SLS [Official] Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series unveiled

[Merc1]

DTM Racer pure and simple.

M

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

That's insane!

 

[mini_cooper4]

I usually love Black Series cars but that's WAY over the top!...

 

[Nicks]

that's WAY over the top!...

Haha, no it's not. That's what Black Series is all about. Pure madness

 

[Zafiro]

Yellow is overkill. I'll take mine in red or black.

 

[mini_cooper4]

Haha, no it's not. That's what Black Series is all about. Pure madness

To each their own

 

[Human]

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series first drive review

This 622bhp sledgehammer blends luxury and breathtaking performance, but is it worth £230,000?



The £230,000 SLS AMG Black Series is built in Affalterbach, Germany

What is it?

This is arguably the most driver-focused Mercedes-Benz road car ever: the SLS AMG Black Series.
The SLS AMG Black Series looked aggressive enough covered in disguise when we rode in it late last year, but as it sits in the pitlane at the Paul Ricard circuit in France, its engine turning over with a lumpy idle, you get the feeling that all it lacks are race numbers attached to its bodywork. It’s certainly a long way from the standard SLS GT we drove a couple of months back.
Beyond the deep new front bumper, with integral carbonfibre splitter, and front wings that have been widened by 13mm, it is the long, contoured carbonfibre bonnet with integral air duct that really sets it apart. Further back, there are deep new sills with cooling ducts for the rear brakes, rear wings that extend out by an extra 26mm and a reprofiled rear bumper with a more substantial diffuser.
AMG’s latest Black Series model also comes with an optional aerodynamic package that has additional winglets on the outer corners of the front bumper for improved cooling of the front brakes, as well as a prominent carbonfibre rear wing on the bootlid in place of the standard retractable one.
The SLS Black Series has benefited greatly from the existence of the SLS GT3 race car and SLS Electric Drive. Various lightweight components and construction solutions from both allow it to hit the scales 70kg below that of the SLS GT, at 1550kg.
Key among the developments brought to the Black Series model is a new carbonfibre torque tube, through which the propshaft runs. As well as being much lighter than the standard aluminium arrangement, it is also claimed to be significantly more rigid for greater structural integrity. The bulkhead behind the seats is also now made of carbonfibre, again increasing the overall stiffness.
The real showpiece, though, is the engine. The naturally aspirated 6.2-litre V8 adopts myriad detail changes, including revised valve gear with altered cam geometry and revised bucket tappets, a new intake system, reconfigured belt drive, optimised crank assembly and an entirely new water and oil cooling system.
Power increases by 59bhp to 622bhp, which trumps a Porsche 911 GT2 RS. Maximum power arrives 600rpm further up the rev range, at 8000rpm. Torque has been reduced by 11lb ft in the interests of low-end tractability, going from 479lb ft at 4750rpm to 468lb ft at 5500rpm.
What is it like?

