Breathtaking concept cars of 2011

Like always concept cars is the most beloved models of all so i think it will be great to take a look of the most wonderful concepts of 2011.

Lamborghini Sesto Elemento

This awesome concept has a V10 engine which delivers an amazing 570 HP and has a power-to-weight ratio of only 1.75 kilograms per hp. This allows the concept to sprint from 0 to 60 mph in a sensational 2.5 seconds, while top speed will be higher than 186 mph.

BMW 328 Hommage

The BMW 328 is considered the most successful and best-looking sports car of the 1930s. The BMW 328's success was the result of its design parameters – through the use of systematic lightweight construction, aerodynamic lines, optimum engine types and outstanding suspension technology, it laid the foundation stone for a new vehicle concept, by which performance only leads to success if combined with perfect harmonization of all parameters and maximum efficiency. With these characteristics, the BMW 328 was even then the embodiment of what the BMW brand still stands for today – dynamics, aesthetics and a high level of innovation.

Mercedes-Benz-2011 F125

Basic specs and characteristics: electric motor engine of 0 cm3 / cui displacement with advertised power 230 kW / 308 hp / 313 PS ( ECE ) / and Nm / lb-ft / of torque.

Lotus Evora GTE road car concept

Evora GTE concept is not just about appearance, however. Behind the rear seats is a version of the compressor 420 hp four-cylinder engine, which runs through a sequential gearbox to the AMT. Lightweight racing wheels with the center-lock hubs are wrapped around sticky Pirelli P-Zero Corsa.

Citroën Survolt

It has two electric motors with a combined power of 300bhp from 0 to 5,000rpm, Survolt’s lightweight frame (1.15 tonnes) is capable of exceptional performance, with a top speed of 260kph (162mph) and a 0-100kph (0-62mph) time of under five seconds.

Renault Dezir

This great concept has a Electric synchronous motor with rotor coil which gives 150 hp and torque 226nm it goes from 0 to 100 km/h in 5 seconds.

The SL class is back Mercedes-Benz 2013

Continuing the 60 year custom of sport and style Mercedes-Benz have launched the all-new 2013 SL-Class. The totally redeveloped SL is 50mm longer and 57mm wider than its predecessor however its Aluminium Bodyshell contributes to a one hundred forty kg weight saving. Much paraded options of the brand new automobile were the FrontBass system and the adaptive windscreen wipe/wash device MAGIC VISION CONTROL. The V8 SL 500 develops 435bhp and 700Nm and does the 0 to 100km/h sprint in 4.6 seconds at the same time as the V6 SL 350 develops 306bhp and 370 Nm and reaches a ton in 5.9 seconds; the latter is relatively the econo-mover boasting a gas economy of 6.8l/100km.

Both BlueDIRECT engines include a ECO start/stop function and a 7G-TRONIC PLUS automatic transmission. The sixth generation SL has a magnesium body vario-roof that can be retracted in less than 20 seconds and three variations of the roof are being offered: painted, with glass roof or with the unique panoramic vario-roof with MAGIC SKY CONTROL. The HANDS-FREE ACCESS supplies contactless operation of the boot lid. Simply transfer your foot within the vicinity of the rear bumper and the bootlid opens or closes automatically, the primary of its type on any car. Specifications and pricing for the SL-Class are yet to be confirmed however it'll go on sale in the UK in July 2012. Seems just like the Middle East will have to wait a little bit longer.[via : AutoMiddleEast]

Printable Solar-Cell Material Reaches a Milestone

Technology Review
Nov 7, 2011

A new way of manufacturing printable organic solar cells could eventually lead to new kinds of low-cost, cheap, and flexible solar panels.

The work is being led by Alan Heeger, who shared the Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Guillermo Bazan in 2000 for developing the kind of conductive polymers that are already used to make plastic solar cells and organic light-emitting diodes. Both Heeger and Bazan are professors of chemistry at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

Polymer solar cells are inefficient compared to silicon solar cells, but they are much cheaper to make. Organic materials—whether made of polymers or so-called "small molecules," which are organic compounds with a low molecular weight—can be made into inks and printed over large areas. They're also lightweight and flexible, which makes them promising for applications like rooftop installations or solar-cell patches for charging portable electronics.

