With a new E-class debuting this past January, a new AMG model was sure to follow. What's on tap for the newest E 63? More power, all-wheel drive, and now it is going to get Drift Mode.
That's right. Mercedes-AMG chairman Tobias Moers has confirmed to Autocar that the newest AMG super sedan will have all-wheel drive as standard for the first time (it's currently standard in Canada, but has been optional in much of the world), but that the all-wheel drive system will get a Ford Focus RS-style drift mode. What does that do? It sends more power to the rear, and specifically the outside rear tire in order to more easily create and then help maintain a slide. Why would you want to do that? It probably won't help the Nürburgring lap times, which Moers claims will be faster than the old car, but it will help drivers look cool. On a closed course, that is. The move to all-wheel drive has been seen as taking some of the brash and bold AMG character out of the E 63, and adding the drift mode is a way to recapture some of that.
In addition to the trick power delivery, the new Mercedes-AMG E 63 will also have over 600 hp available from a 4.0L twin-turbo V8, with the "base" model coming in slightly under that number.
Expect the newest AMG to debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit this coming January.
