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Why does a C63 say 6.3 when its engine is 6.2 liters?
What everyone assumes
Older Mercedes badges like the 1968 '300 SEL 6.3' spelled out the engine size. So people read the '63' on a C 63 as a 6.3-liter engine.
The real displacement
Displacement — the total volume the cylinders sweep — comes from bore, stroke and cylinder count. A 102.2 mm bore and 94.6 mm stroke give about 776 cc per cylinder; × 8 cylinders = 6,208 cc: 6.2 liters. Mercedes' 2007 kit still calls it a 6.3-liter V8.
Source: Mercedes-Benz Italia press kit, 25 Sept 2007
The original 6.3
In 1968, Mercedes dropped the 6.3-liter V8 from its 600 limousine into the 300 SEL sedan — 250 PS (about 246 hp), debuted at Geneva.
Source: Secret Classics, Mercedes-Benz Classic press material
The unconfirmed link
Enthusiasts widely link AMG's '63' to that 1968 car. The Mercedes launch material we checked gives the displacement — but doesn't explain the name.
Same badge, three engines
The badge stayed '63' through a 6.2-liter V8, a 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, and a 2.0-liter hybrid four-cylinder.
Source: Mercedes-AMG press release (via Sports Car Digest), carsales.com.au
Check the spec sheet, not the badge
The specs point one way: at AMG, '63' now works as a performance name, not a measurement. Check the displacement on the spec sheet, not the trunk lid.
Sources and assumptions
- Mercedes-Benz Italia press kit 'Mercedes-Benz C 63 AMG' (25 settembre 2007): W204 C 63 AMG: 'il V8 da 6,3 litri sviluppato da AMG, che da una cilindrata di 6.208 centimetri cubici eroga ben 336 kW/457 CV'; spec table cilindrata 6.208 cc; bore × stroke 102.2 × 94.6 mm; 336 kW/457 CV at 6,800 rpm; 600 Nm at 5,000 rpm; the V8 was first presented in 2005; launch in early 2008 (checked 2026-09-29)
- Secret Classics, '50 Years of Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3' (Mercedes-Benz Classic press material; pictures: Mercedes-Benz): 300 SEL 6.3 debuted at the 1968 Geneva Motor Show; 6.3-liter V8 taken from the Mercedes-Benz 600 (W 100); 184 kW / 250 PS and 500 Nm (checked 2026-09-29)
- Wikipedia, 'Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3' (cites the Mercedes-Benz public archive, which returned HTTP 403 to us): 300 SEL 6.3 displacement 6,332 cc; 250 PS at 4,000 rpm; 6,526 built 1967–1972 (checked 2026-09-29)
- carsales.com.au, 'C 63 AMG officially a V8' (2014): W205 C 63 uses a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8, 375 kW / 700 Nm (C 63 S) (checked 2026-09-29)
- Sports Car Digest, 'The new Mercedes-AMG C 63 S E PERFORMANCE at a glance' (reprint of the Mercedes-AMG press release): W206 C 63 S E PERFORMANCE: 2.0-litre in-line four with an electrically assisted exhaust gas turbocharger, 350 kW (476 hp); system output 500 kW (680 hp), 1,020 Nm (checked 2026-09-29)
- Mercedes-Benz Schweiz press PDF '220921 Mercedes-AMG C 63 S E PERFORMANCE' (downloaded; text not machine-readable here, date taken from the file name): Official Mercedes press release for the C 63 S E PERFORMANCE dated 21 September 2022 (from the file name) (checked 2026-09-29)
Assumptions:
- 'Rounds to 6.2 liters' uses normal rounding of 6,208 cc to one decimal place (6.208 L).
- The link between the AMG '63' name and the 1968 300 SEL 6.3 is enthusiast lore: we found no Mercedes primary text that says the name honors it, so the slide must present it as the widely told story, not as a Mercedes statement.
- The W205 figures quoted are for the C 63 S (375 kW); the base W205 C 63 had 350 kW per search results we did not open. Name only the engine layout for the base car.
- The W206 generation is referred to by its launch press date (September 2022); market launch dates vary by country.
Photos:
The short version
- 6,208 cc, not 6,300
- Mercedes' press kit still calls it a 6.3-liter V8
- 1968 300 SEL 6.3 link: enthusiast lore, not official
- Same badge later meant 4.0L, then 2.0L hybrid
- Check the spec sheet, not the trunk lid
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