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2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 Spied Melting Snow Near the Arctic Circle

In case you weren't paying attention, starting this January, we have a new Mercedes-Benz E-Class among us. The Stuttgart brand's mid-sized sedan was launched at this year's North American International Auto Show, on which occasion BMW got another reason to worry about.
2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 13 photos
Photo: S. Baldauf/SB-Medien
2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 spied testing in snow
Well, it seems there's no respite for the poor Bavarians, as the more athletic version of the new model has just been spotted undergoing winter testing (based on the lights on that Volvo - and the fact that it's a Volvo - we'd guess it's Sweden), while throwing darts at a board with a BMW M5 picture on it. That last part might have only been a hallucination caused by the severe cold, though.

But the new Mercedes-AMG E63 is testing, and even though we don't know a great deal about the car, there's still plenty to be excited about.

For one thing, there's the exterior design. It seems like Mercedes-Benz and AMG just can't do wrong at this moment. They are playing it safe by not straying too far away from the proven successful designs of the S- and C-Class, but could you blame them? Besides, although reasonably similar, the E-Class has plenty of character that will only be emphasized by the AMG version.

One thing that stands out - besides the lower front apron, larger air intakes and twin dual exhausts - is the hood's cutout line. On the standard E-Class, it falls all the way to the top of the headlights, while the AMG E63 appears to employ a solution that can only be found on the S-Class Coupé. What does that mean for the car? Not really sure, but it certainly makes it look that bit more special than the non-AMG version.

Then, there's the engine. The 2017 Mercedes-AMG E63 will get a beefed-up version of the 4.0-liter bi-turbo V8 engine that's also powering the GT or the C63 models. We already know that the 510 hp it delivers in the top version of those models can easily be modified with no physical interventions by simply tinkering with the ECU software.

What that means is that we should expect at least 600 hp out of the new Mercedes-AMG E63. It will also benefit from the new, lighter MRA platform and should come equipped with the clever rear differential we've seen on the C63 AMG, so it should be powerful, but also nimble.

The AMG boss, Tobias Moers, has also revealed that Mercedes-Benz's power arm is working on a sporty version of the nine-speed automatic transmission that will debut on the E63 later on.

Speaking of debuts, the date for the new Mercedes-AMG E63's release hasn't been set in stone, but it will definitely happen sometime this year. If what happened with the C-Class can be used as a reference, we've still got some time to wait, as it took AMG over ten months to follow with its take on the compact sedan. Are we in for another Paris Motor Show unveil? It could very well be the case.
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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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