AMG Drops the Speed Hammer on the 2025 GLC 63 S SUV, With 670-HP and World-Premiere Tech

The E PERFORMANCE drive in the 2025 GLC 63 S is the company’s inaugural ‘performance hybrid SUV,’ with all-wheel-drive, active rear-axle steering, and quick-shifting transmission. AMG developed an exclusive powertrain for the tongue-twisting-christened Merc, with a hand-built AMG 2.0-liter turbo engine and an Electric Drive Unit (EDU) on the rear axle. The fire and lightning powerplants deliver 671 hp and 752 lb-ft (680 PS / 1,020 Nm).

If, by now, there still is someone on our speed-centered rotational spheroid we call Earth who doesn’t know the advantages of this setup, read on. The electric motor on the rear is the secret ingredient in the AMG magic cookie. With instantaneous and immense torque build-up and precise power delivery, the hybrid architecture has as much go as it shows.

Output specs aside, there’s one critical advantage of the fire-at-the-front-lightning-bolt-at-the-back setup: weight distribution – a trait that every performance vehicle must master before emitting any claims of range-topping dominance.

We did say the crucial word in the Mercedes-Benz achievement: ‘Hybrid’ – which means first-degree piston-arson involved. An inline-four combustion engine with an electric exhaust gas turbocharger (more details in the following paragraphs) rapid-fires 469 hp (476 PS). With 235 hp/liter, the powerplant is the most potent four-cylinder internal combustion engine mass-produced anywhere in the automotive spectrum of our world.

Each engine is hand-assembled by a single builder according to the "One Man, One Engine" philosophy, and the craftsmanship is sealed in writing by the man responsible for each unit. Code-named M139l (for longitudinal), the fiery AMG torque forge sports a closed deck design that combines low weight with high rigidity. The direct consequence of this method is a madding 2,300 PSI / 159 bar combustion pressure.

The two-stage injection technology works overtime to extract all that power from the small displacement. High-capacity, high-accuracy piezo injectors spray fuel in the combustion chamber (at 2,900 PSI / 200 bar). And then, the second stage kicks in, with port injection (Mercedes-Benz, being Germanically accurate in their technical terminology, prefers the expression ‘intake manifold duct injection with solenoid valves’).

To withstand the high-pressure stresses, the areas surrounding the cylinders are closed, and the cover plate channels for coolant and lubricant are kept to the minimum technologically feasible size. On top of all of the above, the electric exhaust gas turbocharger makes the AMG engine the world's first and only series-production engine with this system (as per Mercedes-Benz). Derived from Formula One, this novelty turbo delivers a nearly spontaneous response across the entire power band.

A 1.6-inch thin (40.6-mm) electric motor is mounted on the turbocharger shaft, between the exhaust-gas-actuated turbine wheel and the compressor scrolls on the intake. Essentially, it’s like a turbo for the turbo – the tiny electric unit spins the compressor before the hot gases from the engine build up to get the compressor to make boost.

Apart from the consistency of the power delivery from idle to high RPM, the electrically-driven turbo compressor allows more torque at low revs. Or, in plain driver parlance – the zero-to-sixty times shrink rapidly. Even if the driver gets off the throttle or slams the brake pedal, the system maintains boost pressure, ready for the subsequent punishment.

The motor at the core of this hybrid turbo for the hybrid Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 S E PERFORMANCE SUV (Germans love catchy names, I know) is fed from the 400-volt high-voltage system. It spins at 175,000 RPM – for very high airflow rates – and the system works in synchronicity with the cylinder cooling assembly to provide optimal temperatures.

Since we mentioned the 0-60 mph times, the mighty SUV can get it done in 3.4 seconds and will tap out at 171 electronically limited mph (275 kph). Not too bad for a big car with an as-of-yet-undisclosed curb weight. The hybrid has dual-axle steering, AMG Performance 4MATIC+ fully variable all-wheel traction, and AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 9G transmission with a wet start-off clutch. Add the AMG RIDE CONTROL suspension with adaptive adjustable damping (standard equipment) and AMG ACTIVE RIDE CONTROL active roll stabilization for improved cornering accuracy and a more athletic stance on the straights.

The electric motor is mounted at the rear, directly on the axle, and is part of the Electric Drive Unit (EDU). Apart from the motor, the EDU contains a two-speed transmission – electrically shifted – and a limited-slip diff (governed electronically). If the rear wheels spin-slip, the electric motor will send power to the front axle. The 6.1kWh battery pack of the GLC 63 S E PERFORMANCE ensures 107 hp (108 PS) continuously and a 201 hp (204 PS) peak for ten seconds. The battery is optimized for power, not range, and can be replenished via the 3.7 kW on-board AC charger or recuperative charging.

The all-wheel drive AMG Performance 4MATIC+ system sets the GLC 63 S E PERFORMANCE in motion, with a rear-biased torque distribution platform that will either evenly split the engine’s output between axles or put it all at the back. The stopping power of this megafauna predator of an SUV comes from the AMG composite brakes' six-piston fixed calipers at the front and one-piston floating calipers at the rear.