Mercedes’ Most Badass Grocery Getter is Back! Meet the E63 S Wagon [News]

If you were anything like me when you were a kid, you dreamed of one day owning a wickedly cool supercar. A Ferrari F40. Or a Countach. Maybe a sleek Jaguar XJ220, or the legendary McLaren F1? My favorite childhood dream machine was the Lamborghini Diablo SV. What you don’t dream of one day owning is a wagon (or estate car, for our transatlantic friends).

But, let’s face it. In the real world, practicality takes precedence over power, noise, and speed. One day you’re dreaming of supercars, and the next you’re comparing the features of all the latest crossovers on sale. Sure, some of us may be able to afford a track toy to take out on the weekends. But, by and large, we’re relegated to consuming the conventional, modest comfort food that is the modern crossover on our daily commutes. Some among us may try to differentiate ourselves from the crossover crowd by driving a wagon, like the ones listed here. Most wagons, though, share a fate in that they’re simply utilitarian purchases for sensible, family-oriented people who need the space.

Performance and practicality are mutually exclusive…or are they? Some manufacturers, like Mercedes-Benz, argue not. You see, since 1986, they’ve offered a special breed of E-Class wagon to special order customers. Customers who need the practicality of a wagon, without the humdrum performance such a purchase normally entails. Enter AMG – Mercedes’ in-house tuning arm, with a solution – the AMG E-Class wagon.

The last version of the E-Class wagon – the W212 variant – bowed out in 2016. Now, for the latest W213 generation, there’s a new kingpin among E-Class wagons. Meet the 2018 Mercedes-Benz E63 S wagon, arguably the most badass wagon of them all.

What makes the E63 S special? What makes any AMG Mercedes special? Its engine, of course. As with other AMG models, this has a 4.0-liter, twin-turbo V8 lurking beneath its bulging hood. With 603 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque, your kids will be screaming all the way to soccer practice. With a 0-60 time of 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 180 MPH as it pulls through its nine speeds like a train, it’ll embarrass most sports cars. A journalist catapulted it around the Nurburgring in 7 minutes, 45 seconds, for goodness’ sake. It’s a station wagon! But not as we mere middle-class mortals know it.

Ah, and therein lies the problem. Mercedes-Benz – finger firmly on the pulse of the performance market – touts the E63 S Wagon as an exclusive model. These special variants never exceed triple-digit sales. You have to special order them. Its buyers, claim Mercedes, hail from the big cities – Boston, New York, and what have you. You wouldn’t expect this sort of performance to come cheap, and you’d be right. At $106,950 (excluding destination charges), it’s out of reach for most surburbanites who have need of wagons in the first place.

If you can afford it, Mercedes-Benz assures you, through its press material, that the E-Class Wagon will be an exclusive car for a well heeled customer. Still, with all that engine, 15.4-inch front brakes and 14.2-inch rear brakes, and dynamic air suspension, it’s still a true performance machine. It’s also half the price of a G-Wagon.

I’m not even a family man, but who doesn’t love practicality and performance? If there was ever a dream-worthy wagon, this would certainly be a contender.