If You Know, You Know: BMW M3 CSL vs Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Black Series

Written by: Matt Parker

AMG and M. To the average Joe, they're just a few random letters, but to us petrolheads, they can symbolise some pretty special machines. Now some of you might be thinking alright, but most AMG and M products aren't exactly supercars, and you're right, but not all AMG and M products are created equal, and when the names Black Series or CSL are tagged onto the end, you know you're dealing with something particularly serious, and on a cold, greasy December day in north Wales, both of today's subjects are certainly serious.

We have Supercar Driver member Jana to thank for the chance to compare these two cars which represent two eras and two very different approaches to turning the everyday saloon car into a fire-breathing, track-ready lunatic. Jana is a great guy with a really cool collection of driver-focused machines, and despite living in London, we see him up north all the time and he'll just rock up on an early morning drive in the Midlands now and then, and today, Jana and his wife have driven both of these cars all the way from London to North Wales, and we salute their commitment to the cause!

Anyway, the cars at a glance. In 2003, the M3 CSL took the scalpel approach with a strict diet and a focus on precision and driver involvement. Almost 10 years later, the C63 Black Series took the sledgehammer approach with its massive V8 and look-at-me bulging arches. Let me clear this up straight away, we're not here to pick a winner. These cars are too different for that. We're here to celebrate two magnificent engines the likes of which we just don't see in new cars, and of course to find out they really deserve to be labelled as modern-day icons.

What I can say straight away is that they both look achingly cool being photographed together in front of the picturesque lake at Bala, and as soon as I arrived, videographer Dan and photographer Riad both commented on how these two cars are a bit of me. I'm sensing they're calling me a hooligan there, so let's start with the sledgehammer, shall we?

Based on the W204 C63 AMG, the Black Series turned things up to 11, on the inside and out. Just 800 examples were made worldwide and only 66 came to the UK. What makes the Black Series special is that it was one of the last cars to use that famous M156 6.2-litre V8, sans turbos, and sure enough, when you're on the move, it is all about that engine. In this guise it has 510bhp and 620Nm and that bodywork doesn't half shout about it. Even in this subtle spec with the silver paintwork and no aero kit, it's a menacing-looking thing with those boxy arches. It's something that could fly under the radar to most passersby, but to a car person, it's just so cool.

Inside, it's pretty much business as usual for Mercedes of the time, and since this example has the comfort seats rather than the optional buckets, you wouldn't think this was the fire- breathing special bar a bit of carbon trim and a badge on the dash, but it feels solid, plus the comfort seats are actually very heavily bolstered and feel great to sink into.

That V8 rumble is ever-present, whether you're mooching along in drive or hanging out near redline, and it has power all the way through the revs too. It really is a magnificent motor both in terms of performance and character, in fact I'd call it one of the all-time greats, and I'm not alone. It doesn't pull like you might expect for 510bhp because of the 1,700kg it has to lug around, but don't think for a second I'm saying it isn't quick, because it certainly is.

What's surprising is how usable that power is too. I was expecting to have to put my right foot in its seldom-used gentle mode, especially given the slippery tarmac, but no, the more you drive the Black Series, the more you realise you can grab this thing by the scruff of the neck, and it likes it.

If you don't treat the throttle like an on-off switch, you can get on the power surprisingly early out of corners, it pulls and keeps pulling down the straights, the brakes are more than a match for the car's heft slowing things down into the next bend and then the turn-in is what really opened my eyes given the lump that's sitting up front. The steering isn't like an old Porsche, but it has more life to it than the latest C63 and the speed of the rack feels spot on for the road. It goes exactly where you point it without a smidgen of push and it's just so stable.

The engine is mated to a seven-speed MCT auto rather than the double-clutch used in the SLS, but it actually feels remarkably similar to the 'box in the SLS, and that unfortunately means it's showing its age. In automatic mode, it's perfectly smooth for cruising, but in manual it's a little sluggish in response to the paddles, so you can find yourself banging the limiter or waiting for a gear. In fact, sometimes it plain didn't want to give me second on the way into a bend, but the engine's torque means that third is more than enough to pull out of even a tight hairpin. It's far from enough to ruin the car, it's just we've become spoilt by modern autos, and hopefully a gearbox flash could help just as it does in the SLS with the SLS Black Series software.

Overall, I loved the C63 Black Series as much as I thought I would, but not necessarily for the reasons I expected. It's an absolute riot to drive, and just as you'd think, the engine dominates, but it's so much more usable and exploitable than its hardcore looks suggest. In short, this is a car I was expecting to be scary, but I found myself really pushing it, and really enjoying it.

I've never been the biggest fan of the tinny E46 exhaust note from the outside, but certainly in the CSL, it sounds like a racing car inside. It can't settle down into a cruise as well as the Black Series, but in this car you aren't just pointing it where you want it to go; everything you do influences the way it drives, and because of that, the experience is just so immersive.

These two cars both exceeded my expectations in their own way, and they could hardly be more different than each other. The Black Series is surprisingly approachable given its pumped-up looks, brute power and AMG reputation, and it's surprisingly agile and chuckable given its 1,700kg kerb weight. What isn't surprising though is the sheer theatre of that engine, it really is one of the best motors ever made.

Sure, the gearbox is showing its age, but this is one of the greatest arguments for there being no replacement for displacement, and they just don't make them like this anymore. The engine and that caricature-aggressive bodywork is why, for me, the C63 Black Series will go down as one of the all-time greats from Affalterbach.

In the same way, the CSL will go down as one of the all-time greats from the M division. I should mention this car has over 120,000 miles on the clock, and it doesn't squeak or rattle, there's no slack, it drives like new. I actually didn't expect the CSL to be a car that keeps you on your toes as much as it does. The Cup 2s on such a cold day probably contributed, but it's so alive in every sense and you're always making small inputs in one way or another. It follows every ripple in the road under braking and the throttle response is so sharp that you have to watch your inputs there too, but it involves you like a truly special driver's car should.

When filming the video for these cars, which you can find on our YouTube channel, I got a bit excited in the moment and compared the CSL to a 997 GT3. I considered this quite a bit afterwards and wondered if I went too far, but don't think I did. Alright, it's not as polished and accomplished as a GT3, and I'm not sure how. much the SMG box would hinder it, but as a manual, the experience it gives you over a road really is up there. Let's say it's like a GT3 with rough edges, and rough edges mean character.

Jana asked me if I have a favourite, and it all depends on what you want from them. The Merc is more usable, comfortable and, surprisingly, the easier car to drive fast, but especially in manual guise, the purity of the CSL puts it in the realms of the very best for a B road thrill. Really though, they're so different that you could happily have them both in the garage. For me, they absolutely deserve to be called modern-day icons which Jana is a very fortunate man to own, and we're hugely grateful of him sharing the experience with us.

‍