“AMG has built a genuine Mercedes-Benz track car, the kind of street-legal racer we’ve seen in the parking lot of the Nürburgring’s Nordschleife, where a $10.75 ticket entitles you to test your car against the classic racing circuit.
In fact, the 2007 Mercedes-Benz CLK63 AMG Black Series is the most serious car you can buy from Mercedes-Benz, a single-minded expression of performance that’s built just like the pace car you see at Formula 1 races,” via Edmunds
Fortunately the seven-speed automatic softens the jump from the engine, even when you use the quick-shifting manual mode that holds each gear to the engine’s redline. The aluminum shift paddles are sizable and solid, and they’re properly attached to the steering wheel and not the steering column. The stubby central shift lever really isn’t meant to be used.
Unlike other automotive exercises in 500 hp, the Black Series gives you the tools to make good use of so much power. When you begin your move into a corner, the steering action is quick and wonderfully accurate, a perfect match with the chassis. There’s a fine sense of overall command through the steering that Mercedes-Benz doesn’t usually deliver.
The cockpit is a great place to work. The panoramic windshield and a good seating position give you a great view of the road, even when you have to peer up through an upper corner of the glass to see a hairpin climbing out of sight up the mountain.
Of course, it helps if you can fit into the AMG sport seat. You can get along with the manual adjustment for fore-and-aft travel, and the three electronically controlled bolsters make the seat comfortable enough, but you might have to drop a dress size to get into it in the first place. Don’t worry about the rear seat, because AMG leaves it out to save weight,” via Edmunds
The power comes in with a predictable, authoritative rush; and if you drift out of the stability control system’s envelope of acceptability, it doesn’t yank you back as if the hand of Gottlieb Daimler himself were shaking you. Just as important, the brakes are always there when you need them. The pads don’t have a lot of initial bite, yet the actual braking power is stupendous and fade-free besides. Our 3,918-pound test car came to a halt in just 108 feet, a combination of great brakes and great tires.
And in the AMG way, both the Black Series and its driver can put in a full day of this back and forth without breaking a sweat. Composed, responsive car dynamics help make speed seem effortless. Only the transmission’s inability to match engine revs during downshifts (AMG tried to program it into the software and got only 50-rpm blips for its trouble) compromises your efforts.
Meanwhile, the car itself is engineered for track-ready toughness. There’s a larger radiator, plus an engine oil cooler in the front wheel arch, while the power steering, transmission and rear differential all have dedicated fluid coolers as well,” via Edmunds
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