Mercedes has never been one to believe that extreme supercars should be stripped-out affairs, even one as obviously competition orientated as this. Lift the gullwing door and you’re treated to a genuinely luxurious interior that boasts swathes of leather, polished carbonfibre trim applications, shiny white-faced instruments and a well-proportioned multi-function steering wheel.
The driving position is terrific and the carbonfibre-backed seats, although sparsely cushioned, are excellent. I’m surprised not to see a full race harness, but a regular three-point belt instead.
On the run from the pitlane exit to the first corner, it is obvious that this is far more than your regular SLS GT. Throttle response is much sharper and AMG’s big V8 revs more freely, with added urgency. And the noise it makes, even on part throttle, is absolutely fabulous.
The geometry of the double wishbone suspension remains intact, but the elasto-kinematic properties have been heavily revised. The SLS AMG Black Series suspension is 50 per cent firmer up front and 42 per cent firmer at the rear than the SLS GT. The substantial 275/35 R19 (front) and 325/30 R20 (rear) Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres are the same as those set to appear on the Porsche 918 Spyder.
It’s meant to be suitable for the road, but there’s a lack of compliance even on the smooth bitumen of Paul Ricard. As we get up to speed, the whole car feels remarkably rigid. And you quickly become aware of the downforce provided by that rear wing. In its handling, the SLS Black Series doesn’t do much wrong at all. For a front-engined car, it is incredibly well balanced.
There’s some turn-in understeer on the circuit as you introduce heat into the tyres, but even before you’ve got some laps under your belt and managed to get your head around the terrific whip-crack sharpness of the revised steering and heavily reconfigured front suspension, it feels a very different proposition from the SLS GT.
It is much more immediate in its reactions, far less cosseting and wonderfully planted, with very little body roll even in some of Paul Ricard’s tighter infield corners. Like that of the SLS GT3, the chassis is now bolted directly to the body. The spring, damper and anti-roll bars have all been heavily upgraded as well.
Traction in the dry is excellent, all the more impressive through the adoption of a new electronically controlled rear differential lock The new arrangement not only saves weight but is also noticeably faster to react to a spinning rear wheel, making the SLS Black Series keener in its ability to place its power down than any other rear-wheel-drive AMG model, although there’s still sufficient power for a heavily pegged throttle to overcome the purchase of the rear tyres in handling mode. Yes, it’s possible to hold a slide.
The great thing about the handling on the standard suspension set-up is that it allows you to confidently explore the dynamic limits. You can immediately feel you’re on top of it, relying on the subtle interventions of the differential lock and stability control to keep it pointing in the right direction. If you do put a foot wrong, it is progressive enough to let you off the hook, so long as you’re quick enough with the correction.
The claimed performance figures are startling: 0-62mph in 3.6sec and a top speed of 196mph. And it sounds every bit as mesmerising from within the confines of its leather-lined cabin as it does from the outside. The internal changes made to the engine give it a hardened mechanical demeanour at any revs.
But it’s nothing compared with the deep blare of exhaust, whose intensity and volume have been increased significantly over the already wonderful-sounding SLS GT through the adoption of a new titanium exhaust system, which, at 17kg, is a full 13kg lighter than the standard steel arrangement.
But regardless of how much AMG talks about the software changes that it has introduced to its seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox to make it more responsive to a click of its steering wheel-mounted paddles, it remains the weak link within the driveline. There is nothing intrinsically wrong with the action of the compact transaxle, which is quite smooth on part-throttle upshifts. But it lacks the explosive cog-swapping efficiency required to match the heightened qualities of the engine as you extend it towards the 8000rpm red line.
Braking performance is very much limited by the purchase of the standard Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 tyres. The 402mm front and 306mm rear ceramic discs enable massive decelerative force; it’s instant, with a surprising level of feel within the pedal.
Should I buy one?

On most levels, this car is a resounding success. It’s easily the most focused and exciting to drive of AMG’s five hardened Black Series models to date, even if a bunch of question marks remain over its overall usability and suitability for extended periods of public road driving.
Around the track, the SLS AMG Black Series provides the full and complete Le Mans experience in a way that no other Mercedes model has, short of perhaps the CLK GTR homologation special produced in a limited production run of just 25 back in 1997.
And the breathtaking £230,000 that Mercedes is expected to ask for it here in the UK? It’s the price you pay for what is perhaps the most thrilling and certainly among the most accomplished performance cars to flaunt the three-pointed star.

Greg Kable | Autocar

 

[Merc1]

WOW.

M

 

[Pagani]

^Anyone know if this model is available without the aerodynamic package (ie the rear extended wing and the small winglets) as the C Black Series is?

 

[picsoubmw]

^Anyone know if this model is available without the aerodynamic package (ie the rear extended wing and the small winglets) as the C Black Series is?

From the above article :

AMG’s latest Black Series model also comes with an optional aerodynamic package that has additional winglets on the outer corners of the front bumper for improved cooling of the front brakes, as well as a prominent carbonfibre rear wing on the bootlid in place of the standard retractable one.

 

[Zafiro]

EVO review

+ Noise, drama, body control, performance and attitude
- Too extreme for the road? To be continued…

Mercedes SLS AMG Black Series review: Best of 2013

 

[Guibo]

Posted by Chris Harris
Tuesday March 12 2013

​

I don't quite know what to do about AMG. Should one only attend one in every four launch events it hosts, purely in the interests of balanced content? Even then we'd probably still drive a new AMG every other month. The launch schedule is breathless: it's only March and we've had revised E63s, an Electric SLS, the hottest hatch known to mankind revealed and now this - an even faster SLS.

