SL-Class 2012 Mercedes SL (R231) - First Drives Thread

[K-A]

Hey when you spend so much of your worth on a car, you want as many of your irrational a rational desires alike, met. I like to stand apart from the masses/crowd whenever I feel it's appropriate, but not to the point where I'd use it to pollute what I feel would otherwise be wise/great/technically best choices. Hence my liking the E-Class, for example. I'm a big fan of individuality, but it doesn't make or break a design or product to me.

 

[Soup]

 

[Human]

Very nice Video Review - Carbuyer - Mat Watson.

http://www.autoexpress.co.uk/mercedes/sl-class/59758/mercedes-sl-video-review

 

[Ollemars]

at 02:33 it looks fantastically good

 

[Merc1]

The SL would be the other new car in my garage if possible.


M

 

[tennmb]

As a 14 year MB employee, I'm shocked at the lack of interest in the new SL. To this point we've only seen two, and haven't had people clamouring to see it. In fact the two we had both sold out of market, with little to no local interest. People spending $100k on a two seater expect to be wowed. One of my best owners, simply left unimpressed, and felt there were too many viable options in this price segment that made more of an impression. He's had a Bentley and Maserati. There are some very good aspects of the car, but just too many apologies, IMO. Mercedes needs to take its lumps and run back the drawing board. Pride goeth before a fall, and MB needs to eat some humble pie on the SL. Interior is an epic fail. Are the materials nice? Yes. does it have nice features? Yes. But the packaging is off, and buyers see it. Obviously, the reviews also expose what everyone (excpet MB) seems to notice. Nice car, but severly lacking.

 

[Merc1]

How on earth is the SL's interior an "epic fail"?


M

 

[Ascari]

Equipment is really good but it's just ugly.

 

[Merc1]

The SL's interior is ugly?

M

 

[Ascari]

No, not the interior but exterior.

 

[K-A]

As a 14 year MB employee, I'm shocked at the lack of interest in the new SL. To this point we've only seen two, and haven't had people clamouring to see it. In fact the two we had both sold out of market, with little to no local interest. People spending $100k on a two seater expect to be wowed. One of my best owners, simply left unimpressed, and felt there were too many viable options in this price segment that made more of an impression. He's had a Bentley and Maserati. There are some very good aspects of the car, but just too many apologies, IMO. Mercedes needs to take its lumps and run back the drawing board. Pride goeth before a fall, and MB needs to eat some humble pie on the SL. Interior is an epic fail. Are the materials nice? Yes. does it have nice features? Yes. But the packaging is off, and buyers see it. Obviously, the reviews also expose what everyone (excpet MB) seems to notice. Nice car, but severly lacking.

It's definitely less hyped and exciting than previous SL's. I remember the R230 was such an epic occurrence when it came out. You saw it all over TV and Pop Culture free-adverstisements, etc.

I blame this once again on product dilution on the lower end. The $130K price tag on an SL looks extra insane when it's next to a growing plethora of lower price M-B's with shared general design languages. The SLK and SL are very hard to tell apart in person, as well.

 

[Merc1]

K/A I swear you don't have anything to base any of that on. The car is clearly selling. One salesperson and a handfull of clients and you're running with some theory about the car being less hyped than before? How do you measure hype? Please don't tell me because you haven't seen it in a music video that you think it is somehow less popular than before. What do the actual sales numbers say? Hint, they say otherwise. Car is sold out here in the Dallas market.

Another thing that is really funny is because a smaller dealer hasn't "seen" one, that signals trouble? Maybe there isn't a large demand at his dealership? It amazes me how a few statements made here blow up into some drawn out conclusion about something like sales and/or how "popular" a car is. Dealers in this market have waiting list for them, likewise that doesn't speak for the rest of the country, but sounds more normal than the car is an epic failure based on a client who had a Bentley and Maser before.


M

 

[K-A]

Sometimes these things are hard to qualify. All I can say is in my world and perception, the new SL just isn't the "experience" it usually is for such a highly anticipated, long running model line, in terms of how popular or hyped up it is. The new A-Class gets more attention generated to it by far. Why is this? Because M-B moves its product portfolio downmarket, thus the lower segment cars generate more popularity, eventually unfortunately making M-B a maker with affordable Luxury cars and a handful of high end ones for those with the cash to splurge.

Sales are one thing, because a new SL body that comes out after 10 years should easily outsell the former one, due to natural laws of inflation not to mention due to it being brand new after 10 years of the same body style. How those sales will keep going is another story, but aside from that, the "attention" the car gets is its own thing. I just don't feel the "magic" with this SL that I did on the ones before it. Same deal goes for the C216 CL, not as "magical" of a presence as the CL's of their time were during their times before it.... keeping in mind that I think the C216 is the nicest CL ever. If it came out in 2000 it would have been the hottest and most popular luxury car of its time.... kind of like the C215 was.

 

[Merc1]

How can you say what was most or more popular without any data? That is what I'm asking. Someone said this, someone said that, that is misinformation without facts to back it up.

How is the A-Class getting more attention when it isn't even sold here nor is it marketed here?

Sales of the R320 clearly died after 2008-2009, does that make that car a failure or less popular? It was old and the facelift couldn't save it. The CL is a beautiful car, but old now too. I passed on it due in part to age, not because of some design trait shared with some less expensive Benz.

Hype and popularity don't amount to much if they car doesn't sell, which the SL does..at least so far.


M

 

[MAJESTIC]

The next roadster I get will definitely be the SL550..... so gorgeous.

 

[Pagani]

Boring. How is this "impressions on the SL"? He is not even driving it. Weak reviews in general by this channel. You can spot the dry language of American car magazines. The British are far better, imho.

 

[klier]

You can spot the dry language of American car magazines. The British are far better, imho.

Dry language >>>>> biased language

 

[JLBM]

Saw the new sl for the first time in the flesh yesterday. Not loving it, but I'm sure it will grow on me. It was a non-amg trim. Still, if I had the cash I would take an sl63

 

[martinbo]

Saw one in Rivonia the other night. Big and bloated. A far cry from the safe and steadfast recipe called elegance.

 

[tennmb]

I've been really studying the one we have in stock. There are elements of the car I love. I think the car has terrific presence on the outside. It's big and bold. The drive is 1st class. There are many nice details in the interior. I think the biggest issue has to be with the upper dash. below the airvents is nice, simple, tailored. But it would seem that designers put the priority on incorporating the big round center dash vents. These throw off all the symmetry of the layout, resulting in the smallish, yet still off set COMAND display. The dash shape around the vents also seems contrived and not flowing. IMO, they would have been better with treatment more like in the CLS with louvered vents positioned between the radio control area and the COMAND display. Like the C-class you can retain the round out board air vents. I find the CLS upper dash execution the most flowing and tailored look that MB has. It doesn't carry the awkard hump like in the E, and you aren't forced to squeeze a screen between two vents like in the ML, SLK and SL. The CLS looks like it would easily accomodate an added inch on either side for a larger display.
Also, I find myself missing the pop up roll bar. I loved driving with the top down and roll bar in place. Gave it another look. The new one has much less storage space behind the seat, and a strange looking power windscreen.