Mercedes-Benz SL 63 AMG 2008 Review

What we liked
>> V6 engine's feral bark
>> Traditional big sportscar composure
>> Elegant interior design and colour-coordination

Not so much
>> Retro styling cues?
>> Seats in the SL 350 slightly flat
>> SL 63 steering

About our ratings

OVERVIEW
The Mercedes-Benz SL sportscar has an illustrious history. Car enthusiasts around the world form an immediate picture in their minds at the mention of the words 'Pagoda Roof' or 'Gullwing'. To call the traditional Benz sportscar 'iconic' is to understate the fact.

Not only is the SL the car that represents the very best in Mercedes-Benz design, it is also the vehicle -- along with the S-Class -- most likely to introduce new technology. Many premium open-top cars feature pop-up rollover bars these days, but the SL introduced the safety feature with the R129 model in the early 1990s.

With the latest SL, we're up to an upgrade of the R230 generation. This new car has been facelifted, drawing upon styling cues from the original Gullwing model 300SL of the 1950s. Along with the cosmetic changes, the new SL has gained some additional standard features for a relatively small price increase.

PRICE AND EQUIPMENT
Prices have been adjusted upwards with the introduction of the upgraded models. The pricing structure for the new models commences at $223,000 for the 'base' SL 350.

All three non-AMG models -- SL 350, 500 and 600 -- have risen by $5000, the SL 500 now hitting $306,000 and the SL 600 topping the non-AMG range at $385,000.

The SL 63 AMG is now $382,000 (increasing $6000) and the SL 65 twin-turbo V12 has peaked at $468,000, an extra $9000 over the price of the pre-facelift model equivalent.

As standard, Mercedes-Benz has equipped all variants with the following safety features: ABS, ESP, Brake Assist, alarm with interior motion sensor, electro-chromatic mirrors (including exterior mirrors), automatic roll-over bars behind the head restraints, dual front airbags, side-impact airbags for head and thorax protection, seatbelt pre-tensioners with force-limiters and a tyre pressure loss warning system.

Additional features added to the standard specification of the upgrade models comprise: bi-xenon headlamps with Active Light System cornering function, dynamic range adjustment and headlamp cleaning system.

MECHANICAL, PACKAGING AND SAFETY
We've already recounted the SL's mechanical, packaging and safety make-up during the car's international launch. You can read more concerning the non-AMG models (more here) and the SL 63 AMG is covered here (more here).

COMPETITORS
One of the journalists on the local launch was rather dismissive of the SL, regarding it as price premium too far beyond the reach of most prospective sportscar buyers. In his view, the SLK was much more within the grasp. If that's so -- and we wouldn't dismiss that -- then one of the SL's principal competitors will be its own stablemate, the SLK.

That assumes that a prospective buyer for the SL walks through the door into an MB dealership in the first instance.

If not, one brand in a position to pick up sales from the SL is Porsche, with the 911.

It has to be said though, that the two cars are very different. Despite its modernity, the SL has that very distinct front-engine/rear-wheel drive feel about it, where as the 911 doesn't. SL will appeal more for people who like touring a lot, with the occasional point and squirt blast up a hillclimb, whereas the 911 is for people who would like to be competing in a hillclimb every time they drive.

Rather than the 911, it's more likely the full four-seat BMW 6 Series convertible that's likely to pose a threat to the SL, despite both BMW and Benz seeing that car as more appropriately a competitor for the CLK.

ON THE ROAD
Where else to get acquainted with a drop-top car during an Australian winter than Queensland? The local launch of the new SL saw motoring journalists from all over the country fly to the Deep North where we enjoyed the pleasure of sampling the SL 350, SL 500 and SL 63 AMG. Unfortunately, though there was an SL 65 on the fleet, there was no opportunity to drive that particular model.

Up front (literally), if there's one point that mitigates against the SL, it's the facelift. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and some will disagree, but the new look is angular, purposeful -- even brutal -- but not as lovely as the previous model. However, if you can get past the styling, the SL offers some real improvements with the upgrade.

