Monday 15th December 2003

SCOOP: New SLK

New roadster captured almost without disguise

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Look what one PHer stumbled across recently...

Alix err... 'Bloggs'.. grabbed these photos recently whilst on his travels. It shows the new SLK almost without disguise. The bonnet is influenced by the styling of F1 cars and seen most dramatically on the enormous McLaren Mercedes SLR. To the rear of that it remains much like the existing model with no radical redesigns.

The car is to be launched shortly and it's believed that the range of engines will start with a puny 163bhp SLK 200 Kompressor ramping up to a 3.2 litre V6 pumping out 350bhp!

[dinkel]

Plain ugly like most mercs today. Pimpmobile without even trying to deny . . .

KR Dinkel

[simonrockman]

I think it loks good, but if I'd paid £300k for an SLR I'd be pissed off at there being a £30k car with such a similar look.

Simon

[Ali_D]

The front end looks like an MG TF in my opinion!

[alixp]

The SL is also due for a face lift to align it with the SLK Nose/Bonnet/light config. Now that's got to hurt... The SLK when you see it without the Headlight And Tail light covers on gives it a much sharper look.

[tuffer]

SL sir, certainly sir, would sir like that in Regular (SL), Mega (SL) or Super Size (SLR).....


OOOHHH Suit you sir.

[anonymous-user]

If memory serves me correctly, there was talk in Autocar a while back about an SLK55 AMG

[vladd]

Lucky he took his camera to the salon with him wasn't it.

[dans]

'stumbled' eh? well in that case it was nice of the test driver to demonstrate the hood up and down

[robert farago]

It's nice to see that Mercedes is sticking with the "nose forward" design of the SLK. There's nothing wrong with the shape-- that an extra two feet of sheetmetal tacked on the rear wouldn't cure. Look at the line where the bonnet meets the window and the roof pillar. Yuck. Is it a big car that wants to be little or a little car that wants to be big? And you're right about the SLK's SLR nose: it's not going to make SLR owners very happy to see a pedal car with the same front end.

[james]

I like it. I think it's a great improvement on the current model, and what's wrong with maintaining a family look? Other manufacturers do it all the time.

I can't see an SLR owner really being all that upset that an SLK has a similar looking front end. It's fairly obviously a different car.

[SPORT300]

SLK 55 AMG version,will be 55-engine without the compressor!
Imagine the same car with the additional compressor, ...bye bye SLR at the traffic lights!

[sesat]

I rather have this than an overpriced SLR.

[DustyC]

Well captured!
Thats about the best quality "scoop" pics I have ever seen. Well done for passing them on to Ted.

Shame the car is a piece of schit though!

[gemini]

Give it a chance - see if it wallows then call it sh1t

It looks rather good for an older German car!
With a big engine and some tight tweaking it could give the TVR chaps (and chapesses) a scare at the lights!

[DustyC]

Your just so PC gemini (in more ways than one!)

[andy_b]

i'm sure i saw these on a car spy site weeks and weeks ago

[jumjum]

Think the extra nose might be part of the disguise.

Looks not too bad, a little squashed up perhaps.

Modern mercs are handling better and better particularly with the influence of boffins at Mclaren it will be interesting to see how it does handle.

[nickwilcock]

This site www.loxleyvehicles.co.uk/content.php?categoryId=97 has some nice pictures of the forthcoming SLK!

[alixp]

really old cgi...

[nickwilcock]

Is it? That's a shame - it certainly took me in!

I'm thinking about buying a used 320 SLK (2001 or 2002) to see what they're like before committing to the new model (I was going to buy an RX-8 - but no cruise control=no purchase). Any views on the car - apart from comments about hairdressers' cars.....!!