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FEATURE
Taking the W204 C63 and making it even more extreme
Published Sat, May 8, 2021 5:00 PM
Everyone loves a C63. The noise, the power-the fact that it’s as close to a proper muscle car as it’s possible to get. Well, from Germany anyway. But if a standard one’s a bit boring for you, what do you do? You make it the only one of its kind in Europe, of course.
WHO?
Johnny Holt is not one to do things by halves. The 27-year-old from Portsmouth has a somewhat eclectic car history, including a Range Rover Sport, a Renault Clio 200 track car, and this-his one of one Liberty Walk C63.
WHAT?
The original C63 was a monster. Kicking out just north of 450bhp from its normally aspirated 6.2 V8 heart, it had the capacity to perform epic burnouts on a whim and to terrify the elderly with its bark, which was akin to Beelzebub himself choking on a trumpet. An evil trumpet.
Johnny’s is no exception, and following a mild tune and secondary cat delete, he was happy with the 500-or-so ponies that were residing under the bonnet for the first couple of years of ownership. But, like many of us, he got bored and decided he was going to chop it in for something else.
Trouble is, he couldn’t find anything that really tickled his pickle in the same way the C63 did. Sure, he could go for a newer example, but the 4.0 twin-turbo V8 just doesn’t have the soul of the original. It’s quicker, sure-frighteningly so, in fact, but it just lacks…something. When compared to the 6.2 anyway.
So, having made the decision to keep the coupe, he started trawling the internet, wondering how he could make it a little more unique before he chanced upon a photo he saved back in 2017 when Liberty Walk launched the C63 kit. Quicker than you can say “it looks rather aggressive Margaret”, he’d reached out to Jimy and Indy at Liberty Walk EU, and the deal was done.
Fitting a Liberty Walk kit is no easy task, and involved some serious surgery on the car’s outer skin. Luckily, Johnny knew exactly the people to tackle the build, and it was soon winging its way to Wrench Studio, where it was left in the capable hands of Ray and Hamid.
Obviously, when building something as ridiculous as this, subtlety goes out the window, and so a set of ludicrous wheels were always going to end up in those crazy arches. Enter stage left a set of unique 19” 3 Piece GOVAD Forged G33s, with hand-painted faces, with 9.5”s up front and a frankly bonkers set of 12”s bringing up the rear.
The car was only ever going to be on air, and not wanting to cut corners, only the best would do. This is why Johnny opted for a top-end AccuAir E-level management system, with a super slick Endo CVT tank and AirRex Performance Struts. “
You’d be surprised how many older people take photos of the car,” says Johnny. ‘How do you get over speed bumps?’ is probably the most common question when it’s parked up and aired out!”
Next up, Johnny needed to decide on a colour, and in his head, there was only ever going to be one option to show off those super aggressive lines-satin grey. For Johnny, it had to be 3M, as he’s a man of taste, and that subtle sheen is all protected with a liberal coating of Ceramic Pro.
Inside, a cool-as-you-like TC Racong full carbon wheel, complete with alcantara contact points heads up a currently somewhat stock interior, although Johnny has plans for a full retrim in diamond stitch suede (ooof), as well as a few more carbon goodies.
Watch this space, as Johnny is currently looking at colour change options, and if he goes with what he’s hinting at, this thing will break the AMG scene wide open!
WHAT?
The original C63 was a monster. Kicking out just north of 450bhp from its normally aspirated 6.2 V8 heart, it had the capacity to perform epic burnouts on a whim and to terrify the elderly with its bark, which was akin to Beelzebub himself choking on a trumpet. An evil trumpet.
Johnny’s is no exception, and following a mild tune and secondary cat delete, he was happy with the 500-or-so ponies that were residing under the bonnet for the first couple of years of ownership. But, like many of us, he got bored and decided he was going to chop it in for something else.
Trouble is, he couldn’t find anything that really tickled his pickle in the same way the C63 did. Sure, he could go for a newer example, but the 4.0 twin-turbo V8 just doesn’t have the soul of the original. It’s quicker, sure-frighteningly so, in fact, but it just lacks…something. When compared to the 6.2 anyway.
So, having made the decision to keep the coupe, he started trawling the internet, wondering how he could make it a little more unique before he chanced upon a photo he saved back in 2017 when Liberty Walk launched the C63 kit. Quicker than you can say “it looks rather aggressive Margaret”, he’d reached out to Jimy and Indy at Liberty Walk EU, and the deal was done.
Fitting a Liberty Walk kit is no easy task, and involved some serious surgery on the car’s outer skin. Luckily, Johnny knew exactly the people to tackle the build, and it was soon winging its way to Wrench Studio, where it was left in the capable hands of Ray and Hamid.
Obviously, when building something as ridiculous as this, subtlety goes out the window, and so a set of ludicrous wheels were always going to end up in those crazy arches. Enter stage left a set of unique 19” 3 Piece GOVAD Forged G33s, with hand-painted faces, with 9.5”s up front and a frankly bonkers set of 12”s bringing up the rear.
The car was only ever going to be on air, and not wanting to cut corners, only the best would do. This is why Johnny opted for a top-end AccuAir E-level management system, with a super slick Endo CVT tank and AirRex Performance Struts. “
You’d be surprised how many older people take photos of the car,” says Johnny. ‘How do you get over speed bumps?’ is probably the most common question when it’s parked up and aired out!”
Next up, Johnny needed to decide on a colour, and in his head, there was only ever going to be one option to show off those super aggressive lines-satin grey. For Johnny, it had to be 3M, as he’s a man of taste, and that subtle sheen is all protected with a liberal coating of Ceramic Pro.
Inside, a cool-as-you-like TC Racong full carbon wheel, complete with alcantara contact points heads up a currently somewhat stock interior, although Johnny has plans for a full retrim in diamond stitch suede (ooof), as well as a few more carbon goodies.
Watch this space, as Johnny is currently looking at colour change options, and if he goes with what he’s hinting at, this thing will break the AMG scene wide open!
HOW?
C63 coupes, like Johnny’s, whilst not common, aren’t hard to find for sale. There are some out there for sub £20k, but if you want a really good one, don’t expect to pay anything less than £25k. If you need something to terrify the wife and kids with, you can opt for the saloon version, which can be had for slightly less, starting off at around £15k. There’s even an estate version, for those that need to transport their dog to the park at warp speed.
WHERE?
Johnny’s car was shot by Mike Crawat-one of Europe’s foremost photographers of incredible cars. You can check out his work over at www.mikecrawat.com
SPECS
Manufacturer: Mercedes
Model: W204 C63 Coupe
Engine: 6.2 V8, previously tuned. Secondary Cat Delete
Chassis: AccuAir E-level management, Endo CVT tank, AirRex performance Struts
Wheels: 19” 3 Piece GOVAD Forged G33’s. 19x9.5j fronts et-5 19x12j rears et-10 (currently running Toyo Proxes for winter however swapping back over to Toyo R888Rs as soon as the weather improves!)
Exterior: Full Liberty Walk body kit, wrapped in Satin Dark Grey in 3M protected by Ceramic Pro
Interior: TC Racing Full carbon steering wheel with Alcantara Grips, Extended Carbon paddles with red fleck. Carbon interior trims. Boot build trimmed by TrimDeluxe in Alcantara with Red Diamond stitching
