e500slr

How hard is it to get the SL55 down to 1600kg, with full interior except replacing seats. Let's assume body parts are dry carbon and such. Lightest wheels and all etc etc. Alot of work but is it likely or unlikely to get there?

Benz-O-Rama

You'd have to drop about 850-900 lbs.

alx

Well they did something similar to the sl65 bs and... It is still a pig.

Raise it on a lift and look underneath. You will understand why the car is so heavy. The sheetmetal and interior pieces are a small part of the weight. The car has been conceived as a convertible and as such its body integrity is not a result of add ons but is part of it's DNA. The car is just solid. And heavy.

e500slr

Jesus Christ, these cars are PIGS!! The weight, weight kills everything, I know I'm obsessing about it but no car I've had that I haven't thought about weight. My E46 M3 was 1440kg, I did alot of lightweight mods and I still thought it was heavy, when I got the E55 it was a daily so didn't notice it as much but as a project car Mercedes really doesn't offer much. 900 pounds is insane, and that would only get it down to an "acceptable" weight. The Black is a PIG, it weighs more than the E55 with all that lightening, hard roof. If it wasn't for the way the SL looks I wouldn't even be looking at one, but they're so damn gorgeous!! Especially when you do the SL63 facelift, or even the SL Black kits which are far more common than a CLK Black kit.

kamilclk430

^^^ IT might be a pig but with a few bolt on mods that 4300LB pig will blow away most cars on the road.

e500slr

You can't do anything to the handling though, weight is what kills that.

jwrichter

Just put some "lipstick" on it and you'll forget about the weight!!

SL55K

Lose the convertable mechanism
Lighter Wheels
Lighter Brake Rotars
Get rid of the RIDICULOUS ABC suspension (im looking around too)
The seats, i heard each seat weighs around 80lbs.

And there you go, not 1,600 kilo's, but good enough for an Autobahn missle.
My car weighs around 1750 kilo's right now. Im going further down, but my interior is a one-off by FabDesign so i wont be doing much to my interior. Hopefully I find a good and lighter suspension. Don't really care if the ride gets stiff or not.

Anyone with some details?

alx

Autobahn missile? You know weight has very little to do with acceleration at high speeds, right? After say 100 it is all aero and tq (straight or via gearing) to the wheels...

Keep the car in it's element and enjoy it for what it was intended to be- a luxo cruiser with a fantastic engine.

IngenereAMG

The idea of a weight loss program for the SL55 sounds really good on paper, but frankly, the car is not designed to be an Elise. It is a heavy, solid car.

I keep hearing lots of critics about the handling. If you are any good it really is deceptively good. I instruct, and have been out in an instructor only sessions with the 55, and have managed to put lots of pressure on GT3s and Z06s. The weak point isn't the handling, it is the brakes. At the track, 5-6 laps, thats it for me.

Just like any car, you have to adapt your driving style to the dynamics. Early on I had considered doing some big time weight loss on the car and came to the conclusion it just wasn't a good place to spend money. There are other cars that are more focussed and a better starting point for track work.

e500slr

SL55K, what are the list of things you did to get to 1750kg?

falconsprint

Buy a SLK55, swap motors with SL55.

e500slr

Noted...and ignored, trolling is very tacky.

falconsprint

Not exactly trolling, thought it was a valid suggestion. Thought you wanted a lightweight roadster that looks like a SL with 500+hp.

02Drunkenup

hopefully the next gen SL weighs within 4K lbs... I would love to own a SL and corner a M-*** down he makes fun of AMG handling.

e500slr

So you're actually telling me the SL and SLK look the same The SLK is a dressed up girls car, it's too small to take seriously, even the AMG looks like a hairdresser-mobile whereas a widebody SL like the one on this forum is just menacing. I would never even consider an SLK, respect to whoever owns one but for me it's just no, it's not that light either, for the size it's actually heavy. The Boxster is definitely better in that category.

The point is the SL is an amazing car, solid as a rock but I think it could use some weight savings. By the way, has anyone weighed their car? My E55 weighs 4062 lbs (no pano). It's amazing the SL weighs more as it's smaller in size. Has anybody weighed theirs?

jmf003

4,340 lbs with 1/2 tank of gas.

iAMGod

Has been done.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H005vqJQJd8

cal1

Thank you John for posting this. I have told a few of my "E" buddies that the SL weighs more than the E but they think i am using it as an excuse for my slow car. One of my "E" buddies has similar mods to me. He runs about 11.5 on DRs. My PB is 11.86 on streets. The better sixty from the DRs and the 300 pound difference in weight in my opinoin explains being slower by 3.5 tenths or so perfectly.

Sorry to the OP for highjacking the thread.

alx

... they have blowers for the slk55 you know...

jmf003

Glad to share the info.

Love the R230 but it's definitely a heavy beast!

e500slr

Yes I've seen that, it's pretty interesting but I don't see why he put it in the SLK, it just doesn't seem like the right car. It's like putting a V8 in an EVO

I don't see no hijacking

Benz-O-Rama

My SL600, on stock wheels. Still had all of the tool, spare, air pump etc...in the car. This is without driver and 1/8 tank of fuel.

cal1

I was thinking I could shave 200+ pounds off of the SL if I could get my fat a$$ out of the car by teaching my 4 pound Chihuahua to drive. Problem is, I don't think I could find a helmet small enough to fit her.

e500slr

Wait shouldn't the SL55 be lighter, I thought the V12 in the SL600 is heavier