- Its 4.0-litre V8 sends 475kW and 850Nm exclusively to the rear wheels.
- AMG cut around 170kg while adding carbon-ceramic brakes and track-focused aerodynamics.
- Production is limited to 30 cars, all sold before the model's world premiere.
Mercedes-AMG has taken its CLE coupe apart and rebuilt it around a blunt objective: sharper responses on road and track.
The result is the CLE 646 Spezialanfertigung, the second model in Mercedes-Benz's ultra-limited Mythos Series. Just 30 examples will be hand-built in Affalterbach, and every car was sold before its world premiere.
A V8 sends everything rearward
The starting point is a CLE 53 platform, but the finished car bears little mechanical resemblance to the donor. Its 4.0-litre M177 Evo twin-turbo V8 uses a flat-plane crankshaft and produces 475kW, with 850Nm available from 2500-4500rpm.
AMG removed the donor's 4Matic+ all-wheel-drive system, sending power only to the rear axle through a 9-speed AMG Speedshift TCT transmission.
An electronically controlled limited-slip differential manages torque between the rear wheels.
The CLE 646 reaches 100km/h in 3.9 seconds and 200km/h in 11.4 seconds, before topping out at 310km/h.
Less weight, more adjustment
Around 170kg has been removed compared with the donor car, bringing DIN kerb weight to 1895kg. The rear seats and acoustic insulation are gone, while racing bucket seats and a roll-over bar take their place.
The body is 60mm wider at both ends and makes extensive use of carbon fibre, with polycarbonate replacing the rear side glass and rear window. Underneath is a 4-way adjustable steel coil-over suspension developed with KW, plus carbon-ceramic brakes.
The front diffuser can be switched manually between Street and Race positions, while the rear wing is also adjustable. Mercedes-AMG says the package produces well over 250kg of downforce at top speed.
New Zealand pricing, allocation and delivery timing have not been announced.
