2008 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG

With its M3, BMW has owned the C-segment hot-rod market, winning hearts, minds, and comparison tests for decades. Others have competed, few have been competitive. Now Mercedes-AMG is plotting a hostile takeover of this popular niche. Your brows are furrowing, recalling that the last four fat-tired, big-motored C-classes to roll out of Affalterbach have won drag races only to be outmaneuvered by the Bavarian. You're thinking, can the C63 AMG possibly be that good, or has AMG wined and dined this guy into senseless parroting of the PR flack's hyperbole? I claim the Fifth on the subject of alco/gastro inducements, but present the following evidence for my enthusiasm:

This is the first AMG product to be designed from its computer-conception for extreme performance. Its predecessors (like most AMG models) are essentially tuner specials, with bolted-on performance. This time, practically everything forward of the firewall (except for the two energy-absorbing frame-rail stubs) is unique to AMG. The front track is 1.4-inches wider, standard 18-inch wheels permit larger knuckles, and a new engine cradle accommodates longer diagonal links that completely change the geometry. A lower roll center, for example, helps the car corner flatter while preserving ride quality with an anti-roll bar that's only 0.04-inch thicker. New ball bearings offer twice the rigidity of the stock front-axle bearings. Camber increases from 0.5 to 1.4 degrees and caster is reduced by 15 degrees. The steering ratio tightens from 14.5:1 to 13.5:1, and there are new bearings atop the struts. The effect of all this front-end work is vastly improved steering feel and agility with reduced understeer.

The 6.2-liter V-8 weighs about 70 pounds more than the E350's V-6, and it's about four inches longer, but by moving it two inches closer to the firewall, weight distribution remains at a respectable 54/46 front/rear. An all-new front end stretches the nose 3.4 inches. Power output is dialed back to 450 horses and 443 pound-feet-enough to vanquish the M3 without crowding AMG's pricier 63 models. Coaxing the CLK63 Black's 500 horses and 473 pound-feet out of this setup will be child's play for the aftermarket, if AMG doesn't offer power-spiffs of its own. A Performance Package will include a mechanical limited-slip differential (offering 30 percent lockup under power, 10 percent or less on overrun), and compound steel brake rotors with aluminum centers (for vastly improved fade resistance and slightly lower weight). Springs and dampers are stiffened by 10 and 15 percent respectively, and the speed governor is raised to 174 mph. Europe's optional 19-inch wheels and tires won't be offered, as they can't survive urban-America's potholes.

One chink in the C63's armor: there's (still) no manual transmission. But the paddle-shifted 7G Tronic automatic runs with the converter locked except when the car stops, it bangs off shifts as crisply and quickly as the best SMG/DSG/F1 boxes, and its sport-automatic shift programming is incredibly astute. Rev-matched, throttle-blipped downshifts happen exactly when you want them, up-shifts never happen when you don't. Manual-mode shifts are slightly quicker, and you can happily bounce along on the 7300-rpm redline if you so choose. The Black Series's 2.82:1 rear axle is fitted, but without the auxiliary oil cooler-that car is intended for extensive track use, this one isn't. Diff-oil temperature is monitored, and the car will preserve itself with a limp-mode in the event of an extended summer track-day workout.

C-class buyers are AMG's youngest, and-especially in SoCal-they're more interested in making a statement than in keeping a low profile, so the C63 gets extroverted DTM-racer styling cues, like huge front-wheel arches wrapping the 235/40R18 PZeros, air extractors, hood bulges, and aggressive fascias. An edict to preserve all the stamped and welded steel parts leaves the rear-wheel arches looking a bit mismatched with the fronts, and little appliqus are required on the back sides of each wheel arch to fully envelop the jumbo 255/35R18s. Inside, there's a flat-bottomed steering wheel (covered in alcantara suede, on Perf-Pack cars), sport bucket seats with integral head restraints, and AMG gauges with a race-lap timing function in the body computer. It looks mean. It is mean.