F456 V12

The lack of a hardtop for the new SL is the number one reason my wife will not get another SL once the lease is up - Dec 2020. She is adamantly opposed to the soft top which is pushing her to consider a highly optioned new Corvette, a lightly used 570 Spider or Ferrari Portofino. Me personally, I do not care.

MB

rmorin49

Buy a nice CPO SL.

Dr. Manhattan

As a life-long Corvette owner, I have some input on the C8. I skipped the C5 and C7 generations entirely because of excessive "ugly". The C7 in particular, and now the C8 as well, look like they were designed by HotWheels. That said, I fully appreciate the sentiments expressed here regarding the NVH issues of Corvettes. At 6'2", I've never been in any Corvette that didn't feel cramped, and they've all been loud inside with nasty ride quality. Technology has now advanced to the point where the goals of performance and refinement no longer need be mutually exclusive. It appears that the C8 development team have actually realized this fact. In a Car and Driver comparison of the new C8 to the New 992 Porsche, some interesting comments were made. Chiefly, for our purposes here, they said that the C8 was much quieter inside, and had far superior ride quality (unbelievably, they compared C8 ride quality to Rolls Royce), to the 992! They also commented that the top interior trim option was impressive in quality. In addition, there have also been multiple testimonials by people who are notably larger than I am that there is now plenty of room in the C8 for real, full-sized adults.

As long as we're hauling out the stereotypes, my wife equates high-end Euro car owners with gold chains, comb-overs, etc., so it blows both ways. I've been a gear head since I was about 8 years old and am now in my mid-60s. I like cars...and their country of origin doesn't matter (well, except for Asia, that is...I don't care for Asian trade policies, so their vehicles don't exist in my universe). I've been looking very hard at late model SLs and 911s as replacements for my Corvettes, because I've finally absolutely outgrown my need for my fun cars to beat the crap out of me. It now surprisingly appears that I'll also have to consider the C8 Corvette.

Utopia Texas

I have wondered in the past when car companies would realize that 99.9% of high end car owners do not track them and they need a super duper cushy setting on the suspension and quiet mode for engine noise. I have only driven 2 Vettes and you could not pay me to own one. Performance is one thing but being uncomfortable the whole time you are driving is another!
PS- If you do look at SL’s get one with ABC.

allfortheunion

I wholeheartedly agree. I have driven 550s both with and without for extended periods of time and the ride and handling with ABC is so superior that I would not consider one without it.

Streamliner

Now that you have driven your new SL550 with ABC for a bit, please give us your thoughts on the car vs your last one without ABC.

Utopia Texas

The ‘2019 with ABC is actually one of the nicest riding cars I have ever owned. My quandary is why it rides so much better than my ‘2008 with ABC? I had nothing else to compare and when I test drove the ‘2017 without ABC it rode just as well as my ‘2008 with ABC and that is why the switch did not concern me. All 3 cars had new Michelin PS tires installed so tire choice was not the difference.
Summary.......Would not buy another SL without ABC. By far the best accessory on the SL except the soft serve ice cream dispenser in the glove box.

Streamliner

My thoughts exactly. Welcome to the club!

Dino333

You are so 100% right.The SL gets it perfectly right suspension wise with Co
mfort Mode and ABC no doubt. But to be honest this is where I ding the SL- the seats in the SL LOOK fantastic but in reality are only average. The seat bottoms pinch at the hips and dont have as much padding as they look/. The seat backs dont contour with your back much and is straight up and down and I would trade the airscarf for a head rest that comes out to meet my head. I have the gold standard to compare it to- the last 3 BMWs that I have owned (Fantastic seats that didnt look that "sporty" or good at all but they were PERFECT. And of course my S550 coupe- If I could take those seats and put them in the SL.

Dr. Manhattan

I'm way ahead of you, which is why I don't have an SL yet. I'm still searching for the unicorn: an "anything-but-black" CPO SL450 with ABC...and I will not accept anything less. To make it even tougher on myself, I also have no interest in a V8, so it's going to be a while.

Utopia Texas

Looks like you are going to have to make Streamliner a offer he can’t refuse!

Utopia Texas

Though I have the drivers seat back tilted back quite a lot, from my shoulders up I sit straight up so the air scarf is a joke for me. Even with the top up and windows closed I can barely feel the heat from the air scarf on the high setting. With the top down absolutely nothing. Maybe one is supposed to drive with their head actually touching the headrest but that feels un-natural to me, like laying back in a chase lounger.

Streamliner

One of the things I truly love about my S560, is that the front headrests are positioned a bit further forward, allowing my head to rest on them, without feeling like I’m in an odd position. The W222 sedans are the only cars I have owned where this was possible. That said, I don’t normally rest my head, I’m usually about an inch off of them. But on a long drive, they make for a welcome change in position for a few minutes at a time.

WOW! Has this Corvette thread gone astray, and I plead guilty to much of it.

allfortheunion

BMW has a seat option I think they call comfort seats, and they are for sure the most comfortable I have ever driven in. The key feature is an extra articulation in the back that allows the upper third to be adjusted forward, giving support to upper back and shoulders. Feels like a NASA astronaut seat molded just for your back and terrific for long drives. Another great idea that Mercedes has not seen fit to incorporate. I guess if they didn't think of it first they don't consider it a good idea.

rmorin49

I have BMW's comfort seats in my new X5 and they are incredible. Adjustments are almost unlimited. I feel my SL seats do need more padding in the lower seat area.

Dino333

My brother and I both had 2015 BMW 435s and we both agree they are the best seats we have ever sat in- and they were the bottom of the line (but Dakota leather) and I loved them. My wifes M2 2018 model WITHOUT the new sport seats-
just perfect seats for that TRUE "Sports" car. The SL seats by comparison are just weak- cant complain they are what they are but they sure could be better