Using a new small molecule designed by Bazan, Heeger built a solar cell that converts 6.7 percent of the light energy that strikes it into electricity. Bazan expects to reach 9 percent efficiency within a year. Although efficiencies in lab tests tend to be much greater than those in a manufactured cell, this would put these materials on par with the best polymer solar cells on the market. 
To read more click here...

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL R230

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL R230 Side

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL R230. For those Mercedes-Benz SL R230 models commencing from the March 2008 facelift, Piecha Design provides an extensive sophistication package deal. Piecha create an exclusive build-in enclosures with LED daytime headlights, incl. fog lamp. They could be shipped all set for installation to the serial bumper and the AMG bumper of the SL63 and SL65. For the serial bumper, a revamped, stylish, three-part front spoiler lip was created too, harmonizing flawlessly with the day time headlights. Piecha also provides an unified rear spoiler lip which is as classy as it is efficient. It supplies a further push down on the backside axle.



The fresh Piecha MP1 monoblock wheel rims in the front-polished titanium silky-gloss edition are true eye-catchers. Readily available at 9.5×20 with 255/30 R20 for the front, and at a massive 11×20 with 305/25 R20 for the backside wheel cases of the SL. The lovely brand-new Piecha custom wheel set complements the CLS designs of the 219 and 218 series using the same tyres. The car body doesn't need any alter. Appropriate wheel covering still necessitates that the chassis is decreased. The SL-chassis can be decreased either by basic Piecha lowering springs (-30 mm) for the coil-spring version, or a Piecha-lowering module (-30 mm) for the ABC-chassis.



The stainless steel Piecha Quadro sports exhaust system mounted at the tail is a genuine piece f art. Featuring four end tubes in right/left loops, it guarantees sportively excellent symmetry and a saturated, minimal roar.

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL R230 Rear Side

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL R230 Rear

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL R230 Front Side

2011 Kahn Design Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetech

2011 Kahn Design Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetech Front Angle

The brand new A. Kahn Design ML-350 Bluetech powered by Brabus is totally unshakable, with every exterior adjustment serving to coax better overall performance from the car.



Complete in a soft metallic pearl white finish, this distinct vehicle is a u.k car, right hand drive, and the last one still left of 10 cars initially built. Coming in at £58,875.00, this stunning vehicle includes the type of treatment which makes Afzal Kahn’s designs a favourite amidst critical customers and is today a moving catalogue for all the latest adjustments available from A. Kahn Design. A full Kahn Design Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetech powered by Brabus costs £58,875.00 although selected individual elements are offered separately.

2011 Kahn Design Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetech Rear Angle

2011 Kahn Design Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetech Cockpit

2011 Kahn Design Mercedes-Benz ML350 Bluetech Side

2012 Mercedes-Benz S350 BlueTec 4MATIC Specs, Prices, Pics and Reviews

The Mercedes-Benz S-classhas more variants than any large luxury car, with powerplants ranging from a hybrid to this S350 diesel (the first supersized Benz oiler since 1995) to two twin-turbo V-8s and two twin-huffed V-12s.

Throughout the vast expanse of the range, Mercedes has wisely aligned price with traditional notions of performance. For example, the S400 hybrid, at $92,275, is the cheapest Benz limo and the slowest to 60 mph; the slightly quicker $93,425 S350 BlueTec, available only in 4MATIC spec, undercuts an equivalently optioned S550 by around $4500.

The S400 hybrid’s bottom-rung pricing may be further justified by the fact that it’s a flawed vessel of Benz’s fuel-sipping aspirations, with unpredictable brake feel and a hybrid system that can’t hold a candle to some offered by competitors. But the S350 diesel is more fully realized, an oil barge that offsets its merely ample performance with outlandish torque ratings and range capability.

