Mercedes GLC 63 AMG X253: giving the AMG V8 its thunder back, the complete guide

Your vehicle.

All our exhausts for this generation, version by version, are brought together on one page: Mercedes GLC X253 Valved Exhaust.

The GLC 63 X253 brings two worlds together: a practical, comfortable mid-size SUV, and the twin-turbo V8 from Affalterbach that also powers the C 63 and the AMG GT. Before choosing its line, here are the two versions, their mechanics and what their standard exhaust does to the V8.

Models

Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 4MATIC+ and GLC 63 S 4MATIC+, SUV type X253

Years

Presented in April 2017, facelifted in spring 2019; model years 2017 to 2022 on the product page

Engine

M177: 4.0 litre V8, two turbos placed inside the V

Factory output

476 hp and 650 Nm (GLC 63); 510 hp and 700 Nm (GLC 63 S)

Transmission

AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT nine-speed

Drivetrain

Variable 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive; limited-slip rear differential

Tailpipes

Two chrome dual tips

Factory valves

Standard flap exhaust, controlled according to the driving program

A V8 AMG SUV, from 2017 to 2022

Mercedes-AMG presented the GLC 63 at the New York show in April 2017, alongside the GLC 63 Coupé. Two versions, GLC 63 4MATIC+ and GLC 63 S 4MATIC+, and an Edition 1 special series accompanied the launch. They top the first-generation GLC range, above the V6 GLC 43 and the four-cylinder versions.

The facelift was unveiled in April 2019, again in New York. Mercedes-AMG did not touch the mechanics: it redesigned the front and rear lights, changed the exhaust tips, adopted the MBUX multimedia system and added a Slippery driving program. The Rog product page covers both phases, across model years 2017 to 2022.

476 or 510 hp: GLC 63 and GLC 63 S

The GLC 63 4MATIC+ develops 476 hp (350 kW) and 650 Nm. The GLC 63 S 4MATIC+ goes up to 510 hp (375 kW) and 700 Nm. The 2019 facelift did not change these values.

At launch, the difference is not limited to power: the GLC 63 S also gets a Race program and an electronically controlled limited-slip rear differential, where the GLC 63 makes do with a mechanical one; since the facelift, the electronic differential equips both versions. The GLC 63 S also set a Nordschleife lap record for a production SUV.

The bars below show, as they appear on the product page, the values published for each of the two versions.

476 hp version, factory

Factory 510 hp version

Stage 2: published figures with the front section and an ECU remap carried out by a tuner.

The twin-turbo V8 from Affalterbach

The M177 is a 4.0 litre V8 whose two turbos are not placed outside the cylinder banks, but inside the V. This layout makes the engine more compact and shortens the path of the gases between the cylinders and the turbos, to the benefit of throttle response.

Each engine is hand-built in Affalterbach on the "One Man, One Engine" principle: a single engine builder assembles it from start to finish. This twin-turbo V8 is of the same family as the one in the G 63 W463A and the AMG GT 63 X290, which explains the character of the GLC 63: that of a sports car housed in a mid-size SUV.

MCT 9G and 4MATIC+

The V8 sends its power through the nine-speed AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT transmission, then through the 4MATIC+ all-wheel drive, whose split between front and rear varies with grip and driving. The controlled damping can be set at three levels, Comfort, Sport and Sport Plus, and the steering at two.

For the exhaust, the drivetrain changes nothing: GLC 63 and GLC 63 S, before and after the facelift, receive the same Rog line. Your VIN confirms the version and model year before manufacturing.

Standard flaps and AMG Dynamic Select

The GLC 63 leaves Mercedes-AMG with a standard flap exhaust. Before the facelift, AMG Dynamic Select offers the Comfort, Sport, Sport+ and Individual programs, to which the GLC 63 S adds Race. The facelift adds Slippery, designed for slippery or snowy roads. The sound changes with the program, and becomes markedly sportier in Sport+ and Race.

