RE: Officially Revealed: Mercedes-Benz SLK
Discussion
AB said:
Still don't think it'd get me out of the new Z4 though unless they'd really changed it handling and driving wise too.
Well it's a brand new car, so it would be a bit of a surprise if they hadn't.What is the new Z4 like? All the reviews that I've read called it a step backwards from the old one.
kambites said:
AB said:
Still don't think it'd get me out of the new Z4 though unless they'd really changed it handling and driving wise too.
Well it's a brand new car, so it would be a bit of a surprise if they hadn't.What is the new Z4 like? All the reviews that I've read called it a step backwards from the old one.
I still think in the right spec the new Z4 is an absolute stunner and I look forward to the day I make the change to the 35i
It may be a step backwards as an out and out drivers car but the interior is really very nice and the quality is definitely there which is sadly a bit lacking in the older Z4.
Thats a lot nicer than the old (original) one. My only experience driving an SLK was a spanking new 230K which my mates won in a compettition back in 2000. Texaco buried 7 of them all over the country, my mates solved the clues and located one in Chiddingstone, Kent. God awful car to drive, considering it was £30K+ back in 2000. As a driving tool is should have stayed buried in the ground! Apart from the novel-at-the-time roof, it was really dissapointing. But they sold it after 1 week for £27K, so was not all bad :-)
Furyblade_Lee said:
Thats a lot nicer than the old (original) one. My only experience driving an SLK was a spanking new 230K which my mates won in a compettition back in 2000. Texaco buried 7 of them all over the country, my mates solved the clues and located one in Chiddingstone, Kent. God awful car to drive, considering it was £30K+ back in 2000. As a driving tool is should have stayed buried in the ground! Apart from the novel-at-the-time roof, it was really dissapointing. But they sold it after 1 week for £27K, so was not all bad :-)
No no no, according to this other thread they are one of the best drivers cars ever.http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a... do we think of the SLK200K?
Shirley you must be mistaken
AB said:
the interior is really very nice and the quality is definitely there which is sadly a bit lacking in the older Z4.
But how nice does it need to be?The old one is really nice imo. I'm not sure I'd want it to be much nicer as I'd worry about it being rained on and just generally used at all
If it's too nice your not gonna want to jump in it Magnum PI style, or leave the roof down in dusty summer weather, or light rain, or whatever else.
The new Z4 is perfect for limp wristed people who want to look like they have balls, but don't.
BMW really need to fit a new model in underneath it that appeals to people with balls, not gays who want soft touch leather on a-pillars types
Given the new Z4 or new SLK, I'd go for the SLK every time (if the softer GT kinda Roadster was my thing)... Mercedes just do that kind of car so much better. Looks classier and come with bigger better engines.
Dave
Edited by Mr Whippy on Friday 14th January 17:25
Guvernator, there is some funny comments in there! Problem is 80% or more of people who buy / drive Merc SLK's probobly never approach the limits of the car except when the ABS is triggered on wet leaves or snow. As long as it can do 100mph in the pissing rain on the motorway , the stereo works and it looks good they are happy. They have no desire to approach the limits , or the skill to deal with it so to that end 80% of people would say its 100% the greatest sportscar. But if you are a keen, even remotely keen, driver who can tell the difference of on-limit behaviour then they are most certainly at the bottom of the pile. A friend of my parents has just bought one, thankfully at least a manual version, bought it down to show me and I played along with his dissilusion how great it was. He even said "I bet you are wondering you spent £5k more on your Boxster S now....." Well, if you have to ask.......
Furyblade_Lee said:
Guvernator, there is some funny comments in there! Problem is 80% or more of people who buy / drive Merc SLK's probobly never approach the limits of the car except when the ABS is triggered on wet leaves or snow. As long as it can do 100mph in the pissing rain on the motorway , the stereo works and it looks good they are happy. They have no desire to approach the limits , or the skill to deal with it so to that end 80% of people would say its 100% the greatest sportscar. But if you are a keen, even remotely keen, driver who can tell the difference of on-limit behaviour then they are most certainly at the bottom of the pile. A friend of my parents has just bought one, thankfully at least a manual version, bought it down to show me and I played along with his dissilusion how great it was. He even said "I bet you are wondering you spent £5k more on your Boxster S now....." Well, if you have to ask.......
I just preferred the SLK to the Boxster S. The difference between the two is far closer than than you imagine, at least on public roads. The Boxster is agile and sure footed, so is the SLK, with slightly lower limits. For me, the SLK was better exiting corners and has slightly sharper steering. Just a bit more character. Bottom line is they are both good, fast and extremely capable cars for either drivers or plodders. Drive both, and make a judgement on your own experiences, not on what your dad's friend thought, or not.