Powering it is Mercedes’ 3.0-liter V-6 turbo-diesel, seen previously in the ML350 BlueTec. Here it offers more power and more torque than in the E-class 240 hp versus 210; 455 lb-ft versus 400 as more boost helps to offset the S’s extra 700 pounds.

S and E diesel acceleration comes out about even in our testing: 0–60 in 7.0 seconds (S350) to 7.2 (E350). It’s not all due to the increased output, though. The bigger car’s all-wheel-drive system (the E BlueTec is rear-wheel-drive only) contributes to the comparable launch times, even if neither Benz diesel can rev out to match the 5.3-second sprint of the last gas-powered S550 we tested. But the sebaceous V-6’s character is resolute, with the same vector-chasing determination of the S550. As in all non-AMG Benzes, throttle response is a bit deliberate, which requires patience but makes it easy to hold an even speed on the highway. A forceful incline of the diesel pedal summons churn that would twist a lesser car apart, and the extra power and torque give the S350 strong passing legs.

Learning to Let Go

All intimations of aggressiveness, however, are undone by the car’s meager grip. The S350 posts a disappointing 0.79 g on the skidpad, and brakes like a frigate, needing 181 feet to stop from 70 mph. An S400 hybrid we tested, wearing the same H-rated Michelin Pilot MXM4s, hit 0.86 g and stopped five feet shorter. The hybrid’s better mass distribution helped it in this regard, but not as much as the absence of mass itself: the hybrid S-class undercuts the diesel car by nearly 400 pounds.

Still, the diesel gets better mileage than the hybrid, giving more ammo to our argument that modern oil-burners are the smart choice for America’s long-distance demands. In its two weeks with us, the S350 returned 26 mpg to the 24 we got in the hybrid.

And even though it’s a diesel, the S350 is marginally quieter than other S-classes. At 70-mph cruise, it posts 66 dB to the 2011 S550 4MATIC’s 67; 70 dB at wide-open throttle to the 550’s 72. It’s even quieter than the hybrid. 

Indeed, inside the cabin, there’s nothing but subdued luxury—seemingly infinitely adjustable seats, more driver aids than you can shake a stick at, and switchgear that feels like it was milled from solid hunks of aluminum, which it was. All the S-class virtues remain, but the diesel—cheaper, smarter, and just as pleasurable to drive as any S550— brings real rationality and economy to the proceedings. Learn More...

Source : http://www.caranddriver.com

2012 Mercedes-Benz ML350 4MATIC Specs, Prices, Pics and Reviews

Before the recession, Mercedes-Benz had no trouble selling 34,000 MLs in the U.S. each year. For 2011, the company’s best-known SUV is back on track to hit 30,000 sales.

Right now, in fact, ML sales are up 14.5 percent. “It puts us in a funny position,” confesses Mercedes U.S.A. president and CEO Ernst Lieb. “We’re spending millions to replace a car that remains a huge profit center.” It’s like replacing Yankee Stadium’s hot dogs with, say, toaster waffles. Are you sure you want to mess with a good thing?

That’s nonetheless what Mercedes is doing with its third-gen M-class, which, we hasten to add, resembles wieners and waffles only in its ability to cause customers to queue up. The first to arrive is the ML350 4MATIC, powered by a new, direct-injection 3.5-liter gas V-6 producing 302 horsepower (an increase of 34). It will be partnered with the ML350 BlueTec 4MATIC, motivated by a redesigned 3.0-liter V-6 turbo-diesel making 240 horsepower (an increase of 30). Base price for the gas ML is $49,865, and the diesel, now accounting for 13 percent of sales, fetches an additional $1500.

This new ML is about an inch longer and a half-inch wider, and it squats 0.8-inch lower than before. Cargo capacity behind the rear seat has grown seven cubic feet.
;The baseball bat of a turn-signal/wiper stalk thankfully has been moved to the 10-o’clock position on the steering column, and its cruise-control function has been relegated to a second stalk at 8 o’clock. Unfortunately, you’ll still find yourself flicking at the column-mounted gear selector whenever you desire wipers. It’s annoying.

