acicchelli

I have been considering a used (2004-2005) SL600 for a while now, and I was wondering a few things.

1. Most dont seem to come with the sport package, is this something I am going to miss? I guess its mostly cosmetic with paddleshifters on the steering wheel?

2. Can I still use the ECU Renntech upgrade on a non amg package SL600 and get the same results?

Anyone know of any great deals out there currently? Looking for an ebay type deal.

Thanks in advanced.

Aaron

2005 Red SRT-10 Viper
2004 Black Porsche Cayenne Turbo
2005 Black BMW Z4 (fiance's)
2005 Stealth Gray CTS-V (sold)
2005 Black Infiniti FX45 (sold)

vraa

I didn't know the sport package came with the 'paddle' shifters...

Yes, as far as I know, the sport package is just some rims and the body molding.

IMO, if you are going to do aftermarket parts, might as well get the SL600 without body moldings, and do the RENNtech ECU upgrade and get an after market kit from Brabus.

I can get you all of the above if you wish.

acicchelli

Thanks for the quick respnse Ricky, heres what I found when I build a new SL600 on the MBusa.com website:

321 AMG Sport-Package details $5,370

· 18" AMG Double-Spoke Design Wheels
· AMG-Design Sculpted Lower Body Work
· Steering Wheel Shift Buttons

I have shift buttons on my cayenne turbo but I never use them, so as long as I can use all the extra horsepower from the Renntech ECU upgrade without the shifters, I should be ok.

Do you have any pictures of the Brabus kit you mentioned? Where/How can I get that installed?

blueSL

The steering wheel shift buttons are not so great - most of the time I find the automatic transmission is just fine.

Patrick1990

Paddleshift...it means automatic right?..if it was manuel it would be great! Like the F1 Ferrari shift..hm chose one with manuel. flappypaddle or not, it's funnier!

blueSL

It's just manual override of the automatic program, not at all like the Ferrari F1. There's no way the SL600 could ever have a manual box, the engine torque would eat the clutch for breakfast.

RadSteve

With regard to the above in the manual mode of the Renntech Tranny unit you can still use the stick shifter left and right to up and down shift as with the paddles, so it is the same either way, with the sport pkg paddles you just have a choice...I tend to forget which way to toggle the paddles (the BMW has paddles on front and back of the wheel for down and up shifting respectively, and this is a bit easier to remember for me.)

RadSteve

It would eat it up, and not even spit it out....burn baby.

vraa

You can send an e-mail to me at ricky@euroteckmotorsports.com and I can get the kit for you.

As for installation, there are lots of ways. Most folks will just use the same shop their dealer uses for painting and installation.

Patrick1990

The SL65 are eating the cluth aren't it..i've haerd about they maked a new transmision for it or something, because it would crash it
Hm anyway it means that u can't get any SL with manuel trasmision...damn why can cars like Lamborghini Murcielago and Ford GT have manuel transmision then..they are more powerfull than a SL

vraa

I didn't think the Mercedes auto's had clutches, I thought they had torque convertors.

And no the Murcie's and GT's aren't more powerful than the SL65.

Kar don

automatic transmissions use clutch packs, not a clutch disc like manual transmissions.

blueSL

The SLs which provide buttons on the steering wheel are just allowing an additional input to the automatic transmission as to which gear it should be in. The software/electronics will not let you select a gear which will either cook the transmission or over-rev the engine, so you're not really in control.

Contrast that with an Aston Martin Vanquish and a Ferrari F1 where there's a conventional gearbox and clutch under electro-hydraulic control which will quite happily let you cook the clutch if you want to. I think there's a mind set that you're still driving an automatic so you "ride" the clutch at stop lights which rapidly cooks it.

For me, automatic is the natural choice for the SL55 and I am rarely interested in manual overide. For the 911 and 355, manual makes sense!

Patrick1990

But some of the SLs are with manuel transmision aren't they?

blueSL

The SL350, not available in the US, can be specified with some sort of clutchless manual transmission but I think it is best avoided. MB does not have a good reputation with manual transmissions.

vantage78

Blue, are you sure about that? I never knew MB had a SMG-type tranny. I thought the SL350 only had an option of a traditional manual

On a side note, does the SL350 have the same 3.5 as the SLK350?

zzoorrkk

I'm sure a manual clutch of sufficient strength can be matched with a SL600 engine, just that you would lose the smooth and refined characteristics of the SL. I think M/B is targetting the SL for the more mature (not necessarily age) buyer who buys the car for elegance, status, and sophistication. Well, at least I know that's why I bought mine. And I am very happy with the car for the BEAUTY that it is.

But the SL could not satisfy my hunger for a true sportscar. A sportscar to me has to be manual shifting. That's when I got my 580hp Murcielago. It's a high revving, testosterone pumping BEAST of a car. It is a car that is uncompromising: you will not find a cup holder, and no DVD navigation, no parktronic, not even very much trunk space. Sure you can add these things aftermarket, but I think it would just take away from the Lambo experience.

Anyways, to give you some insight into the clutch on the Murcielago, I think it is too weak for the AWD Lambo. If I attempt a burnout at say 5000rpm, then I would just smoke the clutch (I did once, ouch!) I learned the hard way that the Murcie is not a torque monster like my SL600 is. Besides, the SL has to apply the torque to two rear wheels, and the Murcie to all four. Experience has taught me to launch the Murcie moderately, to avoid a costly premature clutch job, and then punch the gas for a killer ride As for the SL600, I can smoke tires at every red light and not worry about the torque converter.

Happy motoring.

JackStraw

The steering wheel shift buttons became part of the sport package with the introduction of the '05 model.