- Powered by the 4.0-litre V8 bi-turbo engine

- Offered as a CBU model

Climbing up the ladder and moving from luxury car launches to performance-oriented sedans, Mercedes-Benz India has launched the AMG E63 S in India with a price tag of Rs 1.70 crore (ex-showroom). Positioned at the peak of the E-Class hierarchy in India, the E63 has been brought to India via the CBU route.

Being an AMG, let’s talk about the powertrain under the hood. Propelling the four-door sleeper is the fierce 4.0-litre V8 bi-turbo that dishes out 603bhp and a peak torque of 850Nm. The AMG-specific nine-speed automatic gearbox diverts the power to all four wheels sprinting the performance saloon to 100kmph from a standstill in an eye-blinking 3.4 seconds. If one chooses to be in control, the ‘M’ mode allows the driver to directly command the gear shifts using the steering-mounted paddle shifters. But, can it drift? Well, the E63 S gets an all-wheel-drive system, but the enthusiasts will appreciate the fact that the demon can switch to rear-wheel-drive simply by activating the ‘Race’ mode and switching off ESP.

While the standard E-Class was launched in India a few months back, the AMG version follows the exterior styling on the same lines. To spice things up, this E63 S gets a few performance-boosting tweaks. The reworked front fascia gets the large AMG front grille with twelve vertical chrome struts. Further down, the bumper has been redesigned with wider and functional air inlets to channelise it in a targeted manner. It rides on a massive set of 20-inch five-spoke light-alloy wheels that can be had in matte black or high-gloss titanium grey.

The interior of the E63 continues with the AMG-specific treatment. It is equipped with the new AMG Performance steering wheel that now gets a dual two-spoke design. The physical buttons are now swapped for a touch-based surface that has integrated controls for both the instrument cluster and the media display. The wide screen layout houses two 12.25-inch screens where one can switch between the three available AMG displays – Modern Classic, Sport, and Supersport.

As for the competition, the Mercedes-AMG E63 is not alone in the ring. It will lock horns with the recently launched BMW M5 Competition that is priced at Rs 1.62 crore (ex-showroom).