On road, we drove a gas-powered ML350 with the Dynamic Handling package. That $5150 option includes the Active Curve System (ACS), which decouples the anti-roll bars both off-road and during straight-ahead freeway slogs. We never felt it coupling or decoupling. We never felt it doing much of anything, to tell the truth, although body motions were satisfactorily controlled in the hills. But body motions were also satisfactorily controlled in a non-ACS ML we sampled, and that one didn’t max out at a cosmically startling $73,055. As the ML negotiates turns, you can still feel huge lateral load transfers, and the seats’ weak bolsters further suggest that this SUV might possess grand ambitions, but handling is not among them.

We’ll tell you one thing: This new ML is spectacularly quiet, subjectively as quiet as, say, a Lexus LX570, thanks to high-insulation glazing and additional sealing. And the ML pretty much matches the Lexus’s memorably cushy ride, too. Suspension travel feels endless; road nastiness is filtered to a fine fare-thee-well. Unfortunately, highway textures and slip angles are likewise filtered out of the light steering, as if such information might be an affront to the driver. The brake pedal isn’t doing much talking, either. At least interstate tracking is flawless.

The seven-speed transmission’s upshifts and kickdowns are supremely gentle, and engine roar is reduced to a velvety hum seemingly emanating from an adjacent ZIP Code. Fit and finish are of a quality that should make assembly workers in storm-smacked Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, proud. For two riders, back-seat legroom is excellent, kneeroom superb, headroom vast.

We nosed an ML350 BlueTec diesel off-road, through sippy holes, bogs, and ugly ruts. Over hill and dirty dale, the long-travel suspension, the silky dampers, and the rock-solid platform conspire to improve the experience. You’ll find that the road-biased M+S rubber, however, is not your ally in the mud. The diesel engine definitely is an ally—it’s among the most velvety oil-burners ever installed in a passenger car. No clatter, no soot, no odor, no tactile evidence to reveal its baser origins. The driver notices only a slightly delayed throttle response, an added half-second of laziness at step-off.

Eight-cylinder MLs will arrive in the first quarter of 2012. Two-wheel-drive models will follow, as will a more off-road-biased version with a terrain selector and a two-speed transfer case.

Mercedes says the new ML is only a few pounds heavier than its forebear, but the vehicle feels massive, a little slow-witted, and somewhat resistant to course corrections. If you’re looking for driving gratification or personality, well, it will have to derive from the M-class’s luxurious fittings and from its soothing soundlessness. Ten minutes after climbing out, you’ll remember the awesome stereo more than any dynamic merits. Sometimes progress smells like waffles. Learn More...

Source : http://www.caranddriver.com

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series

The brand new high-efficiency Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series is regarded as the most powerful C-Class ever, offering an optimum productivity of 380 kW (517 hp) and a maximum torque of 620 newton metres. The AMG 6.3-litre V8 engine stuns with its huge torque, incredible pulling power and responsiveness, and guarantees high-quality overall performance: the Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series boosts from zero to 100 km/h in 4.2 seconds. Distinctive excitement at the wheel arrives courtesy of the adaptable AMG coil-over sports suspension, the AMG high-performance complex braking system and the functional typical gear. The AMG Track Package is offered as an alternative to improve driving dynamics even more.

A displacement of 6.3 litres, a maximum output of 380 kW (517 hp) and a torque of 620 newton metres from eight cylinders - one look into the technical characteristics and it’s clear the engineering of Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series stands fully to of its incredible looks. The high-torque M156 effortlessly aspirated engine was particularly manufactured for the new two-door model, where forged pistons, binding rods and the crankshaft with a lightweight design, for instance, all come thanks to the SLS AMG. These measures are driven by an innovative engine control unit. As the car’s overall performance attests, the uprated V8 engine has an effortless time of it in the coupe: the sprint from standing to 100 is over in 4.2 seconds.

