In the spring of 2001, the SLK 32 AMG, with its 348bhp AMG V6 supercharged engine, will take the car into a different league, that of true sports cars. With 331 lb-ft of torque the Mercedes SLK 32 AMG will blast through the 60mph barrier in just over five seconds and on to a governed 155mph.

The SLK 32 AMG has been re-worked from top to bottom by AMG from suspension and wheels through to the styling and interior. Newly designed AMG sports seats and dinstinct AMG bodywork set the car apart from its wimpish sibling.

The Mercedes AMG V6 Kompressor offers very clear dynamic advantages over the familiar 3.2-litre naturally aspirated engine of the SLK 320. The use of a supercharger means that the engine output could be increased by over 130bhp and the maximum torque by over 100lb-ft.

The Affalterbach engineers were particularly keen to give the vehicle a dynamic torque characteristic, as a consequence of which the roadster develops its power at low revs, whilst also being able to move smoothly in higher gears. The power is passed to the rear wheels via a sportily tuned five-speed automatic gearbox. As an alternative, the gear ratios can be changed by hand using the one-touch shift (+/-).

Due to the vehicle's high performance, the SLK suspension has been especially adjusted for the AMG version, whose top speed is electronically regulated to 155mph. In addition to a new spring/damper configuration, the wider rear track width and a larger dimension torsion bar on the front axle, the good deceleration figure for the brakes (approx. 10.5 m/s²) is a particular highlight.

The braking system features internally ventilated disc brakes all round (diameter at the front 334 mm, at the rear 300 mm), ABS, Brake Assist (BAS), ESP and an integrated ASR system. The sterling silver-coloured 17-inch AMG light-alloy wheels with their twin-spoke design are a completely new development. Not only are these a styling feature, fitted as they are with size 225 tyres on the front and 245 on the rear, they also offer optimum cooling for the high-performance disc brakes.

As is normally the case with vehicles in the Mercedes AMG range, the bodywork design of the SLK has been given its own, very individual design. The front and rear aprons, side skirts and an elegantly integrated airflow breakaway edge on the boot lid, which reduces the lift on the rear axle by more than 50 per cent, give the SLK 32 AMG its own characteristic appearance.

The AMG styling elements are continued in the interior. Sports seats with integrated head restraints, designed especially for the roadster, ensure perfect lateral support. Both seats and door panels are trimmed with two-tone leather as standard, the same material that is to be found on the AMG steering wheel and gear knob.

The individually designed instrument faces, including a speedometer that shows speeds of up to 300 km/h - in the case of the SLK 32 AMG in silver - are also typical of Mercedes AMG; for the first time the speed is shown in steps of 30 km/h.

From 2001 onwards, there are plans to build around 2000 SLK 32 AMG each year.  Approximately half of the production is destined for the USA, where the Mercedes Sport division has enjoyed enduring success for quite some time now. The other units will be distributed primarily in Germany, Italy, Switzerland, Great Britain and Japan.

The SLK 32 AMG will be available in the UK from late 2001.

AMG Links