- Vuk Manufaktur has spent two years making the C63 S that Mercedes-AMG should have built.
- The standard plug-in hybrid powertrain may have more power, but it cannot match the V8’s sound.
- There’s no word on whether the Austrian company plans to sell V8 conversions to customers.
It’s no secret that the new Mercedes-AMG C63 S, with its 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder plug-in hybrid, doesn’t have the same luster as its V8-powered predecessors. Sure, the super sedan packs 671 hp, but no amount of power can convince some to buy such a big car with a 4-cylinder engine. Now, an Austrian firm has the answer.
For the past two years, Vuk Manufaktur has been working on developing and building the V8-powered W206 C63 we’ve all been waiting for. The work has been wrapped up and it sounds like what AMG should have done in the first place.
Read: Is The 2026 Audi RS5 About To Make Life More Miserable For the AMG C63?
Few details have been provided about the engine swap, although it wouldn’t have been easy. The four-cylinder powertrain has been removed, together with all of the plug-in hybrid parts, like the trio of electric motors. Vuk hasn’t specified what AMG V8 it’s installed, but it looks to be the beloved 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 found in plenty of AMG models. A seven-speed automatic transmission has probably been fitted alongside the new V8.
While the new plug-in hybrid C63 S easily outmuscles its predecessors, it cannot match their driving experience. Yes, there are some nice-sounding four-cylinder engines out there, but no matter what headers and exhaust you use, there’s simply no way to make one sound as raw or as visceral as a V8. Vuk’s creation sounds just as beastly as the old C63, making it a proper AMG car.
There’s no word on whether Vuk plans to sell these V8 conversions, but this project at least shows that it’s feasible to drop the 4.0-liter powertrain into the new C63. Would it be extremely time-consuming and expensive? You bet.