MERCEDES SL350
Tuesday November 15 (First written on 2005-04-26)
With A V6 Engine Under The Bonnet, Does Mercedes Entry-Level SL Cut The Mustard? By Andy Enright
To say that the Mercedes SL has received a favourable press is a little like noting that the Lusitania had a problem with damp. Rapturous would be the most apt word to describe how the current SL has been welcomed and to be truthful, few saw such a success coming. The SLs venerable predecessor was a respected boulevardier, but the current car does sports and styling with equal élan. Now theres a more affordable way to land this hot ticket in the shapely form of the Mercedes SL350.
We can thank the diesel boffins at Mercedes for this 3.7-litre engine. So good was the 3.2-litre CDI diesel engine as fitted to the S-Class that it rendered the old S320 petrol car redundant.
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Sales slumped and something clearly needed to be done. That something was the development of this 245bhp V6 engine, a powerplant that has found its way into the S and M-Class models as well as this £60,630 SL350. Thats a clear £12,390 less than the V8 SL500 and a quick look at the SL350s performance figures shows that its almost on a par with its big brother. The sprint to 60mph is completed in 7 seconds flat and like all SL models the top speed is limited to 155mph.
A specially tuned exhaust gives a fruity rasp at the higher end of the rev range, answering critics who felt that the smooth V6 engine didnt sound charismatic enough for a sports car. With a combined fuel economy figure of 24.6mpg and competitive CO2 emissions, the SL350 looks a
smart investment, especially when you factor in its bombproof depreciation. A six-speed Sequentronic manual gearbox is fitted, effectively a manual gearbox with automatic selection, this system features wheel-mounted shift buttons which can be set into a manual or sport mode.
If you want the car to do the work for you, its possible to set it into a mode that replicates a self-shifting automatic box.
"Anything that makes the SL experience more affordable has to be good news."
The suspension set up is a familiar steel spring system with gas pressure dampers providing the shock absorption. This passive set up may be 35kg lighter than the tricksy Active Body Control (ABC) system on the V8-engined cars but it takes away much of the magic from the SLs make up. ABC is available as an option and at this money, its £2,450 well spent, giving the car more agility through corners than any other SL. Designers have a particularly clumsy term for describing a car that just works in the metal front to rear cohesiveness.
The SL has this quality in spades. Every curve melds into the next, flop lines and swages teasing, pouring and sweeping light from one plane to the next. The balance between slavishly unimaginative retro styling and the preservation of traditional; design cues explains some of the more contrived punctuations but the overall effect is supremely elegant. The roof mechanism has stepped forward a generation from that of the SLK, lifting or lowering in a mere 16 seconds with a panel fit only bettered by the ALVIN deep sea submersible.
Mercedes has gone to great lengths not only to make the car safer, cleverer, quicker and cleaner than its predecessor but also to improve the dynamics of the car. The SL was never a car that would look upon a corner with any great relish but the SL350 has not only shed weight due in no small part to extensive usage of aluminium body panels and a compact V6 but it also features an armoury of electronic countermeasures should you get a little overenthusiastic. A brake-by-wire system backed up by ABS and BAS brake assist takes care of retardation duties whilst ESP electronic stability control and ASR traction control do their best to keep the SL350 on the straight and narrow. The Sensotronic braking system is especially ingenious.
Hydraulics have been replaced by electronics which can prime the braking system by lightly applying the pads to the discs when the accelerator pedal is suddenly released, reducing stopping distances by some 3%. In wet conditions the pads can skim the discs of friction-reducing water. As well as a massively strong passenger safety cell, there are twin two-stage front airbags, head/thorax side bags and an automatic rollover bar which pops up in the event of the car leaving the ground or inverting. Inquisitive and foolhardy SL owners may well go searching out hump-backed bridges to test this feature but we couldnt possibly recommend such action.
The interior quality is back to what weve come to expect from Mercedes - premium price rather than Fisher Price - although the car looks far better specified with aluminium cabin detailing than optional wood. The conjoined twin front headlamp theme continues in the cabin with neat wheel-mounted controls, whilst the main fascia dials excise neat arcs from the minor gauges. Anything that makes the SL experience more affordable has to be good news. Whats even more welcome is that the SL350 is a worthy addition to the SL fold high praise indeed given the prevailing excellence of the V8 models.
Itll never be as charismatic as its big brothers but if it makes an SL a more realistic proposition to a few more customers, then Britains roads will soon be a better looking place.
FACTS AT A GLANCE
CAR: Mercedes SL350
PRICES: £60,630 on the road
INSURANCE GROUP: 20
CO2 EMISSIONS: 276g/km
PERFORMANCE: Max Speed 155mph / 0-60mph 7s
FUEL CONSUMPTION: (average) 24.6mpg
STANDARD SAFETY FEATURES: Twin front, side and head airbags, ESP, ABS
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