Welcome back to our normal Talk Me Out of It Programing, and this week brings Mercedes to the judge’s table. I found a really cool Mercedes-AMG E63 S Wagon. It’s a rare car to be sure, and it’s a wagon, so it’s automatically assumed it will be awesome. But is it worth twice as much as a bonafide exotic sports car – the Mercedes-AMG GT Coupe?
Yea, you read it right – twice as much.
The 2020 Mercedes-AMG E63 S Wagon vs the 2016 Mercedes-AMG GT Coupe
I was like you once. I’d see a car out on the road and think “That must be awesome !”. Then I started to drive them all, and I will admit that many in fact are not awesome. They are average.
Among the worst offenders? Wagons. I’ve tried the Audi RS 6 and BMW’s new M5 Touring, and yea, average. I don’t pine for either, despite the promises their bodywork makes. But there is a third missing from this holy trinity of cargo – the Mercedes E63 S Wagon. Oh it’s gone right now, but soon Merc will unleash a new one that I hope to try.
Yet the last one still looks fresh, no? Rare too, with less than 1,000 sold here in the US. Not as pretty as the Audi, not as prestigious as the M5, the Merc sort of lands in the middle of both. And despite the rarity, you can get one for around $70k. Except for this one. It’s Gulf Blue, a custom color from Mercedes’ Manufaktur program. Think BMW Individual, but more rare.
Cars like these, Mercedes in particular, depreciate rapidly. But not their famous sports car, right? The first generation Mercedes-AMG GT Coupe wasn’t as rare as the SLR or SLS, but it was meant to perform the same function – be the AMG flagship. I think it’s one of Mercedes’ best designs, and it still looks fresh too.
Yet they are they selling for less than the E63? Some under $60k!
Let’s examine. Ain’t no way a wagon is cooler, right?
The 2020 Mercedes-AMG E63 S Wagon
As fate would have it, there are actually two up for bid right now, this Gulf Blue example, and a plain ol’ white one. We’ll come back to that in a minute:
- 8,200 miles
- Absolutely stunning Gulf Blue over black leather
- Clean CarFax
- Choice options such as carbon ceramic brakes, AMG carbon fiber exterior package 20-inch AMG wheels
- The wagon only came in “S” trim, with a 4.0-liter twin turbo V-8 good for 603 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque
- No flaws as I can see – uneven tire wear? Whatever.
- The one thing I don’t like – this has already been paint corrected. Why, on a car with less than 10k miles, is this needed? I digress
- PPF and tints are the only mods
- Bid to $105,000 so far
That last bit is the issue – it’s a premium price for a color, regardless of being “one of one” status. And since this definitely won’t be your special weekend car, can’t we just, I dunno…get a white one?
- 45,200 miles
- Designo Diamond White Metallic over black leather
- Clean CarFax
- More lux options, but missing the carbon package. Does have the brakes though.
- Chips on bumper, wear on the seats
- A few mods, like carbon door handles? Whatever, looks clean enough
- Bid to $35,991 so far
I can find them for $60,000, but not many come up for sale because of the rarity. In fact, the sports car is far more common…
The 2016 Mercedes-AMG GT Coupe
There are a lot of examples, but I’m going to give you the cheapest as a baseline:
- 34,800 miles
- Diamond White Metallic over Red Pepper/Black leather
- Clean CarFax, warm-weather owned
- The same 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V-8 as the wagon, but detuned to 456 horsepower and 443 lb-ft of torque
- This car gets a DCT
- Some chips on the front end and windshield, creases in the leather. Good shape overall.
- Sold for $57,289
I picked this example because it’s white over black, with mileage that says “drive me” instead of “bubble-wrap me”. Surely they’ve made more special versions, from the “S” trim to the Stealth Edition, convertible, and even the R Coupe. Some made more power, but I’m sure there’s plenty here to have fun.
Are you sad about the white? Here’s a Solar Beam Yellow S Coupe for $71,000 (less miles too). Brilliant Blue Metallic, $52,000 (high miles). We could do this all day – look how many have been sold on Bring a Trailer.
Why? Over 17,000 Mercedes-AMG GT Coupes were produced. Does that make it less special? I don’t know – think of how many 911s are produced each year. Or let me do it for you: over 100,000 of the 992 alone.
If the choice is between a wagon or an SUV, I’m going to point you to you-know-where. But the GT Coupe is something you can drive every day too.
What do you think is cooler?
