2011 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Wagon Safety Car
There is something oddly appealing about high-performance station wagons. It must have something to do with the fundamental contradictions they embody. Station wagons, after all, are kid-and-dog haulers, right? Yet here we are, with a 556-hp Cadillac wagon with a manual transmission, and it may just be the coolest thing the company has made in, well, ever.
CTS-V Wagons notwithstanding, high-performance station wagons were perfected in Europe, where all the cool kids drive "estates." BMW makes bustle-back versions of its M cars, and Mercedes-Benz does the same when it comes to AMG. So it's a little painful to see a C63 AMG Wagon announced as an official safety car for the Formula 1 World Championship.
We just got the C63 AMG Coupe, after all. And it'll be good, if the sedan is any indication. But what if you need to get your Afghan to the kennel club show 60 miles away, but you only have 30 minutes to get there? Even perfectly pedicured paws will scuff the leather on your C63 AMG Sedan's rear seat.
If speed-hungry dog breeders isn't a big enough market then what about national pride, Mercedes-Benz? Are you going to let Cadillac parade around in its CTS-V Wagon, proclaiming itself the biggest, baddest kid on the block?
Well probably. Despite the fact that a select few gearheads have a wagon fetish, the honest truth is that they generally are poor sellers, and it's a tough business case to put all that expensive high-tech performance hardware into a vehicle that nobody will buy. For now, the closest Americans will get to the C63 AMG Estate is watching -- and hopefully hearing -- it at the Montreal Grand Prix in June.
Source: Mercedes-Benz
