{"id":3287,"date":"2026-02-13T14:30:24","date_gmt":"2026-02-13T19:30:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/?p=3287"},"modified":"2026-02-19T10:04:04","modified_gmt":"2026-02-19T15:04:04","slug":"mercedes-announces-amg-glc-53","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/mercedes-announces-amg-glc-53\/","title":{"rendered":"Mercedes just added a “drift mode” to its newest performance SUV"},"content":{"rendered":"

With a new, turbocharged, 3-liter inline-six, a \u201cdrift mode\u201d and a blinged up \u201cspecial edition,\u201d the Mercedes-AMG GLC 53 might just be the most entertaining SUV the Stuttgart-based manufacturer has ever released. It also offers us a little glimpse of the future, as that same engine is likely to feature in the Mercedes-AMG C 53<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The engine in question produces 443 horsepower and 443 lb-ft. of torque, which translates to a 0-60 time of 4.1 seconds. If you really want to go for it, that torque can be \u201coverboosted\u201d to 472 lb-ft for up to 10 seconds. All of that power goes through a nine-speed automatic transmission on its way to the wheels. Add in the new exhaust system, which promises a \u201cdeep exhaust note during dynamic acceleration,\u201d and you have a bit of a hooligan on your hands.<\/p>\n

Alongside the power and noise, you do have a degree of enhanced control with the Mercedes-AMG GLC 53. That comes in the form of a fully variable all-wheel drive system, adaptive suspension, and rear-wheel steering. The latter increases stability when maneuvering at speed while also significantly reducing the vehicle\u2019s turning circle.<\/p>\n

The new engine also functions a little like a mild hybrid, with the \u201csecond-generation integrated starter-generator\u201d taking up some of the slack at low speeds and helping the start-stop function operate. It\u2019s capable of chipping in up to 23 horsepower and 151 lb-ft of torque.<\/p>\n

Some of the Mercedes-AMG GLC 53\u2019s features are a bit out there<\/h3>\n
\"Side
Source: Mercedes<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

It\u2019s easy to look at a Mercedes SUV, especially in black, as something very formal. And proper. And a little bit boring. It\u2019s the kind of elegant, luxury, vehicle you could shuttle dignitaries to a banquet in. Which is probably why Mercedes seems to have gone out of its way to make the whole thing a bit wacky.<\/p>\n

The special \u201cGolden Accents Package\u201d is limited to the 2027 model year and adds various gold trim elements to the vehicle, such as \u201ctechgold rim flanges and center cap details.\u201d It\u2019s also an indicator that the Runescape generation has grown up and can afford nice things in real life now. Just make sure you don\u2019t hand the keys over if some shifty chap offers to \u201ctrim your GLC\u201d for you.<\/p>\n

If that\u2019s all too much, an \u201cAMG Night Package\u201d adds \u201cgloss black\u201d and \u201cdark chrome\u201d to various parts of the vehicle.<\/p>\n

Then there\u2019s the point things get a little crazy. If going sideways is your passion, you\u2019ll be pleased to know the Mercedes-AMG GLC 53\u2019s AMG DYNAMIC PLUS Package comes with a \u201cdrift mode.\u201d This shifts the power and torque towards the back wheels, which makes sliding the rear end out a lot easier and far more controllable. Drift mode also modifies how the limited slip differential functions, so hopefully nothing goes bang, crunch, or catches fire.<\/p>\n

While Mercedes has announced the GLC 53 and many of its features, pricing is still under wraps. With that being said, the 2026 AMG GLC 43 starts at just under $70,000 \u2014 so hopefully the new luxury SUV is in the same ballpark.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With a new, turbocharged, 3-liter inline-six, a \u201cdrift mode\u201d and a blinged up \u201cspecial edition,\u201d the Mercedes-AMG GLC 53 might … <\/p>\n

Read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":3360,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[4,3,19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3287","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-cars","category-news","category-performance-and-luxury","resize-featured-image"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3287","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3287"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3287\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3360"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3287"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3287"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.autonocion.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3287"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}