Case in point, the new Mercedes-AMG C63 coming next year will eschew its V8 engine in favor of a considerably smaller 2.0-liter, four-cylinder as part of a plug-in hybrid powertrain. A new report states the E63 will also catch the downsizing bug as Auto Express claims the high-performance sedan will also lose its twin-turbo 4.0-liter unit. However, rather than switching to a four-pot, the British magazine believes it will boast a six-cylinder unit.

That makes sense considering Mercedes is gradually phasing out its V6 offerings in favor of a newer, smoother, and thriftier straight-six unit. The 3.0-liter is already available in a number of models and logic tells us the engineers have developed the powertrain with electrification in mind. As a matter of fact, it already boasts mild-hybrid tech and is used not only in models carrying the three-pointed star, but also the Aston Martin DBX SUV in China.

In AMG’s “53” models, the inline-six is good for 429 horsepower and 384 pound-feet (520 Newton-meters). Adding an electric motor should bump those output numbers close to those of the current AMG E63 S and its meaty 603 hp and 627 lb-ft (850 Nm). While efficiency is likely to increase without losing power, weight is a real concern considering the super sedan is already heavy as it is. The extra hardware commanded by the PHEV would make it even more of a porker.

It’s going to be a long wait for the next AMG E63 since the standard Benz model was caught testing for the first time only a few days ago. The official debut of the regular E-Class is likely slated to take place by the end of 2022 or early 2023, with the AMG probably due roughly a year later.

Meanwhile, the Mercedes-AMG GT 63 S E-Performance is the flagship plug-in hybrid from Affalterbach with over 830 horsepower and a monstrous 1,400 Newton-meters (1,033 pound-feet) of torque.

Source: Auto Express

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