just took delivery of new sl and found many comments in the magazines to be of questionable value. just a few brief observations:

build quality is impeccable and body structure seems immensely solid, unlike bmw.
sky roof and b&o system: both very nice; whether cost efficient is up to you. in the case of b&o, it is better than regular system- cleaner, crisper highs, more taut bass, etc. don't know that it is worth the premium, depends on your musical taste.
lots of power!!
steering- the criticism of the electric steering is valid to the extent that it feels diffent than the mechanical. what this means in real world terms is that the new system rewards, even demands, smooth inputs in spirited driving. turn-in is exceptional and ride quality is maybe best in class.
car is MUCH better looking in reality than in pictures.
at this early stage, maybe my favorite mb

 

Congratulations ! I'm looking forward to seeing & driving one soon !!

Have you had any SL550 wheel time as to give us comparisons?

Do your tires (easily) break free when you launch from standstill?

Most are very happy with the HK system but I must have received a dud because I hear a lot of distortion when I listen to music bluetoothed from my iPhone.

I wouldn't give $500 for a Magic Sky retrofit at this point, as I'm completely satisfied with the standard Pano roof, but I would give plenty more than that in cash today for a hastle-free B&O retrofit

 

Until you stop bluetooth streaming from an iPhone you won't have a clue about what the standard stereo can do or can't do.

 

Thanks for LMK that bloo tooth is my audio culprit. I'll go the albums-to-SD cards route route then

 

That would be the way to really know what you're getting with the standard system. You should also be able to do a comparison between a source CD or uncompressed file on an SD and BT streaming from your phone as well.

If you care, you can Google BT and see what challenges one faces with compression and latency when streaming music that way. Great for a phone call, not so great for music, at least at this point. Newer chipsets may change that eventually, but like I said, if one were debating the value of the upgraded stereo system, the source material shouldn't be allowed to cloud the issue. Betting BT streaming to the upgraded stereo wouldn't sound better.