The optimised engine oil cooling guarantees more efficiency even when the vehicle is subjected to its paces in harsh race-track circumstances. Using aspects of the SLS AMG, the AMG developers have succeeded in giving the oil cooler a cooling surface which is 50 percent larger. The tried-and-trusted, revolutionary AMG SPEEDSHIFT MCT 7-speed sports transmission complies with the power transmission. Four transmission modes, the double-declutching function and RACE START assure maximum motoring satisfaction and a high level of variability. In the “Sport plus” and “Manual” transmission modes the gear shifts need a mere 100 milliseconds.

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Sport Sedan

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Side View

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Rear Side View

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Photos

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Luxury Sports Car

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Front Angle View

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series First Look

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Engine

2012 Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG Coupe Black Series Badge and Taillight

2012 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Specs, Prices, Pics and Reviews

Call it trickledown turbonomics. Last year, Mercedes-Benz replaced the naturally aspirated 6.2-liter V-8 found in the S63 AMG and CL63 AMGwith a 5.5-liter twin-turbocharged V-8.

Now the 2012 E-class AMG, which goes on sale this fall, receives the downsizing treatment (as does theCLS63 AMG). And, yes, that means the misleading and inaccurate “63” nomenclature is now more inaccurate. With its widespread adoption of turbocharged engines, Mercedes-Benz is abandoning displacement-linked model designations altogether.

The new direct-injection engine makes the same 518 hp as its predecessor. Torque is up by 51 lb-ft, however, to 516, and it’s now available at 1700 rpm versus 5200. For an extra $7300, the AMG Performance package increases max boost from 14.5 psi to 18.9; power jumps to 550 hp, and torque leaps to 590 lb-ft at 2000 rpm.

Fuel economy is up, too, from 13 mpg city and 20 highway to an expected 15/22 high enough to avoid the gas-guzzler tax. In Germany, all this comes with no increase to the sticker price; we expect a similar strategy when U.S. pricing is announced later. Our favorite tidbit: The E63 wagon is once again available here, by special order only. (The wagon takes a 1-mpg hit on both fuel-economy estimates, but who cares when you can dust an Audi R8?)

Same As the Previous One: Good

We were lucky enough to drive the new E63 around the Paul Ricard Circuit in the south of France, and we have little in the way of groundbreaking news to report. To clarify, the old E63 was very good and has a comparison-test victory under its belt and the new version is also very good. This is the kind of car that combines the raw power of a classic muscle car with the agility of a modern sports car, plus it seats four comfortably (or five in a pinch). In short, it’s an everyday car that offers Corvette-like performance, albeit at a price that could almost buy two Corvettes.

Besides the engine, the 2012 model gets a wet clutch pack in place of a torque converter for its seven-speed automatic transmission. As in other AMGs with this box—the SL63, the C63, and the CLS63 are among them—gearchanges via the aluminum paddle shifters are fast and crisp. The clutches also allow for a “race start” launch-control mode, although a careful driver can achieve slightly better acceleration times without it. We recently put a 2012 CLS63 AMG with the Performance pack through its paces and managed a 0-to-60-mph time of 3.8 seconds and a quarter-mile of 12.0 seconds, improvements of 0.3 and 0.6 second over the last-gen CLS63. The E63, which shares its architecture with the CLS-class, should post nearly identical numbers when equipped with the Performance pack; 518-hp examples will, of course, return slightly slower times.

Another major change to the 2012 E63 is the installation of an electrohydraulic pump for the power-assisted steering. Steering feel is isolated and bordering on numb, but considering that the E63 is a large luxury sedan, it is possible (and even appropriate) that such tuning was the goal.

Start and Stop for Real, and Give It What You Got

Let’s not forget to mention the new stop/start system. With the transmission set to C (that’s for “controlled efficiency”) and the eco mode active (it depends on various vehicle-monitored criteria such as engine and cabin temperatures), the E63 will shut down the engine at a stop. It’s mostly transparent, although requesting a quick launch, and therefore a restart, results in some lurching. At the very least, the system is easily defeated by deactivating eco mode or selecting a sportier transmission setting.

