Back in March, well before the new Mercedes-Benz CLS was revealed, rumours suggested that Affalterbach had no plans to include a V8-powered CLS63 derivative in the latest generation. And now Mercedes-AMG chief Tobias Moers has confirmed that the “63” badge will not make its way onto the rump of the new CLS.
Speaking to Automotive News, Moers said that this flagship role would instead be filled by AMG’s upcoming four-door GT car (as previewed by the Mercedes-AMG GT concept unveiled in Geneva).
A new Mercedes-AMG CLS53 derivative (likely to debut at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit in January 2018), he explained, would be the most powerful version of the Stuttgart-based brand’s new swoopy sedan, drawing its urge from a high-output version of the new 3,0-litre turbocharged inline-six engine (codenamed M256), complete with a 48-volt electrical system.
Although no official figures have been revealed, Moers confirmed to the US publication that the 53-badged variants would boast “a higher output than the 43s” – as logic would dictate. He also hinted that the E-Class range would soon gain 53-badged derivatives, too.
