i just spent a weekend and 2000km with a new mercedes SLS

i was offered the opportunity to have a new SLS from last friday to monday night. no mileage or location restrictions (thank you mercedes of switzerland !). so my wife and i decided to go spend the weekend with friends at their house in bordeaux.

i picked up the sls in zurich on friday morning, it was a chinese red with black interior and white contrasting stitching. (will post pics tomorrow). i had a quick run through the functions with the dealer, and then my dad and i drove off (he happened to be visiting so i thought a little 3hour drive down to geneva in the sls would be fun for him).

styling: the proportions are as expected with a huge hood to cover the engine sat well behind the front axle line, and the rest of the bits in front of it. the rear is correspondingly very short and results in a cramped and somewhat oddly shaped trunk. but it had space enough for our bags, and eventually a half case of wine, so i cant complain too much! the greenhouse is rather upright to mimic the original, and of course to accommodate its party trick - the gullwing doors, which actually look better open than closed.

first impressions: the engine sound is great. a baritone staccato with a bit of rolling thunder background. the view out the front is powerful with those chromed slats on the top and sides, a long hood, and good visibility. the passenger compartment feels a bit cramped. the windshield is not so steeply raked, and so it feels close to you. the back window is also not so steeply raked, and it too feels close by. the transmission tunnel and the window sills are very tall, so you feel like you are sitting in a canoe. the seats have multiple functions but it did take a while to find a comfortable setting. most buttons are standard mercedes, so were easy to find and figure out.

the drive: once you engage the drive setting, the car can either be in automatic or manual, depending on whether you start using the paddles or not when you set off. the automatic setting very quickly goes up in gears, and uses the massive torque to push you ahead. the car holds the gears for higher revs if you tip into the accelerator aggressively, if you don't, then it it just motors on up and ends up in 7th gear pretty quickly. in manual mode, you can hold the gear until redline at 7500, and shift up yourself (if you don't, then it does it itself anyway), but i felt that i was running out of torque curve around 6500 anyway. the gear change happens kind of in slow motion, very unlike my 360cs or other 6 gear f1 systems. its almost as if the system is lifting off slightly before engaging the gear. i did not like this much, but i guess its a self preservation mechanism.

performance: the acceleration is quite good. especially when you are going from around 50 to 100 mph. i was in switzerland and france so no chance at vmax, but its supposed to get close to 200, and it seems believable and likely very stable. the highest i dared to go in france was a brief stab at 120mph, which is a little bit like hussein bolt jogging no records or sweat broken. it sticks to the road well in long sweepers, but feels as heavy as it is in tighter corners and quick changes of direction. and this is why i think this car is much more of a gt than a sportscar. the weight and gearbox are not so well suited to quick changes of direction, but much better at keeping a high rate of speed going in a stable manner. there are 3 suspension settings, comfort, sport and super sport, but i frankly never found the need or desire to take it out of comfort for very long. and even in comfort, it is stiffly sprung.

liveability: initially i was not super enthusiastic about the car. yes it has a decent look, and great sound, and worthy performance to match; but it did not seem worth the cost here of $300k. in addition, i knocked my head on those doors about a dozen times, as did my wife, and sometimes it really hurt! furthermore, anybody who does not have long arms has to raise themselves out of their seat to close the doors, and for this reason they should have a button to close it electronically. it was also difficult to get in and out of, and dressed in anything more formal than slacks and a shirt, i think could be quite a suit, or skirt, ripping experience. and of course, as nice as those doors can look, you really have to be careful where and how you park.
however, about 1000km in to the weekend drive, i started to like it a lot more. i had figured out how to get the seat to a comfortable spot, and i had figured out how to get the most out of the gearbox, and had had a few fast moments, and it was certainly popular at gas stations and in town, so that was a nice perq. i discovered that in the usa they were only asking for about $200k for it, and i realized that mercedes is not trying to put this car up against ferrari, but is probably aiming at aston martin, and maybe porsche and audi. and in that case, they have a winner. beauty is always in the eye of the beholder, but i would say the look of the sls trumps anything from the other 3 at the moment, and if you are not looking for a cabrio, then the gullwing doors seal the deal.

would i buy one? no. never mind that i never buy new. for what it does best: cruising at high speeds through europe, and pleasing the crowds everywhere with the door show, i would rather have a 599.
but, if you like to buy new, and $200k is your budget for a new car, and you already have the ferraris you want, then this is a good proposal. it is likely to fair much better as a used car than the comparable aston, porsche or audi. just measure your garage width and height, and take it for a day, before you commit.

 

here are some pics
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about the 4th time jen clanged her head and nearly knocked herself out while exiting her seat, any attraction to the car for her was gone. and, importantly for women, the entry and exit are impossible to carry off elegantly.

 

it was not a problem for me, my arms are long enough to reach the handle when seated. it was my wife that had the ahrd time, and given the difficult entry and exit, i dont think she could have also added closing the door to that routine.

 

to be fair, it can be in auto mode, OR in manual mode. but it is like the new maseratis, ie an auto with paddles. the gearchanges are pretty slow, which will restrict the car from really being a ferrari or porsche beater on track.

 

310k swiss francs for the options mine had. that is equivalent to about $300k. obviously it will be cheaper in the usa and elsewhere. but here, it is too high for me.

 

i dont want to come off as being too harsh in my review. so before making any decisons, please drive it first. it has great performance, looks, sounds, and presence. it will definetely outshine the dbs in most respects except ease of entry.

i would not compare it to a ferrari, but i am biased, and i also dont think that is their target.
but vs most other gt's it is a good buy. perhaps not the most comfortable or easy to live with on a daily basis, but it is cool.

and, if you really cant live with those doors, but like the power etc, just wait till next spring when they introduce the cabrio

 

in switzerland at least they are sold out till 2012, unless you are close to the big guys and can skip parts of the line

i think you will find that the price in the usa (and here too for that matter), is now more/ less equal to the used prices on mclaren slr's. once again, for my money, i would rather have the slr, flaws and all. BUT if that design didnt do it for you, and you cant reach for an original, this certainly is the business...

 

got a ticket. not too bad i hope, only 100mph.

 

90 euros. i'll live. luckily i anticipated that the cops would be out on that sunday, and i had set the cruise control to that important 29km/h over the limit....