The 49ers almost turned Super Bowl XLVII around. Commissioner Gordon almost saved Batman’s girlfriend. The 2014 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG’s S model offers almost 600 horsepower, but we bet few people are terribly disappointed that it’s actually 23 shy. And with 590 lb-ft of torque testing the traction limits on all four tires, it’s hard to feel anything but a giddy sense of awe.
To route that much energy to just the rear 285/35-19s might test not only their traction limits but also the boundaries of good sense. Because near-600-horse executive sedans are nothing if not sensible, all-wheel drive is now standard on base and S versions of the 2014 E63 AMG. Its official name is now E63 AMG 4MATIC. Here, the system defaults to a 33/67-percent front-to-rear torque split, although it can send a maximum of 70 percent to either end. It adds 154 pounds—less than Quattro adds to an A6 or xDrive to a 5-series.
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Our educated guess pegs the involuntary grunting that accompanies full-throttle acceleration as equivalent to three sit-ups per launch. Our tech department’s educated guess predicts that the E63 can hit 60 mph in 3.4 seconds, the S in 3.3, and either version can complete a quarter-mile blitzkrieg in fewer than 12 seconds. If you’re shifting manually, your reflexes had better be quick. Fail to grab the next gear the second the tach flashes an angry red, and the 5.5’s headlong rush for rpm ends abruptly at the rev limiter. Even in the upper gears, the engine’s pull from low rpm very quickly translates into illicit velocity.
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