Next generation Mercedes-Benz SL officially revealed!
Planning to buy a showy car after acquiring a huge sum of wealth? Well before you sign the dotted line for that 3-Series convertible, have a look at the new player. The all-new Mercedes-Benz SL! Looking bolder and more masculine than ever, people looking for a feminine convertible should avoid this car.
No doubt inspired heavily by their flagship car the SLS AMG, as well as Mercedes-Benz’s new design language which can already be seen with the new ML-Class SUV and the new B-Class facelift. The front features a much more rounded yet aggressive looking headlights with complex designs inside the lenses similar to Audi’s.
Just like the SLS AMG, the front is also dominated by an over sized front grille with an equally huge Mercedes-Benz badge which would make a good dinner plate when removed. The side is also fitted with large air sills with two horizontal strips. The sills on both side also nicely applied to the shoulder line of the car when seen from sideways.
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As for the rear, the basic shape of the rear lights is similar to it’s predecessor, but now it is redesign to make the rear look wider and lower. As usual, LEDs makes up the rear lights, with another strip of LEDs located underneath the lower bumper and in between it’s twin exhaust which I believe is the reversing lights.
If you had been inside the SLS AMG, the interior of the new SL will be very familiar to you. Almost everything is borrowed from it’s flagship brother. From the aluminium air-con vents, the silver dials, to the dashboard design and layout is all SLS AMG. Which is a good thing. As similar to the SLS AMG the interior may be, but there is the name “SL” imprinted onto the surface of the gear lever to remind you that you are not successful enough to own the SLS AMG.
Now for the technical bits. At launch, the new SL will only be available with two engine variants. First up is the SL 350, powered by a 3.5 liter V6 petrol engine which produces 302hp and is able to go from 0-100 km/h in under 5.9 seconds. Next up is the SL 500 with a much more powerful twin-turbocharged 4.7-liter V8 petrol engine with 429hp. 0-100 km/h time only takes 4.6 seconds. Of course you can always wait for the more potent AMG version of the SL, but that is still many years away.
Of course the star of the the SL must be it’s convertible roof. Built mostly (89%) out of lightweight aluminium, the new SL is a significant 140kg lighter than the previous model. The hard-top made up of light magnesium frame takes 20 seconds to fold and it’s also 6kg lighter than the previous system.
You can also choose from two different versions of the hard-top. One with a integrated standard sunroof, and another comes with a panoramic sunroof with Mercedes-Benz’s “Magic Sky Control” in which you can change the darkness of the glass with a touch of a button. Hope this cool technology finds it’s way to the side windows as well!
Another notable cool feature of the new SL is this new technology called “Magic Vision Control“. Childish name aside, this technology is actually pretty clever. Instead of the conventional windscreen washer located on the hood of the car, the washer liquid is now transferred through the specially design wiper blades with laser-cut openings where the liquid will be released. Not only does the hood is free from ugly windscreen washer, but this also cleans the windshields much more efficiently. Curious to see this new technology in action!
The all-new Mercedes-Benz SL will go on sale in the middle of next year. In the meantime, enjoy some videos as well as a large photo gallery of the next generation Mercedes-Benz SL! Still want that BMW 3-Series convertible?