Only the day before the SL drive program, we had driven the upgraded SLK range and first impressions of the SL indicated this was an altogether different car. A slightly longer wheelbase and larger dimensions overall left the driver with the feeling that the SL is just a bit more composed and unfussed for the sort of touring undertaken on the drive program.

Starting off with the entry-level SL 350 provided a baseline from which we could compare the three models driven. Some baseline! The V6 model would probably be more than adequate for most buyers and Benz has cleverly blessed the car with a new engine (shared with the SLK 350) that is not only frugal when it needs to be, and powerful when it doesn't, but sounds surprisingly like a straight six. It has a real bark on the overrun from higher revs and is well matched to the 7G-Tronic seven-speed automatic transmission, which shifts gears smoothly and has more than enough ratios for any occasion.

It was immediately apparent that the SL's suspension was softer than in any variant of the SLK. This was also plainly a contributing factor in the SL's overall poised touring ability.

Yet the SL is not just some lazy leisure craft of a car. The steering was more direct than in the SLK and the SL's handling was closer to neutral. As it was, the SLK felt as close to neutral as Switzerland -- but without the same prohibitions. The SL felt very lively in a corner -- without being too lively. With steering and suspension working in unison, it was responsive, but not erratic or nervous.

Seated within the SL 350, you might pick fault with the seats, which were a bit flat in the cushion, but otherwise were supportive and comfortable. Overall though, the interior was attractive, elegant and comfortably practical (or even practically comfortable). To illustrate, the three-spoke steering wheel was surprisingly elegant, even with an airbag located in the boss.

The seat-mounted Airscarf feature is ideal for keeping warm the parts the HVAC system wouldn't otherwise reach. Reading about Airscarf, it's easy to think 'oh, it's just a gimmick', but it worked like a mini-sauna for the neck.

Instruments in this car were a lesson in legibility and illumination for other car makers to follow. They're readable, even in direct sunlight -- even from the passenger side of the car.

As a driving experience, the SL 350 was nicer from the point of view of this tester than any of the SLK variants. It -- and the other SL models generally -- just basically feel more like a pure distillation of Mercedes-Benz design philosophy than the smaller sportscar.

Moving up to the SL 500 provided the first opportunity to sample V8 power in the SL. Frankly, the SL 500 didn't impress as much as the V6. If you really need the performance of a V8 allied to performance substantially beyond that of the SL 350, you might as well go the whole hog and buy the SL 63 AMG. If the budget doesn't stretch that far -- save your money.

The SL500's interior was relaxing and featured the same two-tone grey leather, carbonfibre inserts and suede trim as the SL 65 AMG's. Suede trim on the roof pillars and roof headlining added to the ambience of the cabin.

Even though the engine fitted to it displaces 6.2 litres, the SL 63 AMG is so named, we're told, in tribute to the 300 SEL 6.3 from the 1960s. Whether or not you remember the early sedan, you won't forget the SL 63 AMG after driving it!

There's a pregnant pause from the engine in the split second after stamping the accelerator pedal all the way to the floor, but then all Hell breaks loose as the transmission kicks down -- up to four gears!! -- and the engine emits a noise tastier than a fruit smoothie in an industrial-strength blender.

Yet, when the fun's over, the engine returns to a sedate state in which there's almost no discernible engine noise, even from 3500 to 4000rpm.

The SL 63's steering remains quite light, but has that slight tendency of computer-controlled systems to miscue input, leaving the driver to correct and re-correct until driver and computer are in synch.

For this reviewer, the Direct-Steer system fitted as standard to the lesser models (SL 350 and SL 500) from the new model year upgrade, worked better. All the same, the SL 63's steering lifted its game with more cornering speed and higher load. Then, the car's steering feels better and more consistent.

As already mentioned, the SL 63 AMG was trimmed in the same two-tone grey leather with carbonfibre inserts and suede trim as the SL 500. Whereas it lends to the ambience of the SL 500, it seems out of place in an out-and-out road-burner like this car.

Who will buy the SL, we wonder? Divorced neurosurgeons? Mining company CEOs going through a mid-life crisis? The SL offers plenty for any number of buyers from different demographics -- including Carsales Network reviewers who've scored a Division One Lotto win!

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