2016 Mercedes-AMG GLC63

It has been a couple of months since we saw the Mercedes-AMG GLC43 making its debut at the New York Auto Show, so it’s no surprise that Mercedes has been caught testing the upcoming GLC63 in the wild yet again. This time around, the car has shed most of its camo and is now much closer to being production ready than before. The test mule is now sporting an appropriate Mercedes grille and logo, along with production headlights, wheels, and it even has the drilled and slotted rotors.

Considering the GLC43 has already made its debut, and the GLC63 is now so close to being production ready, we’re expecting to see the GLC63 making its official debut sometime in the near future – quite possibly at the Paris Auto Show in October of this year. Considering the GLC is basically a jacked up C-Class, we’re expecting the car to have the same 4.0-liter V-8 that we’ve become familiar with in the Mercedes-AMG C63 and a similar interior with all of the AMG goodies.

With that said, let’s take a better look at our most recent spy shots, and discuss what we can expect when Mercedes finally pulls the sheet from this high-performance crossover.OCTOBER 23, 2014 - MERCEDES-AMG GLC 63 BEGINS TESTING

 Mercedes-AMG GLC63 Mercedes-AMG GLC63
 Mercedes-AMG GLC63
Exterior

Up front, we see a lot of design cues from the C63 coupe. The headlights aren’t quite as long, but they still feature that LED strip that runs from the upper, outside corner to the lower, inside corner. Because of the GLC63’s design, however, the LED stripe features a stronger bend toward the inside of the headlight lens. This time around the GLC63 is sporting the Mercedes Mercedes emblem, and a black mesh, but expect the grille to change before the car is ready for showrooms. The black mesh will get a dark, gloss black finish, and expect the horizontal slat that runs between the two headlights to get the chrome treatment like that seen on the C63 coupe.

Down below there is still a lot of black tape on the fascia, but based on the C63, we already know what to expect. The large air intakes on the corners will probably be a bit taller to accommodate the taller stance, but expect the same chrome strip to encompass the outside of each intake as well as the smaller intake vent that connect the two together. Expect the gap between the lower lip of the fascia and that center vent to be a bit taller than that of the C63 as well.

All of the camo is removed, and the GLC63 looks almost identical to the GLC43.

Moving over to the side, there isn’t really a whole lot to differentiate the GLC63 from the GLC43. It will sport the same side view mirrors, silver roof rails, and the distinct body line below the door handles and between the wheel arches. Expect to see that chrome strip on the side skirt of the GLC43 to carry over to the GLC63 by the time this mule is production ready. Right now, the mule is rolling on two different wheels. Up front, we see the dual, five-spoke wheels from the GLC43. In the rear, however, there is a completely different wheel that has wider and thicker spokes as well as more character lines.

Around back, don’t expect to see many changes between the test mule and the production version. All of the camo is removed, and the GLC63 looks almost identical to the GLC43. The rear overhang on the hatch, taillight lenses, and rear fascia are identical to the GLC43. The GLC63 even has the same diffuser and rectangular exhaust outlets. At this point, the GLC63 doesn’t have the chrome trim around the exhaust outlets, but that may change by the time testing is complete.

Interior

We have yet to see shots of the GLC63’s interior, but if we look at the C63 Coupe and the GLC43, we already have a pretty good idea of what to expect. Expect to see the dual-gauge instrument cluster with a driver information center in between, a flat bottom steering wheel, and an appoint of high-quality materials like wood, leather, carbon fiber and metallic inserts. The steering wheel should sport a stripe at the 12 o’clock position, and all leather in the cabin should feature contrast stitching. There will be the larger touchscreen display perched on top of the center stack and Mercedes-AMG sport seats to keep the front passengers comfortable and in position. The center console should get a nice helping of carbon fiber. As usual, expect there to be a large offering of options to tailor the car to whatever specifications you see fit.

Drivetrain

 Mercedes-AMG GLC63
We’re expecting the GLC63 to sport the same 4.0-liter V-8 from the C63. In the C63, it delivers 469 horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque. That’s enough to send the C63 coupe to 62 mph in 3.9 seconds. The GLC63 will be a bit slower due having a taller stance and being a little less aerodynamic. Top speed will still be limited to 155 mph, which is common among German vehicles. In our most recent spy shots, we did notice that the GLC63 was sporting the larger, drilled and slotted brake rotors as well as red performance calipers. That said, we’re hoping to eventually see an “S” version of the GLC63 in the near future as well. That would mean that the 4.0-liter would be tuned to deliver 503 horsepower and 516 pound-feet of torque, just like in the C63 S. That might be enough to drop the 62 mph sprint time to below four seconds for the GLC. At this point, and “S” variant is nothing but speculation, but knowing Mercedes, it is likely, and we certainly hope Merc comes correct in that department.

Along with the more powerful drivetrain, expect the GLC63 to sport a sportier suspension with a four-link setup up front and a multilink system in the rear. It should also sport AMG’s Ride Control, speed sensitive sport steering, and a number of different driving modes from Comfort up to Sport Plus. While it is an SUV by nature, expect the GLC63’s body to sit just a little lower in most driving modes to help maneuverability with all that extra power.

Prices

At this point, we don’t even know what the price point of the GLC43 will be, let alone the GLC63. Based on the pricing difference between the standard models and the Mercedes-AMG branded models, we’re expecting the GLC43 to go for somewhere in the neighborhood of $55,000 or so. That would mean that the GLC63 will probably be priced closer to the $70,000 mark, but until we have more information, your guess is as good as ours. Stay tuned for pricing updates as we move closer to the GLC63’s launch that may come later this year.