Mercedes-AMG C 63 (W204)
Why 7.3: The M156 in a compact sedan, RWD only, no turbo lag to manage — the C63 generation enthusiasts point to when they say AMG lost the plot with the four-cylinder replacement. Cheap enough used that the ownership base skews toward people who bought it specifically to drive, not display.
Layout
Natural habitat
Ride comfort
Market value
Median asking price, good condition · €53k (2008) → €41k (2026), trending down · illustrative data
The long version
This was the last C-Class AMG built around a hand-assembled naturally aspirated V8 before AMG moved the whole lineup to turbocharged and hybridized power, and buyers shopping the used market know it — the M156's absence from every AMG model since is the entire sales pitch now. Values cratered through the 2010s as these became ordinary high-mileage used sedans, which put them within reach of buyers who wanted the engine more than the badge and have driven them accordingly: real winters, real commutes, real track days for the DIY-maintenance crowd willing to budget for the M156's known wear items. No manual was ever offered, which keeps involvement below the top tier of this index, but the engine note and the RWD chassis do most of the work a gearbox usually would. It is the rare AMG where the used-market price and the actual ownership pattern point the same direction: driven hard because it's cheap enough to risk, and loved specifically because Mercedes doesn't build this formula anymore.