Aero kit does have a whiff of aftermarket excess

Now Mercedes has allowed its skunk works Black Series team loose on the Y2K Gullwing, and the results are not subtle.

The normally aspirated M156 6.2-litre V8 is now in its final evolutionary spurt. It has been heavily reworked to produce 631hp at 8,000rpm, some of those extra horses come at the expense of torque, whose peak figure actually dips 9lb ft over the standard car. Still, 469lb ft should give reasonably serene part-throttle progress, and combined with a 70kg weight reduction over the standard car, the Black Series is pushing itself into territory currently owned by very fast cars. For the predicted £230K asking price, it needs to be both fast and desirable.

Under the flashy skin it's proper AMG stuff

Some send off
If any motor deserved a decent send-off then the stalwart AMG 6.2 V8 as the one - it was the centre-piece of AMG's ascension over the past decade and what first appeared in a W211 E-Class now has shorter intake runners, altered valve timing, wider main bearings and a more powerful oil system. It exhales through a new titanium exhaust system which alone saves 13kg.

Mercedes likes to present the Black Series as a 'GT3 car for the road', making reference to the gorgeous and rather successful customer race car it sells in the category, but that's rather underselling this road legal version. The racer's motor is strangled by a restrictor and barely manages 520hp - this one with number plates is miles more potent!

Weight saving measures from both the racer and the Electric Drive bring the kerb weight down to 1,550kg - quite impressive for something this big which retains much of its luxurious interior. Carbon ceramic brakes are standard, the bonnet is carbon, as is the prop-shaft and a lithium-ion battery is fitted. The front wings are 13mm wider, the rears 26mm wider allowing tracks to increase 20 and 24mm respectively and 10x19-inch and 12x20-inch rims to be fitted. Tyres are the brand new Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 first seen on the 918 Spyderpre-series cars.

Looks like a monster, goes like one too

And then some
The suspension layout is the same as every other SLS, but pretty much everything has been uprated, stiffened and made track-worthy. In fact the more you pore over the spec sheet, the more you realise that despite the high sticker price, the Black Series offers an awful lot of extra sexy engineering given its £50,000 premium over the SLS GT. And that's before you've factored in the new electronically controlled differential which looks like a very clever solution for the eternal problem of finding enough traction from something this potent and at the same time avoid it being a understeering nightmare.

Test time was tight in the Black, and limited to a flat race track - which is a shame because I suspect many owners will use theirs on the road. How many of these owners will there be? Not more than 350, according to AMG.

The engine fires with the usual extravagant V8 booooom, but after that all is different. It shudders and jostles and generally feels like it doesn't want to idle. The dual clutch transmission has been recalibrated for faster shifts (and placed a little lower in the car), we're in manual mode with the dampers in the firmest setting. There are two carbon Recaro buckets. The rubber is already warm.

Whaddya know, it does good skids too!

Rude not to
Induction noise dominates everything below 100mph, above that figure the wind stands a chance of competing. The gearshifts are fast by SLS standards, but still can't compete with the 458's whip-crack equivalents - apparently the extra inertia of the AMG V8 cannot allow as fast a shift as the flat-plane Ferrari. Having an extra 600rpm doesn't sound like much, but the entire character of the engine has changed and above 6,000rpm there's a mean, DTM-style induction blare which actually sounds even better from outside the car. It feels every bit as quick as the claimed 3.6-second 0-62mph claim.

The standard SLS turns very well on a circuit: that front-mid-engined layout manages the understeer, so adding a load of track width, some sticky rubber and a clever diff can only be good news. At low to medium speeds, the Black just turns - no fuss, just hit the apex and move on. That electronic diff gets rather lost in the headline numbers, but it's a little stroke of genius and I think we'll see it deployed in several other AMGs. It locks quite tight on the exit phase, but under brakes you can feel it free-up and allow some trail-braking into turns, and unlike the Jaguar version it doesn't fade under continual abuse. It's very impressive.

Harris still a sucker for those doors

Not shy for a fat lad
This car loves fast turns: it's incisive, stable and very secure - best of all it gives the driver real confidence to aim that long bonnet exactly where you want it. The new Michelin tyre is certainly grippy, but it didn't last long around Paul Ricard - you had perhaps two maximum-attack laps before it needed time to cool, but the grip degradation wasn't too sudden and it was very forgiving for the silly oversteer shots. And it didn't destroy itself anything like as quickly as expected. Those monster 402mm front carbon ceramic rotors can handle sustained heavy loads, but the pedal does lengthen slightly over time and they need a good cooling phase to keep them healthy.

