Flying halfway across the world, the least thing I would have expected was to meet my wife’s tito—who happens to share the same passion as I do: fast cars. But as if fate waved its magic wand, that’s exactly what happened and how I ended up at a Mercedes-Benz dealership south of Boston, Massachusetts. Stepping into Tito JC Cabanos’s corner office is like stepping into the McLaren-Mercedes trophy room: on display were shimmering awards and trophies. Yet, JC’s passion for the three-pointed star doesn’t end with his sales accolades: hung on the wall was a painting of Sterling Moss’s 300 SLR and on his desk, a shot of him sitting in a late-model SL, with oddly enough, a large lobster draped on the hood. After exchanging tales of kamustas, JC decided that there was no better way to heighten the Mercedes experience than driving one of the most formidable Mercedes-Benz cars on the road today: the C 63 AMG.

Since JC works for Herb Chambers, a large multi-brand dealership network (one of the largest in the state, if I may add), it’s not extraordinary to see Mercedes-Benz and BMW cars parked side-by-side. In fact, the lot of pristine C 63 AMGs was parked just a glance away from its direct rival, the BMW M3. As I visually inspected the AMG’s deep front apron, massive perforated disc brakes, aggressive 18-inch alloys and quad-tip exhaust, a customer who was receiving his M3 delivery gave me an inquisitive stare. As I twisted the ignition and breathed life to the monstrous 6.3-liter V8, the air was filled with a cacophony that’s best described as James Earl Jones in his Darth Vader guise. It’s the best damn exhaust note I’ve ever heard; enough to make me teary-eyed and the M3 guy realize he got the shorter end of the stick. Such is the appeal of the C 63 AMG, and it’s easy to see why it’s the best-selling AMG model in the United States.

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