Asking price — £75,950 — Private Seller – 1 of 45 Worldwide!
- Right Hand Drive
- 92,000 Miles
- Automatic, 5 speed
- Petrol
- 5439cc
- 1998
- S884CWS
- Silver
- Private seller
- Hildenborough, Tonbridge, United Kingdom
Being sold from my collection of rare pre-merger AMGs is my ultra rare w202 C55 AMG, which has been confirmed by AMG as an original factory car. Only 59 C55’s were made worldwide, 45 of which were sedans. This makes the w202 C55 the rarest C Class AMG ever made – rarer than the Black Series or the 190E EVO / EVO II.
In the late 1990’s if you wanted to buy the best C-Class from Mercedes dealers you would get the w202 C43 AMG. This was the first ever C-Class to have a V8 engine, was co-designed by Mercedes and AMG and was powered by a naturally aspirated 4. 3-litre M113. 944 producing around 306 bhp. 3, 085 sedans were made making these very rare cars.
Despite co-developing the C43 with Mercedes, AMG were secretly developing a huge upgrade package for wealthy and discerning customers behind Mercedes back. What they created was the C55, only available by taking your C43 secretly to Affalterbach and privately commissioning the conversion with AMG’s Manufaktur Division between July 1998 to May 2002. This upgrade was hugely expensive at £24, 000 (£47, 000 in 2025). The total cost for this car would have been £75, 000 in 1998 which was huge given a Ferrari 355 coupe would have cost around £71, 000.
When making the C55, AMG’s Manufaktur Division did the following:
• Replaced the C43’s 4. 3-litre V8 with the E55’s M113. 983 5. 5-litre V8 producing 342 bhp and 376 lb-ft, an increase of 36 bhp and 74 lb-ft over the C43
• Modified the floorplan to house the new prop shaft to take the additional torque
• Modified the C43’s exhaust system
• Modified the C43’s rear axel
• Added an auxiliary air-blast oil cooler for the transmission
• Recalibrated the gearbox for quicker shifts
To be clear, the C55 is not a special edition, or paint and powder car, but a complete reworking of a C43 and more akin to the W124 300E ‘Hammer’ in mentality. For the ‘Hammer’, AMG took the biggest, largest displacement, V8 of the time and put it in a car never designed for it. Likewise AMG did the same with the C55.
It is believed (but not formally confirmed) that this car was the first ever made, as production started in July 1998 and ended in May 2002 with this car being completed on the 16th July 1998. I have had it verbally confirmed from official sources that the first C55 made was a RHD.
This car was once owned by the 11th Duke of Marlborough, Marques of Blandford, Lord James Spencer (relative of Princess Diana and Winston Churchill) and was registered and garaged at Blenheim Palace. It was also owned by a famous Mclaren collector who owned three of the 106 Mclaren F1’s made including one of the 28 racing F1 GTRs .
Other owners include a prominent Thai business magnate and author, a British businessman who ran various businesses including a slot machine supplier and a number of holiday parks. The owner I purchased this from owned a garage with a worldwide reputation for creating bespoke Land Rover Defenders.
This car was the front cover car, and main feature, of the penultimate Mercedes Enthusiastic magazine.
This car is in extremely good condition with no rust in any of the usual places. It starts and goes beautifully and is a hoot to drive – very fast, torquey and accurate. I have spent thousands on it, improving it mechanically and cosmetically, since I bought it, including new tyres and a major service. It has had 15 recorded services for its circa 92, 000 miles. It comes with a huge history file including stamped service books, invoices, original AMG C55 sales and specification literature (worth a fortune to a collector), a copy of Autocar February 1999 edition reviewing the C55 on its release and a copy of Mercedes Enthusiast, where this car is featured.
I have never seen another one of these for sale anywhere in the world, so finding information about them is extremely hard. Certainly, many enthusiasts on forums believe these cars don’t exist and were not made in North America, adding to their mythical status. This car comes with a Conversion Confirmation Certificate from AMG confirming its originality and authenticity.
The car is in dry storage so any viewings will need some notice.