Eldar, as I stated I have only driven the first version that is no doubt prehistoric compared to the newer one, and no doubt the later cars are better.
Going by all contemporary road tests though, (I havent driven a new one) they are no Boxster.
Going by all contemporary road tests though, (I havent driven a new one) they are no Boxster.
- If you check my profile, you will see my own Boxster does'nt exactly blow me away either! To be regarded as one of THE greatest sportscars ever I do not understand, or rather I dont understand what the rest of the world want in a sportscar! It has 2 seats and weighs more than my Impreza Wagon (4wd estate car) and that, I cannot get my head round why. To drive it feels to me like both the front and rear boots are full of cement.
kambites said:
Kong said:
Depends what you want from a car i suppose. My mate has newish SLK350 and we extensively compared it to my aging Z4 3.0i, swapping drivers seats along the way. The Z4 is lighter and much sharper to drive. It's also better looking inside and out (IMO). The merc sounded better with the V6 on full song and the supsension was better over bumpy ground, but overall the Z4 was a much better sports car.
I guess handling is highly subjective, but I disagree. I've only driven an SLK with "sports suspension" whatever that means, but I thought that, whilst the SLK had slightly woolier turn in, it was better balanced and far better steering than the Z4. The SLK has much better throttle response too, with an appreciable delay in the Z4. The Z4 also felt too firmly sprung, to the point that it ruined both the ride and the handling on public roads. All in all, I felt that the SLK was actually a better sports car. I know I'm in a minority there, though.
It's probably worth bearing in mind that the car that was at the top of my (rather long) shortlist list at the time was the Elise, so both were an order of magnitude behind the benchmark that had already been set for handling. Maybe if I'd driven them in isolation, I would have preferred the Z4 for some reason.
Not sure why driving the Elise would would affect your view of either car. Thats like saying that having driven the morst hardcore caterham and then an Elise to say that that wallowy softly sprung road car from Norfolk simply blends into the rest. Most journalists rate the Mk1 Z4 as more of a sports car than a Mk2 SLK.
At least we can agree (as a minority) that the new SLK looks good. Better than the new Z4 - and this is coming from a BMW nut.
Kong said:
Not sure why driving the Elise would would affect your view of either car. Thats like saying that having driven the morst hardcore caterham and then an Elise to say that that wallowy softly sprung road car from Norfolk simply blends into the rest. Most journalists rate the Mk1 Z4 as more of a sports car than a Mk2 SLK.
Maybe it's just me, but I do find that what I've recently been driving has a significant effect on which attributes of the way a car drives come to the forefront of my mind.I know that I'm in a very small minority in preferring the SLK to the Z4. I've never come across so many people claiming that it's actually a poor handling car as on this thread, though.
Edited by kambites on Friday 14th January 23:15
Guvernator said:
Furyblade_Lee said:
Thats a lot nicer than the old (original) one. My only experience driving an SLK was a spanking new 230K which my mates won in a compettition back in 2000. Texaco buried 7 of them all over the country, my mates solved the clues and located one in Chiddingstone, Kent. God awful car to drive, considering it was £30K+ back in 2000. As a driving tool is should have stayed buried in the ground! Apart from the novel-at-the-time roof, it was really dissapointing. But they sold it after 1 week for £27K, so was not all bad :-)
No no no, according to this other thread they are one of the best drivers cars ever.http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a... do we think of the SLK200K?
Shirley you must be mistaken
The discussion you quote is about the current MK2 (about to be replaced by the one in this thread).
Totally different cars!
Do at least try and keep up...
Incidently I like the interior of this new one (MK3), but the outside looks a bit blocky to me, like a Lexus.
Will reserve final judgement till I've seen one though.
Loving all the judgements about how it drives though, I guess Pistonhead Driving Gods are reaching a whole new level when they can judge the handling and ride traits of a car by looking at some photos!
Will reserve final judgement till I've seen one though.
Loving all the judgements about how it drives though, I guess Pistonhead Driving Gods are reaching a whole new level when they can judge the handling and ride traits of a car by looking at some photos!
Guvernator said:
kambites said:
geoffracing said:
Yes, look at Peugeots and Citroëns: HUUUGE agressive hideous badges and vulgar heavy lips!
And most others are doing it too.
And BMWs with weird droopy headlights and kidney grills the same of small planets. And most others are doing it too.
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