The Mercedes E60 AMG Is Peak Benz
The W124 Mercedes E500 is already one of the acknowledged greats - even before we nominated it as one of the Greatest Cars We’ve Ever Driven. But beyond the regular E500 there was an even more special, even more limited variant: the E60 AMG. On a recent visit to Germany I got the chance to drive the perfectly preserved example that belongs to Mercedes’s own Heritage Division. While the regular 500E was the combined work of both Mercedes and Porsche, the E60 brought in further expertise from AMG, which at the time was still an independent tuning outfit.
For a Mercedes uber-geek like myself, this was a little like visiting Maranello and being thrown the keys to Enzo’s personal 250 GTO for a day in the hills. A little like, but actually better - the E60 is the rarer car. AMG’s record keeping seemingly wasn’t up to much at the time, and Mercedes admits it doesn’t know how many were built, but it seems likely that there were no more than 45 "factory" E60s. These were the cars that were ordered brand new, a 1994 or 1995 E500 being specified with both the innocuous sounding Option Code 957 - ‘AMG Technik-Paket’.
Ticking this box on an order form would add DM 34,270 to the cost of the car in Germany - that's the equivalent of about $22,000 at the time - and would have it dispatched directly from Porsche’s facility in Zuffenhausen where it was mostly built to AMG in Affalterbach, some 15 miles away. There it would be fitted with a hand-built 6.0-liter V-8 and further suspension modifications, before being delivered as a brand new car.
While AMG is now a hugely successful division within Mercedes, offering performance versions of almost everything in the range, 30 years ago it was still a small, independent company. The W124 had barely been launched before AMG built a V-8 version - the 300E 6.0 "Hammer," which served as partial inspiration for the 500E project. The Hammer had also prompted the start of a closer collaboration, one that would lead to AMG products being sold by Mercedes itself. The first of these were the C36 version of the W202 C-Class and the E60 AMG.
At this point, things turn a little confusing. AMG’s default position at the time seems to have been to say yes to almost any customer request, and in addition to the factory E60s there were soon lots of existing 500E owners asking for the same upgrades. The result was that many existing cars were converted to E60 spec, this often done alongside other non-canonical modifications including bodykits and flashy three-part alloys. In total, around a hundred of these aftermarket E60s were built, many for the Japanese market. Another source of confusion is that Mercedes switched from 500E to E500 branding in 1994, meaning that all factory cars were based on the E500.
Most, if not all, of the factory E60s were also ordered with the Limited Edition pack that was also offered for late E500s, this combining jazzy two-tone trim with the 17-inch alloy wheels with the same design as those fitted to the Mercedes 190E 2.5-16 Evo II. Beyond the square-tipped exhaust tailpipe, and badging, these factory E60 AMGs look identical to the E500 Limited.
As a part of Mercedes Heritage’s 1100-strong collection of historically significant vehicles, the immaculate 1995 Sapphire Black E60 AMG you see here was built with both the 957 and 958 packs. Also, it seems, every other option box ticked: it’s the first W124 I’ve encountered with the combination of power adjustable heated front seats with a memory function, an electrically adjustable steering column, and even a very early version of climate control. This car is regularly on display in the Mercedes Museum in Stuttgart, but is also registered, street legal, and occasionally loaned to journalists who ask nicely enough. I got to drive it for an afternoon on a mixture of city streets, highways and some of the State of Baden-Württemberg’s prettiest country roads.
To no surprise, the mighty engine is the experiential highlight, one that puts an iron fist in a velvet glove, never turning loud or aggressive. AMG’s official power and torque figures -- helpfully noted on an under bonnet sticker -- are 375 hp at 5500rpm and 428 lb-ft at 3750rpm. Those are substantially higher peaks than the 315 hp and 347 lb-ft the 500E made from its effectively stock M119 5.0-liter V-8. But the E60’s quoted numbers are also widely reckoned to be pessimistic. Mercedes determined that a semi-official product not be allowed to outgun the company’s own 6.0-liter V-12 from the era, which made 402 hp and 420 lb-ft in the CL600.
Regardless of the abstract numbers, the engine’s muscle is huge and spread broadly across the rev range. The dull reactions of the standard four-speed automatic gearbox mean that kickdown changes only arrive slowly, and even with the gearbox under manual control through the old-school selector there is a second-long pause between ordering a new ratio and feeling it arrive. The V-8 responds much more eagerly than the leisurely transmission, and is able to deliver strong, immediate urge even when pulling one of the higher ratios. Pressing the throttle to its stop in Drive therefore creates two-stage acceleration, first as the torque starts to work, then turning stronger as the gearbox shifts. But even when worked hard, the V-8 is never strident. Its low-intensity exhaust rumble harmonizes and becomes harder-edged as revs rise, but it never grows loud. It’s much more relaxed and laid back than its modern equivalent.
The subtlety applies to the E60 AMG’s chassis, too. No, I didn’t get the chance to unleash it on a derestricted stretch of Autobahn to confirm the presence of an early example of the 155 mph electronic speed limiter. But even traveling well below that pace it felt stable and hushed, quiet and refined at an 80 mph cruise even by 2024 standards. AMG’s suspension revisions reportedly brought new springs, dampers and sway bars, but these don’t lose the suppleness that was a core part of the 500E/E500’s appeal.
The softness of the settings stays obvious when asking the E60 to change direction. On a twisting country road there is discernible body roll, although this doesn’t become excessive, even as it gets close to the edge of adhesion. This isn’t hard to do. The E60’s once-huge wheels have been humbled by the passing decades, and are wearing unaggressive 245/45R17 Dunlop SP Sport Maxx tires, one of the few remaining options in this size. Grip levels are well balanced between the axles and growing slip angles at the front are accurately reported by fulsome steering feedback. It takes a flash from the warning light for the unswitchable traction control system to remind me that I am hustling what is, in effect, an irreplaceable museum piece. But no part of the driving experience feels outdated.
Beyond its E500 origins, much of the E60 AMG’s appeal is down to what it shares with the regular W124. There’s the fundamental rightness of Bruno Sacco’s perfectly proportioned design, the tightness of the shutlines, and the palpable quality that comes from the weight and sound of the closing door. Merc’s cars of this era were often likened to bank vaults with good reason. They're nothing like the tinnier and less-substantial models that replaced them. As a special version of a special version the E60 AMG is the rarest of all factory-built W124s. That 45-ish figure set against a total production across sedan, coupe and station wagon of more than two million cars. It is the pinnacle of a range that is increasingly regarded as being one of Mercedes’s all-time highlights.
That combination of rarity and desirability is reflected by values. When Option Pack 957 E60 AMGs get to auction, bidding tends to be keen. Low mileage examples have sold for north of $200,000, more than four times as much as it would take to buy a tidy stock 500E or E500. Prices may well climb further given the trajectory of the earlier Hammer E-Classes that were built before the formal AMG partnership. In 2022, an original 300CE 6.0 Hammer Coupe sold for $761,800. On that basis, the E60 AMG looks like a bargain. If I had a spare two hundred grand it would be right at the top of my list of things to spend it on.
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