I don’t have a problem with the R232, but honestly it’s really a new GT. I sat in one at last years display at Car Week in Monterey.
If you’ve driven a C190 GT you know they are very different than the non AMG SL’s
The cockpit is definitely AMG GT.
The seats are more of a pain to get in and out with higher bolsters. Which is great if you want to “rail” some turns. But my wife would complain for sure. it’s a little tighter than the SL too. More reflective of it’s AMG GT lineage.
You can’t blame Mercedes for consolidating their offerings. They have been cannibalizing their sales and losing money because they produce too many models that overlap. Tooling R&D and production lines are expensive to setup and research shows the average consumer gets confused when you offer too many models.

It’s a conundrum now for the current SL owners looking for what they’ve been offered by MB for the past 30 to 50 years in that lineup.
if you’re driving an AMG GT now, the car will make more sense….

It’s all wheel drive just like the GT. Mechanically I’m going to bet it will probably share more parts with current C190 than R231.

It will drive more like the current GT. And suspension is stiff like a true AMG. There are lots of complaints about how the GT rides as a daily commuter, but it’s not designed for that.

Just as importantly the coupe will share the same platform, just like the C190 AMG GT coupes.
SL’s never shared a platform with a coupe. It was either a coupe or convertible.

The price point also reflects it’s actually an AMG GT by all measure except name.

I get it, but potential buyers of the R232 should set their expectations more to the reality that they are buying an AMG GT rather than an SL of the past 64 years
(and no you can’t put golf bags or luggage in it. Just like an AMG GT) 😀

It will be a great car just like a C190 AMG GT, if you’re looking for such a car…
It’s just that the SL has been “canceled” but instead of killing off the historical lineage, Mercedes decided it was better to keep the history and kill off the newer GT name. Which honestly would have been a mistake.

I will definitely test drive one of the new R232’s soon. I doubt it’s the right fit for me but it will be a great car like the C190 AMG GT’s
minus the iPad 😂😂😂



300SL At Pebble Beach R232 Reveal

 

Roadster/Schmoadster! From several angles, the “New SL” looks like a 911. Of course, MB is now in the business of copying rivals, just look at the “Tesla Like” pop-out door handles on the new S Class. Of course on the Tesla they actually work, unlike the over-engineered monstrosities on the W223 cars.

The new SL is nothing more than a gussied up AMG GT roadster. Big deal! Instead of giving us “the best or nothing,” they gave the us reheated leftovers—from five years ago!

MB could have made the SL the “halo” car it should have been—the halo car that has been AWOL in the MB lineup for many years now. They could have spent the big bucks they have, completely redesigning and re-engineering the retractable hardtop styling, given it breathtaking lines, sumptuous refinement and world class comfort. Instead, they gave us yet another cookie-cutter design that will go three times as fast as 99.99% of the owners need or want to go. Of course, such a move would have required some testicular muscle from the bean counters in Stuttgart and we know they have zero in the cojones department.

The new SL could have been a SHOWSTOPPER!

MB could have produced an SL that when seen my passers by, would stop them in their tracks with a massive grin of absolute LUST on their faces. Such a new SL might have been a colossal home run, but we’ll never know, because we have been given yet another “blob” shaped thing that the vast majority of folks will mistake for an AMG GT. But, the argument that very few SL’s are sold ruled the day and MB will NEVER admit that the reason so few were sold, is because THEY have pretty much IGNORED the model ever since the 2013 SL design was “phoned in” and rubber stamped by the powers-that-be who were way more interested in trying to figure out how to make yet another SUV into a “coupe.”

There is nothing special about the new SL in my opinion, really nothing special. It’s just fast, very expensive and no big deal. Long live the last of the REAL SL’s.

 

Haha It's definitely the "End of an Era"
But there's a lot of that going on these days....

 

It feels that I have a somewhat controversial opinion here but we have had the opportunity to call the SL our main fun vehicle for the last 3 decades (guess I am dating myself ).
To me, the SL was always the best and most desirable convertible and most important, the safest one. Active and passive safety systems, roll-over protection and structural rigidity meant the chance to walk away from an accident. Growing up in Germany one sees the occasional horrific accident when convertibles were involved and it wasn't a pretty sight. The most dangerous one were Ferraris. They would literarily fold in half and kill everyone inside. But others weren't that much better.

For us, the next SL was always the better one. Mercedes has gone back and forth on certain designs. They added rear seats in the past, added hard tops (an idiotic idea that required people to risk damaging their cars or have have a hard top lift in the garage), folding hard tops and went back to soft tops. But they are all SL's wether I liked them or not.

Hanging yourself up on some Wikipedia definition is non-sensical, especially in view of the actual model history. It's easy enough to say that the new SL isn't for you, wether it's the engine, touch screen, budget, soft top, rear seat or the overall design. But they are all the REAL SL's

 

We went to the dealer yesterday and happened to see a new SL55 they just unloaded. Black on black, un-prepped and dirty but the first chance to see the car in the flesh. It was what I expected, except my wife was disappointed. She didn't like the rear of the car and said the car felt just "un-special".
She compared that against our AMG GTC roadster, not our prior SL's. She said it lacked "attitude" and car seemed pretty but boring. More of a blob than curves.

I thought that was interesting. But I should also mention that her opinion about the GTC has changed. Whoever has read our original write-up comparing the AMG to our last SL knows that the SL was the more practical convertibles for countless reasons except for a few important things. Fun to drive and the feeling of agility.
This has become her expectation and there is no way she would go back to the R231 SL. One of the reasons I am eager to drive the new SL to see how all three compare to one another.

