We have been commissioned to find a new MAISON for this exclusive Brabus C V8 6.1 with 426 hp (313Kw) and 621 Nm of torque… UNICORN !!!.
For us, Mercedes AMGs have a special aura, something like an intangible that, intrinsic to their surname, makes us feel things without even having to drive them. What a Brabus provokes in us could be something similar, and in a certain way, amplified by its brutality, its exclusivity or both simultaneously.
Although today they are perceived as somewhat baroque, there was a time – not so long ago – when Brabus cars added spice to somewhat bland Mercedes bodies in order to subtly banish the sleeper image and separate themselves from the AMG versions. And this is precisely the case here; a Brabus built on the Mercedes C-Class (W203).
The Brabus C V8 was not an extra package or a modest tuning on a C-Class, it was the sublimation of what the German tuner was capable of creating with a base like the W203, lighting up a totally different car in its guts. By «plugging in» a V8, which could be ordered in 5.8 or 6.1 litre, derived from a displacement increase over the 5.5 litre V8 block (M113) – fitted in numerous models such as the CL 500 – the C V8 became a very serious machine, capable of giving the supercars of the early 2000s a hard time on the Autobahn. With low production numbers, it was just as, if not more, exclusive than the supercars of the early 2000s.
With a sum of infinite improvements to the base and the aforementioned engines, the Brabus C V8 range consisted of the C V8 5.8 (400 hp and 579 Nm) and the C V8 6.1 (426 hp and 621 Nm), also in Sportcoupé bodywork. Later, the C V8 S (445 hp and 635 Nm) was the pinnacle.
Of the three intimidating versions of the C V8, the 6.1 version is the one in question. The only European unit on sale at the moment.
The Brabus C V8 6.1, like this one, was based on the design of the Mercedes M113 engine with three valves per cylinder (24V), which was subjected to a profound remodelling that included the block itself, crankshaft and new pistons with a longer stroke to increase the cubic capacity to 6034cc but without changing its naturally aspirated character. Most of the cooling peripherals were oversized (including the bonnet vents), and from the manifolds onwards, the entire exhaust was «made in Brabus». The 426 hp and a beastly 621 Nm of torque that came out of all this were proof of a job well done.
Its figures of 4.7 seconds 0-100 and over 300 km/h top speed were the combined work of that bespoke heart and a 5-speed torque converter automatic gearbox, with the power going to the rear wheels, of course. Also lending a hand in the Herculean task of steering the whole thing were bespoke Sachs dampers, 30mm shorter springs, thicker anti-roll bars and braking equipment to match (355mm discs at the front with 6-piston calipers and 300mm discs with 4-piston calipers at the rear). By today’s standards, the 235/35/19 and 265/30/19 tyres, mounted on characteristic B rims with generous grooves, are no big deal.
Apart from the usual technical features, this car has a number of details that emphasise that this is not an old-fashioned C-Class, but rather something raw, sporty and wild. The red colour and the carbon additions make the contrast enough to let us enjoy the more aggressive Brabus specific body kit. If you still have doubts about this device, just lift the bonnet to see its small plate in the middle of a huge carbon cover that conceptualises the two 4-cylinder banks.
The personalisation continues in the interior: Brabus Mastik Leder, a fine leather with a specific treatment and even better quality that reaches the door panels; exclusive steering wheel; chrome and aluminium on different elements such as the central console? All without marked wear and tear or too many signs of use.
On the instrument panel we find a unique speedometer that sets the top speed at 320 km/h.
What to compare it with… perhaps with an Audi RS4 Avant (B5 or B6) prepared by ABT or even with a BMW touched by Hamann, but neither… And the «basic» M or AMG models of the time seem even decaffeinated next to it.
