Exclusive: Mercedes-Benz E 60 AMG from Tiriac Collection

This year, Mercedes-Benz is celebrating 25 years since the Mercedes-Benz 500 E was launched. More special and more exclusive is the E 60 AMG, derived from the 500 E. One unit of the very rare original E 60 AMG is part of the Țiriac Collection in Bucharest, Romania.

Launched in October 1990 at Paris Motor Show, the 500 E has long been one of the most highly sought-after young classic cars bearing the three-pointed star.

Just 10,479 units were built in the years until 1995 and this figure also includes the E 60 AMG. Only 147 units were made by AMG, which, at that time, had a status of tuner. One of these 147 copies can be seen in the Tiriac Colletion in Bucharest. According to some sources, only 12 units have the “Limited” equipment level and one of these is the unit from Tiriac Collection. The original E 60 AMG models carry the “957 AMG Technology Package” in their VIN number and the “M119 E60” inscription together with the “AMG” letters written along the airboxes instead of “Mercedes-Benz”.

Many of the E 60 AMGs seen today are actually 500 Es and E 500s (the name of the model after the facelift) sent subsequently to the AMG factory in order to have the engine changed into the 6.0L V8.

The first 500 E used to cost 140,106 DM, more than twice as much as a the 300 E. The facelifted E 500 launched in 1993 was 145,590 DM and the E 60 AMG was even more expensive.

The 500 E and only the 500 E (not the E 500 facelift model) was built by Porsche at a very early stage, because Mercedes-Benz had not enough production capacity. At that time, Mercedes-Benz W124 was the best sold business saloon in the segment. In fact, the manufacturing process was split between Sindelfingen and Zuffenhausen. The bodyshell was painted at the Mercedes-Benz Sindelfingen plant, while the final assembly was done by Porsche in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen. The facelifted E 500 was launched in August 1993 and was built only by Mercedes at Sindelfingen plant.

The 500 E and the E 60 AMG both came with the flared front and rear wheel arches with larger front bumpers and front fog lights. The original 500 E had small alloy wheels, if we compare them with the sports cars of today– 225/55 ZR 16 – while the E 60 AMG from the Tiriac Collection has 17-inch EVO-II alloy wheels with uprated AMG suspension and AMG twin outlet exhaust system. The brakes and the body of the E60 AMG are similar to the 500 E.

The 5.0 liter V8 engine of the 500 E was derived from the 500 SL, but the 500 E has a shorter axle ratio (1:2.82) which favours acceleration. The 5.0 V8 engine delivers 326 HP/5,700 rpm and 480 Nm/3,900 rpm sent to the rear wheels via a 4-speed automatic gearbox. In addition, in the 500 E, the Bosch LH-Jetronic injection system with electronic air mass sensor replaced the previously used mechanical/electronic KE system from the 500 SL.

The 6.0 liter V8 engine from the E60 AMG delivers 381 HP/5,500 rpm and 580 Nm/3,800 rpm. These figures were not common even for supersports cars of the 1990s.

The tachometer was graded up to 260 km/h in the case of the  500 E and up to 300 km/h for the E60 AMG, but the top speed was limited to 250 km/h for both versions. The 500 E accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 6.1 seconds, while the E 60 AMG reaches 100 km/h even quicker, in only 5.6 seconds.

The 500 E had a rich equipment for those times, with electric adjusted seats, radio Becker Mexico 2000 and headlamp washers, while the sunroof, the heated front seats, the electrically adjusted steering wheel, the front armrest and the leather upholstery woud cost extra.

Dubbed “the Hammer”, the E 60 AMG has a fabulous in-gear acceleration from 60 to 120 km/h. The enormous 480 Nm torque offers a fantastic pulling power. But the E 60 AMG was not a genuine race car. It was more of a four-door Gran Turismo with a practical boot, than a sports car.

The 500 E can be found at prices around 25,000 euros, but the original E 60 AMG is more expensive. Cars with over 100,000 km on the clock are offered on mobile.de between 40,000 and 80,000 euros but the exemplars with less number of kilometers are very rare and more expensive. The one in the “Tiriac Collection” has only 15,543 km on board and a thermosensible painting, which change its colour depending on the outside temperature.