Merc1
Premium
OUR TAKE: Driving such a Mercedes certainly gives the ego a kick in the butt, which is always nice. But the actual wheel-man experience is bettered by many cars. Like most Mercedes, the engine in the SL is its most impressive feature. More than enough torque throughout the band, with top-end power to match, delivered in the most Germanic of ways. High-speed bombing down the freeway is a cathartic exercise, but it would be a whole lot more so if you had autobahn access. Gunning down U.S. interstates at even 80-90 mph doesn't come close to revealing the SL's capabilities.
You can have fun tackling turns, but we're hardly dealing with a featherweight here. 4200 pounds? In a two-seater? That's no news flash with SLs, but it's still striking whenever we drive this car. You would never describe it as nimble. Neither would we call it ungainly, but it is not especially quick to react to inputs.
The steering feels slow and doesn't communicate a lot of feel or feedback, and the front-end is going to give up the ghost long before the rear does-unless you choose to use the V8 to snap the rear tires loose to influence your trajectory. Indeed you can do so, but that doesn't change the fact that this car is designed for triple-digit cruise control action.
That's no slight: Mercedes accomplished exactly what it set out to do with the SL, and exactly what its customers wanted. In that sense.
BOTTOM LINE: Even five years after its debuted, there's still loads of appeal to this car.
As-tested price: $107,255
Drivetrain: 5.5-liter V8; rwd, seven-speed automatic
Output: 382 hp @ 6000 rpm, 391 lb-ft @ 2800-4000 rpm
Curb weight: 4220 lb
Fuel Economy (EPA): 17 mpg
Options: Premium II package including active ventilated seats, driver and passenger dynamic multi-contour seats, bi-xenon headlamps, cornering-illuminated fog lamps, Keyless Go, Distronic, Parktronic ($6,650); panorama roof with sunshade ($1,920); trim package including wood and leather steering wheel and shift knob ($900); electronic trunk closer ($510)
2007 Mercedes-Benz SL550 - AutoWeek
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