Mercedes has a new super car known as the SLS AMG. With starting rates of about 180,000 bucks it is priced to directly compete with the likes of Porsche, Ferrari and Aston Martin. Besides all the typical overall performance evaluations there is one thing this supercar has that the others don't - the gullwing Mercedes has returned. Entertainment: well, there's a 6.2 liter engine in the front providing a rumble to match nearly anything to leave Detroit. With over five hundred and fifty hp the Mercedes SLS would be an enjoyable drive even if the handling was poor. Luckily that is not the case. It is agile, poised and although its feels a little stiff on the road the combination of engine and handling offers a fantastic drive.
Regarding practicality the vehicle is really a bit of a mixed bag. Mercedes-Benz have obviously considered how this vehicle is going to be used and the Mercedes SLS AMG incorporates typical functions to offer daily usability like sat-nav along with a good stereo. Nevertheless the gullwings, as renowned as they are, make it a real pain to get in and out of the car, make the car really wide and also you really need to stretch to pull the doors down once you are inside. The design also implies headroom is fairly tight too.
The gearbox is a double clutched matter that operates extremely well. There's a short delay whenever you flick the paddles but overall it feels extremely sharp and responsive. The vehicle is very obviously rear wheel drive. The seats position is really back and also harks back to honest, old school GT's and put together with the razor-sharp steering you've got total faith in where the front of the vehicle is going to go. This car can go round edges really, really quick - in case you tried hard enough you can probably keep up with a 4-wheel drive Porsche 911 Turbo. It's also blazingly fast in a straight line - really impressive for a heavy, front engined GT.
Considering value for money - can any vehicle at this price tag be considered reasonable value? Probably not but put alongside its peers it is well priced. Let's look at it another way - against the Mercedes McLaren SLR, the Mercedes SLS is faster, handles better and is less pricey to the tune of nearly 200,000 dollars. So, the SLS is really a loud and raucous matter dominated by the huge powerhouse of an engine - yet at the very same time civilized by the typical high standard of usability and refinement that you'd want from a Mercedes.
