whatever, however you'd like to see it. AMG cars will always be drivers cars in your eyes.

No , they are what they are , that's all I want to say ....

ooooooooooooooooook

Well,I did wrote famous ˝IMO˝ qoute,please read what did I wrote..And what makes RS4 untouchable?Maybe 4x4 drivetrain,fabolous V8,great looks?You know what´s tragic about CLK 63 AMG?It needs to have 2 liter biger displacment to compete with RS4 and 3 liters more on M3.BTW,CLK´s primary mission is to be more comfortable than competition,to deliver that ˝I´m driving an Mercedes˝ felling,to be perform on left track of autobahn in Germany and things like that IMO.Sorry,but thats how I see it..For now,RS4 has no real competition in segment it belongs(till new ///M comes out) IMO.I still think CLK is well made car with good engine,nice interiour and good suspension,but it just don´t have that ˝something˝ in it to be loved by me..Apreciated sure,but not loved.Don´t get me wrong,please..ok?

As an owner of an AMG vehicle, how can I not comment on this thread? Since joining the forum 2 days ago, I've found a number of threads already that I have an opinion on. Boy, some of you are quite passionate and confident in your convictions.....

I quite like Evo magazine, as their reviews are very succinct and realistic. Quite more enjoyable than the mainstream North American car mags. But Evo is all about driving thrill and the driving experience, so they will judge cars in that way. The CLK63 coupe was reviewed in their "Driven" section, which isn't a complete road test and they didn't test it on their benchmark 1.8 mile short track. Hopefully, they will test if more formally in the future.

Their assessment of the new CLK63 coupe is consistent with previous AMG reviews they've done. The car is very capable, but the relative lack of driver involvement dulls the experience. A big part of it is the AMG Speedshift transmission, which oftens frustrates track drivers who want COMPLETE and INSTANTANEOUS control of gear selection. In automatic "S" mode, the shift speeds are very fast. But in manual "M" mode, the gear shifts are not as instataneous as the fastest manual mode in SMG and DSG gearboxes. In the past, inability to completely disable ESP contributed as well.

Even though the AMG website lists the CLK63 as having ABC in the tech specs section, I think that is a mistake. If you click on the suspension section in the exterior highlight section, there is no mention of ABC at all. Furthermore, I would find it odd that Mercedes would offer ABC on the CLK63 when the more upscale CLS63 and E63 does NOT get ABC. Anyways, time will tell later on when people actually take deliveries of the CLK63.

And about the 6.2L V8....Make no mistake, this engine was designed to compete with BMW's 5.0L V10. Large displacement so there is plenty of torque low in the rpm range (an AMG hallmark), and high reving to take advantage of higher engine speeds to make power (like BMW M). In its fully tuned state making 514HP (CLS63/E63), it should be a match for the M5 and M6. It blows by the 4.2L V8 FSI in the RS4 in terms of power production. In the CLK63, the 6.2L V8 is "detuned" to "just" 481HP so it won't outperform the more expensive CLS63 and E63.

About potential performance. This is all speculation. Like all AMG cars, the CLK63 should be a rocket in a straight line, probably faster than the RS4. On a track, it will be fast, but my guess is that the new V8 M3 will set the new standard. If the CLK63 really does have ABC, it may become a match for the RS4/new M3. Without ABC, I'm not so sure because the current CLK chassis is essentially the current C-class setup. Yes, the current C55 is quite a performer and very close to the E46 M3, but it is significantly inferior to the current RS4. If history were to repeat itself, it may take the NEXT CLK chassis to catch up with the RS4/new M3. Again, this is all my own speculation, so don't criticize too much.......