled it for me in the fun factor department. Then again, maybe I was doing it wrong. If I were to get a C63, you can bet it would have an LSD on it.

[gthal]

Originally Posted by Z K

I did not know the C63 did not have an LSD without the optional package. That really kills the deal.

How can you have a performance RWD car without an LSD? Get on the gas hard and you'll be spinning 1 wheel. Not to mention the losses in cornering!

When it can be added as an option, why would that kill the deal... with the optional package that pushes power to 481hp, upgraded brembo brakes and the LSD, you are still less price wise than the M3. In Canada, the C63 AMG coupe with the performance upgrade is about the same price as a base M3 coupe. Just because it is added as a package doesn't really matter as long as it doesn't push the price over its competition. In the US, I think it can be added as a simple option.

The M3s biggest disadvantage, in Canada anyway, is the price. A fully loaded M3 coupe will run about $90k. A fully loaded C63 will run less than $80k.

In reality, they are both great cars but you have to give Merc credit for the value proposition it put out there with the C63 AMG coupe.

[Z K]

Originally Posted by gthal

When it can be added as an option, why would that kill the deal... with the optional package that pushes power to 481hp, upgraded brembo brakes and the LSD, you are still less price wise than the M3. In Canada, the C63 AMG coupe with the performance upgrade is about the same price as a base M3 coupe. Just because it is added as a package doesn't really matter as long as it doesn't push the price over its competition. In the US, I think it can be added as a simple option.

For sure I'd want the C63 with the LSD. I am saying it is a lame deal that they would even sell it without that.

Considering that 80-90% of the buyers would never take advantage of the LSD, I guess it was why it was omitted. An LSD doesn't add much cost to the car itself - this is another sign of companies pinching pennies and milking the customer.

The LSD spoiled it for me in the fun factor department. Then again, maybe I was doing it wrong. If I were to get a C63, you can bet it would have an LSD on it.

You can get much more sideways and burn more rubber with an LSD than without. Also, you won't fry the rear brakes with the car trying to brake the inside spinning wheel so they both spin at the same time.

[DiscoZ]

Originally Posted by gthal

The M3s biggest disadvantage, in Canada anyway, is the price. A fully loaded M3 coupe will run about $90k. A fully loaded C63 will run less than $80k.

In reality, they are both great cars but you have to give Merc credit for the value proposition it put out there with the C63 AMG coupe.

Yup... I am optioning out C63 Coupes as I type.

[335_MI6]

Mercedes is a paper car, amazing numbers on paper but when your behind the wheel it doesnt feel as good as a bmw.....its kinda hard to example

[gthal]

Originally Posted by 335_MI6

Mercedes is a paper car, amazing numbers on paper but when your behind the wheel it doesnt feel as good as a bmw.....its kinda hard to example

And you have driven a 2012 C63? My guess is not so you are speculating based on what you read on pre-2012 cars. Having said that, I feel that the driving dynamics of the M3 are still better but not by very much after the 2012 model was released with tweaks. The power on the P31 package AMG is WAY stronger than the M3. Overall, the new AMG and the M3 are very close in many ways and down to personal preference IMO (with my personal preference still slightly in favour of the M3).