ChrisB

I have posted this same thread on the SL 55 forum. I would appreciate feedback from any R230 owner. Thanks.

Being familiar with R129 SL 500, and being interested in buying R230 ... I would appreciate some feedback from others who have owned R129 SL 500 and R230 SL 500, SL 55 and SL 600.

Does any one think they should have stayed with the R129 (I'm guessing probably not)?

Now contemplating the characteristics of the R230 alone:

Are 0 to 60 mph performance and muscle car sound the main advantages of the 55 over 500?

Are highway passing (due to extra tourque), quite motor sounds and the potential for after market performance enhancments the main advantages of the 600 over the 55?

Is maintenance or reliability over the long haul on either the 55 or 600 going to be significantly different than the 500?

Will depreciation trend over say 10 years of the 500, 55 or 600 be significantly different compaired to the new price diferential for each?

SL 65 and SLR are over kill for what I want. Although I like the buzz about fast track times being reported by SL 65 owners.

Hopefully you will write down a few thoughts about the cars you have owned to help me out here.

tiggerfink

SL500 is quiet. SL500 is fast to us and has a lot of power for passing. Someone mention that a 4 valve V8 is comming out, if that is ture I would wait until the 4 valve V8 comes out.

SL500 Roadster
5.0L 24-valve V-8 engine
302 hp @ 5,600 rpm
339 lb-ft @ 2,700 - 4,250 rpm
0-60 mph in 6.1 seconds

SL55 AMG
AMG-built supercharged 5.5L 24-valve V-8 engine
493 hp @ 6,100 rpm
516 lb-ft @ 2,750 - 4,000 rpm
0-60 mph in 4.5 seconds

SL600 Roadster
Twin-turbocharged 36-valve 5.5L V-12 engine
493 hp @ 5,000 rpm
590 lb-ft @ 1,800 - 3,500 rpm
0-60 mph in 4.5 seconds

SL65 AMG
AMG-built twin-turbocharged 6.0L 36-valve V-12 engine
604 hp @ 4,800-5,100 rpm
738 lb-ft @ 2,000 - 4,000 rpm
0-60 mph in 4.2 seconds

LovinMercedes

Also remember that the suspension on the SL55 and the SL65 are stiffer rides because they are AMG's. If you want a smoother ride, go for the SL500 and SL600.

Even though the SL55 and the SL600 have the same 0-60, they are quite different. The SL55 is very fast off the line. The SL600 is slower off the line but rockets at 1800 RPM's.

Also, all the models have very different sounding engines. The SL55 and SL65 are way more aggressive sounding.

Also, the take-off power of the SL500 is greatly improved as it is the only one of the 4 that has a 7-speed transmission. The rest are 5-speed.

tiggerfink

Wife and i think the brakes are very good on a SL500, but the other models have better brakes.

blueSL

Speaking of engine noise...

At the dealer yesterday, I watched the technician drive my SL55 out of the workshop (another hopefully successful attrempt to fix the creaking roof and the car's first A Service (US $525 incl tax), I was really struck by how much better the car sounds from the outside than the inside.

jettie1767

I've owned an '04 500 and now an '05 55. The 500 with the 7-speed is quick but the 55 is even quicker. From a stop, the 55 sprints to 60 mph effortlessly. And the sound of the 55? It's so sweet! It growls!

LovinMercedes

I bet that the silver with the charcoal/berry interior is gorgoeus.

jettie1767

Yes, it is! The color combo is sweet!

speed

My friend has a SL55, 04 and I a Sl600 04. On a hot and humid day I clocked a 0-60 time of 4.33 with quarter mile in 12.55/113MPH. That was faster than his stock Sl55. He than applied the RennTech modification ( different pulley for SC and computer upgrade) and are numbers are virtually the same! Stock for stock the 600 will outrun the 55. Also, Renntech says that MB underestimates the HP on the 600. When the dyno the 600 they ALWAYS see about 520-525HP stock.

StephenK

Why would Mercedes underestimate the horse power on the SL600, with everyones craving for HP, it doesn't make any sense to me.

speed

Good question! I have asked various MB people whom I thought might know and the general consensus is that they do not want to take sales away from their AMG division. There are buyers who only will buy the AMG product and I can understand that as I have an S55 04. MB wants to keep the AMG guys happy and at the same time offer something a little different ( V12 turbo) for the crowd who simply want a MB with a softer ride, quiter exhaust, and a engine to brag about at the Country Club (V12)

RU_MATRX

I never thought that the 493HP figure was accurate across the board for all AMG Kompressor engines and the non-AMG Bi-Turbo V-12. I mean what are the realistic chances of that for different engine configurations (V-12 vs. V-8) and twin-turbo vs super-charged?

Then 469HP for the E55? Packaging couldn't rob that much power which I'm certain AMG could conserve in the E55 guise. It all comes down to Mercedes product/marketing placement. AMG may have dynoed their V-8 Kompressor SL55 models to get ~ 493HP, but Mercedes Corporate has the SL600 which isn't marketed as "sporty" as the AMGs and "shouldn't upstage" the power output of the AMG sport model. Hence, the 493HP cap. I always knew the SL600 made more HP. I mean the SL600 makes 590ft-lbs TQ @ lower RPMs vs. the published 516 ft-lbs TQ for the SL55 AMG. There had to be more HP coming from a twin-turbo V-12!

LovinMercedes

I can't tell you how many different places I have read that the SL600 out performs the SL55. Not sure it was deliberate and but that is the way it seems to be.