 

Ah Wolfman, always the voice of reason.

 

All above posts are valid points.
For me, looking at the situation, this is a perfect example of a branding/production mistake. Not presently, but one in the past...

Now, don't get me wrong, I LOVE the AMG GT roadster. (and love the S class convertible) But if they had never beed produced, it probably wouldn't have cannibalized the SL's sales as much as it did. Even the S Class Convertibles ate into the R231 sales numbers. As they were released, sales numbers fell. Had they not spun those off, and continued to keep the SL as THE convertible Grand Tourer in the Mercedes lineup, it's sales probably wouldn't have fallen to the point they did. '17-'21 sales fell off the charts, coinciding with the release of the S class and AMG GT convertibles.

Now, hindsight is 20-20, but these are the cards Mercedes dealt to themselves. Whether it was the previous management or just a misjudging of the market share, who really knows.
It would have been much easier to accomplish what they are trying to do now. Merge their product/production lines to, a convertible, and a more race ready coupe sharing the same chassis. Coupes by nature are always more rigid and lighter anyhow (no black series convertibles right?) It may not have been as controversial and a shock to some.

Anyhow, I think it will be a great car and look forward to test driving one. Cars all have personalities, and the R232 will have it's distinctive traits that will make it special.
LOL, and we all need something to complain about, my big pet peeve are soft tops!
Oh, and let's not forget the iPad hahaha

It's nice to have choices though...

 

We all have the wildcard know as "the wife factor" in some cases it may even be "the husband factor" but if both are going to use the car, you definitely want everyone to be happy with it.

Do you have a link? I'm sure it's a good comparison.
I did consider the AMG GT convertible and drove a few. They were nice too. Keeping my license might have been an issue though

 

Am on the phone but think this was it:
https://mbworld.org/forums/sl-class-...l-amg-gtc.html

 

I will come back here in a few days to share my driving experience. What I noticed after the sales person pointed it out to me, is that the windshield on the R232 is significantly less raked and thus about 20% shorter vs on the 231. Also, the door sills are painted black on all 242 to hide how much taller they are as the whole car body is a good 2 inches taller. When you look closer you realize that proportions of the car’s front fenders and it’s shoulder line is that of a coupe based on something that looks close to the current E53. (I know I know it has a proprietary aluminum body shell but the integration of cars components could have player the role.) The deeper floor stamping is a likely place for the battery in the future hybrid/EV versions.
As a result, you sit more vertical and higher up from the ground. Hence the less raked shorter windshield that follows the outline of the taller less elongated passenger compartment. This could be what robs the car from its sex appeal as it no longer feels like a wide, low to the ground purposeful roadster.

 

Ya no thank you… Reminds me the AMG GT…. Why not just get that? Why a soft top with 2 useless back seats? A total joke.

 

There will be a few folks out there with super deep pockets who will buy just because it is the latest rendition no matter what it looks like or the price. So happy I have my 2019. I think we are witnessing the final days of the once iconic SL line……🙁

 

Took the words right out of my mouth!

 

THIS IS EXACTLY RIGHT. The SL is no more. The only way they can sell any of them is to stop production of the models that are close in style and design and move those people to this model.
......AND call it the new SL. LOL.
They THINK they have an SL because MB puts the plastic letters on the rear....LOL
Like WC said.....
There is one born every minute. LOL.

 

SL’s had a fabric roof (or removable solid) until 2001 and then adopted the SLK folding roof. So now they have gone back to a fabric roof. I don’t see the issue there.

While I love my SL, I’ve always felt the “butt” was too big (has to be to accommodate the metal roof).

I think that the new “SL” is a very attractive car however, I know it is going to take me a long time to adapt to the glass cockpits in cars.

My son has a 2 year old E53 and an Audi Q8 and I think the interiors (glass cockpits) of both are awful.

I’ll be keeping mine until I can no longer drive it.

 

One can always ignore reality if it doesn't match one's opinion

I know this has been discussed many times but not liking the car doesn't mean it's not an SL...

 

Utopia, tell us all about that electric sedan. I really want to know how is it?

 

Wow, I just listed my 2015 White Arrow with 39,000 miles for only $2500 more than they want for the market adjustment. If anyone is looking for a cherry 550SL please take a look, you won't be disappointed

 

So that is $52.5K? I sold my '15 White Arrow Edition with only 4K miles for $48K ... in December of 2020. Timing is everything and these markups will turn into discounts with time.

 

You purchased a white arrow for $120k and sold it with 4,00 miles on it for $48k. If my math is right it cost you $18 a mile plus taxes and insurance. You're a real smart guy or maybe you're the one that will pay $240k for the 2023. Either way I have some swamp land in Florida that Ian just plowed over that I would like to sell you.

 

You're an idiot and a new addition to my ignore "the morons" list.

 

Well, this idiot sold the car the next day. Not for asking price, but a fair deal for both of us. Who brags about their dealer taking them for a ride?

 

IF you have any interest in remaining a member of this forum and IF you wish to be taken seriously, you might think about dropping the derogatory, personal comments.

 

 

Streamliner,
I think you meant to send that to ThreeMBs who called me an idiot and a moron simply because he is pissed that he got taken to the cleaners when he sold a car like Mine. I have sold my car. I just posted a thank you to all that have been very helpful. I will now go delete my account, should I buy another MB, I would love to return, but for now I am going to try Lexus.