Mercedes-AMG offered a more elaborate exhaust as an option, with two extra flaps and a button on the centre console to modulate the sound. Even on this basis, the V8's voice stays restrained: the SUV is designed to respect noise limits, whatever the position of the flaps.

What the Rog line changes for the V8

A 4.0 litre twin-turbo V8 naturally has a deep, rolling voice, punctuated by pops when you lift off. On the standard GLC 63, the mufflers and flap management keep it in a polite register, suited to a family SUV that spends a lot of time in town.

With the flaps open, the Rog line lets the V8's rumble out from the moment you start, then a broad rev climb and frank pops when you release the accelerator. With the flaps closed, the GLC 63 returns to a volume close to its delivery one, for the morning school run as for holiday departures. That is the whole point of being able to choose: on an SUV that often carries children or passengers unmoved by the charm of a V8, the volume is set at the moment you want, with no compromise on the rest of the journey.

Keep your AMG flaps or switch to the remote

With the Factory option on the product page, the Rog line arrives with the mounting points for the factory flaps: your garage refits them there, and AMG Dynamic Select keeps controlling them as before, program by program.

With the Rog option, the flaps arrive fitted, with a remote. Open, they stay open; closed, they stay closed, whatever program is selected. It is the right solution if you want to drive in Comfort with a liberated V8, or on the contrary stay quiet in Sport+ while crossing a village.

Stainless steel or titanium for an SUV of this weight

The line comes in 304 stainless steel, robust and unaffected by winter salt, or in titanium, about 40% lighter for the same design, in three shades: brushed, gold and purple. On an SUV of this size, titanium is noticed as much in the sound, more metallic in the revs, as on the scales. Brushed stays sober; gold and purple show off the upgrade at first glance, under an SUV that otherwise keeps a very well-behaved look for a V8 of over 470 hp.

On this product page, the line is configured with no choice of character or tips: the V8 keeps a single sound, which you adjust only through the material, the front section and the opening of the flaps.

The optional front section, and what the line does on its own

The product page also offers the front section, under the name "Manifold": on this V8, these are the catalytic parts that follow the turbos placed in the centre of the V. The 200-cell version keeps the emissions control, which suits an SUV driven every day; the 100-cell version is accepted or refused depending on the car and the country; the catalyst-free version is intended for the track.

With the factory map, the front section adds volume and removes a little weight, without a single extra horsepower. The power figures published on the product page assume this front section and a remap carried out by a tuner. Rog makes your line to your VIN; your garage fits it without welding or cutting.

Configure your exhaust.

How the exhaust is put together

On the GLC 63 X253, the Rog line starts behind the front section with catalytic converters and runs to the outlets: piping, mufflers and flaps. This front section, which follows directly after the turbos placed in the V, is offered as an option under the name "Manifold".

Each choice explained in detail, from sound to material: How to configure your exhaust.

Three recommended configurations.

• Family SUV

  • Stainless steel
  • No manifold
  • Factory valves

  For a GLC 63 that does the week's journeys and the holiday departures: the V8 finds its voice again, the factory front section stays in place, and AMG Dynamic Select keeps control of the flaps.

  View this configuration

• The V8 up front

  • Titanium
  • 200-cell sports catalytic converter
  • Rog remote

  For a GLC 63 S driven for pleasure: 200-cell front section for more presence while keeping the emissions control, lighter titanium, and the remote to open up the V8 even in Comfort.

  View this configuration

• Track outing

  • Titanium
  • Decat
  • Rog remote

  For a GLC 63 S taken onto the track in Race program: catalyst-free front section reserved for circuit use, titanium, and flaps left open throughout the session.

  View this configuration

From order to fitting.

VIN, manufacture, delivery, fitting and warranty, step by step

Questions.

Further reading.

• All our Mercedes GLC X253 lines
• Our exhausts for the AMG twin-turbo V8
• Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 X253 guide
• Mercedes-AMG C 63 W205 guide, 4.0 twin-turbo V8