RE: New Mercedes SL prices announced
Discussion
I think on the whole the pricing is pretty good - an extra £60k for the V12 seems a little pricey though. I appreciate the different driving experience but is it really enough to justify that much money?
If I were that set on an SL AMG and a V12 I'd probably consider getting the SL63 AMG and spend my extra £60k on:
456 (Manual with the best colour combo!)
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/f...
DB9 (Volante also available for under £60k)
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/a...
R230 SL65 (Who wouldn't love 2x SL AMG's on their driveway!?)
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...
Ok whilst this doesn't have a V12, this would make for a great 2x AMG garage!
CLK63 AMG Black Series
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...
If I were that set on an SL AMG and a V12 I'd probably consider getting the SL63 AMG and spend my extra £60k on:
456 (Manual with the best colour combo!)
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/f...
DB9 (Volante also available for under £60k)
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/a...
R230 SL65 (Who wouldn't love 2x SL AMG's on their driveway!?)
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...
Ok whilst this doesn't have a V12, this would make for a great 2x AMG garage!
CLK63 AMG Black Series
http://www.pistonheads.com/classifieds/used-cars/m...
The one major thing that Mercedes have done with the later cars from the R230 facelift onwards are the enormous improvements handling, OK looks are subjective and there is a lot of love for the R230 SL55 in fact I very nearly bought one many years ago but opted for a late V8 Esprit instead, but the way the SL 55 performed and the sound on my very generous 1 hour test drive on my own with the car sowed the seed.
Fast forward a few years and I'm in the market for a new secondhand car and having tried a 2010 Aston Martin soft top with a diabolical paddle shift system I tried the facelift SL63 and what a revelation it was from the previous SL55 especially the way it now handled and the wonderful MCT box. I know that the original SL 55 was getting on a bit but the difference in the way the two cars handle is significant.
Below is a clip from a long term report by Chris Harris in 2009 on the SL63 which in many ways went some way to influencing my decision.
I despise convertibles, or rather I used to despise convertibles, with a passion normally reserved for Piers Morgan’s television broadcasts. But I’ve just spent the summer mincing about in this SL63, and it would seem to have contaminated my purist’s approach to road-car monocoques. Ahem, I like this convertible.
The SL63 is a strange machine. A passing glance at the spec would lead you – quite wrongly it transpires – to assume that this was nothing more than a slightly uglier, less-torquey SL55 with the benefit of two extra forward gears. It’s a costly thing, too. The base car is £101,225, and with the optional Performance Pack (£8054 for an LSD, big brakes and some bling rims) plus a smattering of other toys, including a brilliant £861 keyless system, the car stands me in at £115,397. Ouch.
That’s serious money. But it is, in reality, so different to the old SL55 – and anything this side of a Ferrari California – in just about every aspect of its performance that the two cannot be compared. It has one of the great road-car powertrains. When, in 20 years time, I’m knocking about in some emasculated electro-hydrogen-thingy, I will dream about the noise this 518bhp car makes from idle to 7000rpm, even if the deliberate start-up BAAAARRP is too ostentatious for me (and my neighbours).
The seven-speed transmission is very clever too. Ostensibly, it’s a hybrid automatic/manual that locks up once under way. It’s Merc’s alternative to a double-clutch system, and I’m a big fan. It creeps in traffic far more predictably than those ’boxes and even though it doesn’t manage the same seamless shifts, it’s still crisper than any other conventional auto I’ve driven – with the added bonus of a full manual mode that uses two steering-wheel paddles.
And, in manual mode, the SL63 is a surprising drive. It steers, handles and goes quite unlike the car it replaces. As an everyday drive, it’s a fabulous all-rounder. The cabin is completely intuitive and the moment the sun comes out you can drop the hood and, well, get mincing.
Just to correct the above, the Performance Pack car has 525 BHP, LSD, forged alloy wheels, bigger brakes and further tweaking of the suspension system.
In conclusion the looks of the latest cars is subjective, I remember an American on a forum saying it looks like Mercedes have crafted a Karl Malden nose job on the new SL's which is a bit cruel but it came from a guy who had actually bought one.
Having driven one of the latest SL 63's around the MB World handling tracks on a very very wet day I achieved speeds in the car that you would never attempt on the roads without a single drama in the three hour session. The latest cars really are a very significant step forward in my humble opinion.
Fast forward a few years and I'm in the market for a new secondhand car and having tried a 2010 Aston Martin soft top with a diabolical paddle shift system I tried the facelift SL63 and what a revelation it was from the previous SL55 especially the way it now handled and the wonderful MCT box. I know that the original SL 55 was getting on a bit but the difference in the way the two cars handle is significant.