Yes, we miss the deep roar of the old 6.2-liter. The new turbo V-8 still makes some pleasant noises, but the volume is diminished. At least wagon lovers can take solace in the fact that the open cargo area provides more reverberation than the sedan’s trunk, and thus more exhaust noise. Otherwise, the new engine is just peachy, with minor turbo lag and a more satisfying torque curve from low on the tach. So Mercedes-AMG’s latest move into the downsized future comes with little sacrifice. And with the sticker price ostensibly standing pat, it shows that progress doesn’t have to command a premium. Learn More...

Source : http://www.caranddriver.com

2013 Mercedes-Benz SL Class Spied News

The Mercedes-Benz SL-class is a perpetual favorite among the wealthy and glamorous, and with the current model, the Germans got the formula right again.

In production since 2001, the R230 SL has already gone through two face lifts. The soft, outdated look of the original design has been sharpened, albeit at the expense of the overall stylistic balance of the car. It's time for Mercedes to get busy putting the next generation into production.

And so the last update done for 2009 will likely be the end of the road for this SL; these photos show that the next generation is well along in its development. While the basic concept of the SL will remain unchanged, there will be a lot of updates under the skin. Most important, the awesome V-12 engines, a 6.0-liter and a twin-turbocharged 5.5-liter, will get the bullet, and the naturally aspirated, 6.2-liter AMG V-8 will be gone as well.

The AMG version of the next SL will instead be powered by a turbocharged 5.5-liter V-8 which will likely produce 563 hp and 553 lb-ft of torque, says Henner Lehne, analyst at CSM Worldwide in Frankfurt, Germany. Lehne expects M-B to downsize the engine portfolio, with the three non-AMG versions that will launch initially powered by V-6 engines. Two naturally aspirated engines will make 241 hp and 311 hp, while a turbocharged V-6 is expected to turn out 382 hp—as much as the current SL550’s 5.5-liter V-8. Mercedes is working on engine stop/start systems as well, but a full hybrid is far off, if it comes at all.

Under the skin, the next SL will share many components with the E-class; outside, the look will remain similar to the current model. "Mercedes needs to be careful the SL doesn't come too close to the SLS AMG," says Lehne. Chief designer Gorden Wagener, fond of experimental styling elements, will have to exercise significant restraint if he wishes to preserve the SL's character.

For a while, Mercedes-Benz toyed with the idea of returning to a conventional softtop, somewhat more appropriate for a vehicle that is rarely used as a year-round daily driver outside of temperate climes. But in the end, Mercedes decided to keep the retractable hardtop, which has become somewhat of an SL trademark.

We expect the SL to come with all the electronic wizards—crash-prevention tech, night vision, and lane-departure warning systems, for example—for which modern Mercedes vehicles have become known. Taken from the vast corporate parts bin, these electronics will aim to make the next SL, due to be launched in the third quarter of 2012 as a 2013 model, as safe and convenient as it is glamorous. Learn More...

Source : http://www.caranddriver.com

2011 Mercedes-Benz SL550 Specs, Pics, Prices and Reviews

You know you’re getting old when the Mercedes-Benz SL550 seems like the perfect car. That might sound like a backhanded compliment to the car, but with age comes wisdom and with wisdom, the realization that one needn’t drive at 11/10th all the time in the public domain.

For more-relaxed motoring, a comfortable car that is really fast, handles nicely, and rides well is an alluring everyday proposition. The last time we tested an SL550 was in acomparison in August 2006, when it finished first ahead of a Cadillac XLR-V, a BMW 650i, a Jaguar XK, and a Porsche 911.