So the Black Series is a very accomplished, very entertaining track car. But is it a car that will ever find itself being used in this way? Perhaps - but at £230K it's a lumpy thing to risk burying in the gravel. I love the driving experience, but am not so sure that the SLS shape lends itself to the cartoon extensions of the Black treatment as well as the lesser C-Class - but there's no denying it has presence. Maybe it just needs the proper wing from the GT3 racer to complete the quasi-racer effect?

Me? I'd have it for the doors alone. I just never tire of those doors.
http://www.pistonheads.com/roadtests/doc.asp?c=110&i=27302

 

[Wolfgang]

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series a near sell-out at $639,000

Pricing for the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series has been announced, but the $639,000 supercar is already a near sell-out. Eight out of the 10 cars allocated to Australia have been snapped up ahead of their official arrival on our shores in July.

Mercedes-Benz Australia has ordered two ‘AMG Solarbeam’ SLS AMG Black Series models, the bright yellow paint uniquely adding a further $15,000 to the price. Dark grey, black, and metallic white make up the rest of our allocation, with bright red and silver curiously not part of our allocation.

An ‘aero’ package is the only major optional extra, adding a fixed wing and carbonfibre exterior accents. Buyers can choose between a pair each of interior colour options – red or black – and 20-inch alloy wheels, each the same design but with either a polished face or machined face.

Compared with the regular $464,000 SLS AMG Gullwing, the $175,000-pricier SLS AMG Black Series buys an extra 44kW of power from the 6.2-litre V8, a higher 8000rpm rev ceiling, but curiously 15Nm less torque. The SLS AMG Black Series weighs 70kg less than the standard car, however, helping it get to 100km/h in 3.6 seconds – or 0.2 seconds quicker. Weight reduction measures include ceramic brakes (saving 16kg), fixed bucket seats (-15kg), a carbonfibre torque tube (-13kg), titanium sports exhaust (-13kg), and a lithium-ion battery (-8kg).

The SLS Black gets wider tracks (up 20mm front/24mm rear), while the rear suspension adds an electronic locking differential. The seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox has been mounted 10mm lower to improve the SLS’s centre-of-gravity, shift speed has improved, and it gets a lower final drive ratio with shorter spacing between gears.

Unique tyres have been produced for the SLS AMG Black Series, 275mm front and 325mm rear 20-inch Michelin Pilot Cup2 Sports. Redesigned chassis components are backed by standard AMG Ride Control adaptive damping. Price-point rivals like the Ferrari 458 Italia, Lexus LFA and Lamborghini Aventador provide strong competition for what AMG describes as an embodiment of everything it can do right now. We’re track testing the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Black Series at Phillip Island today, so stay tuned for the full verdict, coming soon.

http://www.caradvice.com.au/220116/mercedes-benz-sls-amg-black-series-nearly-sold-639000/

 

[Monster]

The SLS black has arrived at the Australian GP circuit for some promotional activity.

 

[330CIZHP]

Insideline SLS AMG GT Track Test:

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2013 Mercedes SLS AMG GT Roadster 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster
Curb weight as tested: 3,883 3,830

0-30 (sec.): 1.9 1.9
0-45 (sec.): 2.9 2.9
0-60 (sec.): 4.0 4.0
0-60 with 1-ft Rollout (sec.): 3.6 3.6
0-75 (sec.): 5.3 5.4
1/4-mile (sec @ mph): 11.8 @ 121.5 11.7 @ 122.3

30-0 (ft): 28 27
60-0 (ft): 113 106

Skid Pad Lateral Accel (g): 0.99 0.95
Slalom: 68.8 68.6

 

[Sayyaaf]

Chris Harris on Cars: SLS Black series

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[Merc1]

I really like this Black Series and Chris' work is excellent.

M

 

[Yaz]

He looks scared in it .

 

[LaArtist]

Epic car..epic review

CH rocks

 

[330CIZHP]

Finally, a proper high revving AMG V8. It sounds fantastic at 8000 rpm.