The Mercedes CLK 63 Black Series Is A Crazed Slice Of V8 AMG We Want Badly

Seeing Merc’s gorgeous new AMG GT yesterday has given us a V8 Merc itch we just need to scratch. Unfortunately, we got a little side tracked while looking for affordable AMG V8s, and ended up ogling something a little less affordable: this CLK 63 AMG Black Series. Sure, it’s quite pricey at £68,990, but oh boy, it’s worth it.

To create the Black, Mercedes took the already rather brisk CLK63, and turned it up to 11 in the most glorious way possible. The 6.2-litre, naturally-aspirated V8 received a 26bhp bump to bring the under-bonnet violence up to a nice round 500bhp, the chassis was stiffened considerably, and the track was widened by 75mm at the front and 66mm at the rear. A new trick limited-slip differential went in at the back, complete with its own oil cooler.

The body sprouted wide arches to cover the protruding wheels, while aerodynamic aids like a carbonfibre rear diffuser and a new front splitter appeared. The C209 CLK is already one of the best-looking Mercs of recent times - I’m personally not a fan of the more recent, angular stuff from Stuttgart - but with the wide arches and racier additions to the bodywork, the Black is an aggressively handsome machine that we can’t help but lust after. The stripped back interior, meanwhile, has no rear seats, while the front pair are lightweight bucket items.

The Black can crack 0-62mph in just 4.3 seconds, on to an electronically-limited 186mph top speed. All while making an absolutely incredible noise.

Now all we need to do is locate the best part of £70k to buy one…