Since then, the SL has been freshened with a new grille, headlamps, hood, and rear bumper, as well as a mildly restyled interior that incorporates a refined media interface. The sheetmetal is definitely more aggressive, although the car retains the subdued elegance that a Benz ought to have—like the previous-generation E-class before Mercedes designers went all Bangle. The revised COMAND system is a vast improvement, and the Airscarf system—part of the $3850 Premium package—that wafts heat onto necks from vents below the headrests was added, allowing occupants to enjoy al fresco motoring even on a cold day.

Mercedes didn’t change any of the mechanical components on the SL, which is a good thing, because we rather like those. The 5.5-liter V-8 engine makes good power and torque, as well as a suggestive snarl under hard throttle. With 382 hp on tap, the SL reaches 60 mph from rest in 4.8 seconds, goes through the quarter in 13.5 at 105 mph, and continues on to a top speed of 157 mph before the governor cuts in. The seven-speed automatic shifts sweetly whether you decide to do the shifting yourself via paddles on the steering wheel or trust the car to do it for you. The brakes are excellent, pulling the car to a stop from 70 mph in 157 feet, highly creditable for a vehicle that weighs 4233 pounds.

The oleopneumatic active-body-control suspension gives the SL a compliant highway ride and helps keep it on an even keel during hard cornering. There’s a slight, nervous lurch onto the outside rear wheel if one gives the car a real bootful with the stability system turned off, but you have to be trying hard. Although the brakes and the steering seem a little disconnected at low speed especially compared with a 911’s innate liveliness it all comes together at higher speeds on back roads, where the steering is fluent and full of road feel and the chassis is pleasingly neutral.

The SL does a great job of being a comfortable cruiser and a back-road champ, an easy-to-use commuter car for Wall Street barons. But big money is a prerequisite for ownership. The base price of our tester was $104,775, and a few options puffed that number up to $114,175. The clear-panel panoramic roof—for endless sun chasing even with the top up—added $2000; the aforementioned $3850 Premium package bundles Airscarf with heated and cooled massaging seats, a power decklid, and keyless entry and starting; upgraded leather cost $1550; and the Sport Wheel package cost $2000 and added dark-tinted head- and taillights, silver-painted front brake calipers, a manual shift mode, and 19-inch wheels wearing Pirelli P Zeros size 255 up front and 285 in the rear.

Although $114,175 is stiff, the SL earns its price. Top down on a sunny day, it feels like a rich man’s Miata: top up, carving through stop-and-go traffic, it’s as luxurious as an S-class. Add in superior build quality and hewed-from-a-block solidity, and it remains the gold standard in this class. We’d even say that the harder core SL63 AMG and the V-12–engined SL600 or SL65 AMG are almost too much car, given the inherent goodness of this one. Perhaps getting older and wiser isn’t such a bad thing.

Specifications

VEHICLE TYPE: front-engine, rear-wheel-drive, 2-passenger, 2-door roadster

PRICE AS TESTED: $114,175 (base price: $104,775)

ENGINE TYPE: DOHC 32-valve V8, aluminum block and heads, port fuel injection

Displacement: 333 cu in, 5461 cc
Power (SAE net): 382 bhp @ 6000 rpm
Torque (SAE net): 391 lb-ft @ 2800 rpm

TRANSMISSION: 7-speed automatic with manumatic shifting

DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 100.8 in Length: 180.4 in
Width: 81.4 in Height: 51.1 in
Curb weight: 4233 lb

C/D TEST RESULTS: 
Zero to 60 mph: 4.8 sec
Zero to 100 mph: 12.2 sec
Zero to 130 mph: 21.3 sec
Street start, 5–60 mph: 5.1 sec
Standing ¼-mile: 13.5 sec @ 105 mph
Top speed (governor limited): 157 mph
Braking, 70–0 mph: 157 ft
Roadholding, 300-ft-dia skidpad*: 0.90 g

FUEL ECONOMY:
EPA city/highway driving: 14/21 mpg
C/D observed: 18 mpg
*Stability-control-inhibited.

Learn More...

Source : http://www.caranddriver.com