SL/R231: Why was the R231 never AWD?
Super Moderator
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 10,540
Likes: 3,670
From: Land of 10,000 lakes
AMG GTC Roadster, E63s Ed.1, M8 Comp. Coupe
Don't think there would have been a high demand, the car would get heavier and R&D costs would be hard to recoup as the SL has it own chassis and not a shared platform. Low production volume.
Btw, the S-Class has been available in AWD since 2003 and is still sold in RWD or AWD. Both of these cars are being build on shared platforms moving forward. That improves development costs...
Btw, the S-Class has been available in AWD since 2003 and is still sold in RWD or AWD. Both of these cars are being build on shared platforms moving forward. That improves development costs...
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jan 2009
Posts: 3,829
Likes: 592
From: NY & FL
MB’s of all kinds.
SL is a limited market as is. 99% of them are sold as toys or weekend cars anyways lol. Usually driven by older people. I see lots of them here in Florida. Where I live in NY you see them few and far between and only in the summer.
Member
Joined: Jun 2020
Posts: 116
Likes: 33
From: Michigan
Bentley Continental GTS / SL 550/SL 63/Dodge Charger/RAM Truck/2021 Genesis GV 80
For years I drove a Lamborghini, NOTHING compares to all wheel drive. From point A to point B without the traction control stopping, sputtering, halting your driving, etc. Yes they are in a different class of vehicles, however, if you are going to build a performance vehicle such as the SL 55, 63, 65, then all wheel drive should be standard and on the other SL models, all wheel drive should be an option.
