- This Mercedes-Benz C43 AMG includes a 302-hp 4.3-liter V-8 beneath its hood.
- Silver paint and a black inside emphasize this eight-cylinder C-class’s sleeper standing.
- Bidding closes on Monday, Could 1, 2023.
For the 2024 model 12 months, the Mercedes-AMG C63 loses its predecessor’s V-8 engine in favor of a posh turbocharged four-cylinder gasoline-electric hybrid powertrain. On the plus facet, the brand new C63 nonetheless accelerates like a rocket. Alas, it comes on the expense of a hefty curb weight. In the present day’s choose from the public sale website Carry a Trailer—which, like Automotive and Driver, is a a part of the Hearst Autos group—hearkens again to an easier time on the three-pointed star. This 1999 C43 AMG marked the primary time Mercedes match an enormous V-8 into the small C-class sedan.
In the present day, AMG slots neatly into Mercedes’s company construction, a neatly polished cog in an enormous machine. In late 1997, when the C43 was first proven to the world, AMG Motorenbau und Entwicklungshesellschaft mbH was nonetheless its personal entity (Mercedes would take a controlling curiosity within the tuning store in 1999). Having beforehand constructed the six-cylinder C36 to compete with the BMW M3, the corporate now returned to its favourite exercise: stuffing huge V-8s in small vehicles.
Within the case of the C43, AMG plucked the 4.3-liter V-8 from the Mercedes-Benz E430 mid-size sedan and match it beneath the compact C-class’s hood. The parents at AMG hand-assembled every engine (one technician per V-8). Because of enhancements to the massive engine’s oil cooling and intakes, the C43 rolled off the road with a secure of 302 horses—27 greater than an E430.
The C43 could have lacked the dealing with grace of an M3. However what it fell in need of in lateral dynamics, the little AMG-tuned C-class made up for with its V-8 engine’s melodious soundtrack and plentiful torque.
This explicit C43 being auctioned off is a 1999 model painted in silver and fitted with a black inside, and it’s the epitome of “communicate softly and carry an enormous stick.” The C43 is all about subtlety, however these within the know will not miss its huge—for the period—17-inch monoblock wheels and reasonably massaged fascias
This instance is especially engaging on account of its comparatively low miles (just a few ticks over 41,000 miles), all of which had been placed on throughout the automotive’s tenure with its unique proprietor. The automotive additionally advantages from a clear CarFax report and a well-documented service historical past.
Fewer than 1500 C43s had been produced for the USA over the course of three model years, which makes these AMGs comparatively uncommon finds. Regardless of this, these V-8 sedans nonetheless commerce for comparatively cheap sums, with the costliest C43 on Carry a Trailer (as of this writing) promoting for $33,500. We determine it is solely a matter of time till the costs of W202 C43s rise as extra collectors come to understand this German muscle automotive.
Contributing Editor
Brendan McAleer is a contract author and photographer primarily based in North Vancouver, B.C., Canada. He grew up splitting his knuckles on British cars, got here of age within the golden period of Japanese sport-compact efficiency, and commenced writing about vehicles and folks in 2008. His explicit curiosity is the intersection between humanity and equipment, whether or not it’s the racing profession of Walter Cronkite or Japanese animator Hayao Miyazaki’s half-century obsession with the Citroën 2CV. He has taught each of his younger daughters shift a guide transmission and is grateful for the excuse they supply to be perpetually shopping for Sizzling Wheels.
