After a short-lived period of teasing, the Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake has been officially unveiled. It made a debut at Goodwood Festival of Speed 2012 the weekend before last, wrapped in nothing but a camouflage wrap. At the same time, the non-AMG CLS Shooting Brake models made their debut at the Mercedes-Benz stand.

As the name suggests, the Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake gets the AMG 5.5 liter V8 biturbo engine. It’s available as standard with 525hp and 700Nm of torque or tuned though the optional ‘Edition 1’ package to 557hp and 800Nm of torque. The V8 includes direct petrol injection with spray-guided combustion, piezo injectors, air/water intercooling, generator management and a start/stop function. Performance figures include a zero to 100km/h sprint of 4.4 and 4.3 seconds respectively, and an electronically limited top speed of 250km/h.

AMG fitted their Speedshift MCT seven-speed transmission with four different transmission modes, ‘race start’ and automatic double declutching functions. As we’ve seen in all recent AMG modes, this includes ‘Controlled Efficiency’ mode with stop/start, ‘Sport’ mode, ‘Sport Plus’ and ‘Manual’. The CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake also features AMG Ride Control with ‘Comfort’, ‘Sport’ and ‘Sport plus’ settings. AMG also fitted a three-stage ESP and sport handling mode.

The cars track width is 56mm wider than standard. An AMG ceramic braking system is available as an option with 360mm ventilated and perforated brake discs available as standard. The wheels are titanium grey-painted, high-sheen AMG light-alloy wheels featuring a triple-spoke design and fitted with 255/35 R19 tyres on the front and 285/30 R19 tyres on the rear.

The CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake gets a new AMG front apron with a cross strut finished in high-gloss black, an AMG radiator grille, an AMG bonnet and broader front wings with “V8 Biturbo” lettering. At the rear features include an AMG rear apron with a built in diffuser and an AMG sports exhaust system with quad tailpipes. LED headlamps with Intelligent Light System and Highbeam Assist are fitted as standard.

The Mercedes-Benz CLS Shooting Brake has a load volume of between 590 and 1,550 liters, when the rear seat backrests are folded down. Quite remarkable is the optional wooden luggage compartment floor made from cherry tree wood, coupled with the inlaid smoked oak and aluminium loading rails. An optional trailer coupling is also available. As for the interior, the Shooting Brake also offers five interior colours, five trim designs and also three qualities of leather to choose from.

Inside, the CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake gets AMG sports seats finished in nappa leather with multicontour seat and memory functions, AMG black piano lacquer trim and an AMG-specific analogue clock designed by watch manufacturer IWC. The transmission modes, suspension setup, ESP functions and everything else can be configured through the AMG drive unit integrated into the centre console. Changes also include the new three-spoke steering wheel and the chrome-look electronic key with AMG emblem.

Both versions of the Mercedes-Benz CLS 63 AMG Shooting Brake will start deliveries in October 2012.

Previous articleGoldRush Rally 4 – Photo Review by Auto Focus Photography
Next articleVideo: Samuel Eto’o’s Aston Martin One-77 Broken

1 COMMENT

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here