Below is a clip from a long term report by Chris Harris in 2009 on the SL63 which in many ways went some way to influencing my decision.
I despise convertibles, or rather I used to despise convertibles, with a passion normally reserved for Piers Morgan’s television broadcasts. But I’ve just spent the summer mincing about in this SL63, and it would seem to have contaminated my purist’s approach to road-car monocoques. Ahem, I like this convertible.
The SL63 is a strange machine. A passing glance at the spec would lead you – quite wrongly it transpires – to assume that this was nothing more than a slightly uglier, less-torquey SL55 with the benefit of two extra forward gears. It’s a costly thing, too. The base car is £101,225, and with the optional Performance Pack (£8054 for an LSD, big brakes and some bling rims) plus a smattering of other toys, including a brilliant £861 keyless system, the car stands me in at £115,397. Ouch.
That’s serious money. But it is, in reality, so different to the old SL55 – and anything this side of a Ferrari California – in just about every aspect of its performance that the two cannot be compared. It has one of the great road-car powertrains. When, in 20 years time, I’m knocking about in some emasculated electro-hydrogen-thingy, I will dream about the noise this 518bhp car makes from idle to 7000rpm, even if the deliberate start-up BAAAARRP is too ostentatious for me (and my neighbours).
The seven-speed transmission is very clever too. Ostensibly, it’s a hybrid automatic/manual that locks up once under way. It’s Merc’s alternative to a double-clutch system, and I’m a big fan. It creeps in traffic far more predictably than those ’boxes and even though it doesn’t manage the same seamless shifts, it’s still crisper than any other conventional auto I’ve driven – with the added bonus of a full manual mode that uses two steering-wheel paddles.
And, in manual mode, the SL63 is a surprising drive. It steers, handles and goes quite unlike the car it replaces. As an everyday drive, it’s a fabulous all-rounder. The cabin is completely intuitive and the moment the sun comes out you can drop the hood and, well, get mincing.
Just to correct the above, the Performance Pack car has 525 BHP, LSD, forged alloy wheels, bigger brakes and further tweaking of the suspension system.
In conclusion the looks of the latest cars is subjective, I remember an American on a forum saying it looks like Mercedes have crafted a Karl Malden nose job on the new SL's which is a bit cruel but it came from a guy who had actually bought one.
Having driven one of the latest SL 63's around the MB World handling tracks on a very very wet day I achieved speeds in the car that you would never attempt on the roads without a single drama in the three hour session. The latest cars really are a very significant step forward in my humble opinion.
Edited by BIRMA on Wednesday 10th February 08:10
Edited by BIRMA on Wednesday 10th February 08:15
Edited by BIRMA on Wednesday 10th February 08:15
It's aimed at the Hollywood poseurs & for bumbling along state highways but admit in the new blue it looks VERY flashy so the ladees BOTH sides of the pond will love it.
Serious knowledgeable males who know how to maximise performance cars will go down such routes as Porsche/Ferrari etc.
Serious knowledgeable males who know how to maximise performance cars will go down such routes as Porsche/Ferrari etc.
WJNB said:
It's aimed at the Hollywood poseurs & for bumbling along state highways but admit in the new blue it looks VERY flashy so the ladees BOTH sides of the pond will love it.
Serious knowledgeable males who know how to maximise performance cars will go down such routes as Porsche/Ferrari etc.
What rubbish. I'd say it's aimed more at those who want a nice 2 seater, convertible GT car. Something which this car will do better than the porsche and Ferrari. It's interior is much nicer for starters. Serious knowledgeable males who know how to maximise performance cars will go down such routes as Porsche/Ferrari etc.
I have an SL55 AMG which is 14 years old this year, has done only 28000 miles, has been a maintenance nightmare but I keep it because it is a lovely car to drive even if the handling is a bit uncommunicative.
Fast forward to now and you have - to my eyes - a rather ugly car albeit with more power and performance. Mine cost £96k in 2002 so the new price of the SL63 is not so bad especially when you take inflation into account. That said, I wouldn't buy an SL which looks like this and agree it's time for a new design. This one has been fiddled about with long enough.
Fast forward to now and you have - to my eyes - a rather ugly car albeit with more power and performance. Mine cost £96k in 2002 so the new price of the SL63 is not so bad especially when you take inflation into account. That said, I wouldn't buy an SL which looks like this and agree it's time for a new design. This one has been fiddled about with long enough.
blueSL said:
Mine cost £96k in 2002 so the new price of the SL63 is not so bad especially when you take inflation into account.
£142,000 in today's money. The new ones are an absolute bargain really. In 2002 the SL55 would have had to have been around £77K to be priced equivalently to the 2016 model. Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff