Guys I hate to say this but the negativity towards this motor is all down to the fact that it won't get 11.5 or lower in 1/4 mile, not to completely sound like a BMW man (which I'm not) don't you guys care about the whole package? Here we have the best N/A engine to come out of Mercedes-AMG for a long time (20 years nearly, (Hammer)) and you guys are all over it saying it won't do this or that and "why can't I put K&N's and that $1000 50hp Renntech package on that beotch?" I guess you really have been spoiled rotten by the Kompressor V8 that anything thats not faster is an inferior product.

Its true, the AMG V8K has raised the bar so high in its different states of tune, that even the 490bhp F430 seems mediocre in comparison. I guess we all have to blame AMG for that. Seriously, this is an impressive engine, coupled to a well engineered car you will get a seriously attractive product. Many criticised the SLK55 for having only a 20hp or so advantage over its predecessor, but in recent times, there has never been an AMG product that has deserved such high praise for being an allround package, not since 2002's SL55. That magical N/A V8 has done wonders for the car. The R171 SLK is a good chassis to start with, it has been engineered to be a complete car. AMG's transformation has made it even better and I can't help but say all the praise should be down to the ubiquitous AMG V8. A little offtopic, but the same thing can change the current 55K lineup at least in the CLS/SL/E, not to say they are lacking in anything but you'd be surprised what a new engine and some tweaks in the suspension could do

Then again, who am I telling? You guys are all running 600hp monsters with sub 12 sec 1/4 mile times, I guess the only impressed ones will be those across the pond...the EUROPEANS....yeh baby!

 

Interestingly enough, the SLK 55 didn't make any excuses in terms of straight-line performance either. =) Most people went ahead and credited that to the union of the 5.5 NA engine and the 7-speed automatic... so I'm optimistic that the new engine will be able to do wonders in the drivetrain as a whole.

 

Anyone who has the supercharged 5.5 knows that gobs of torque are fun but they are traction limited. I've driven the new seven speed SLK 55 on the track and its a world of difference as the engine is always in the power band.
Porsche figured this out 10 years ago with the all wheel drive turbo cars. A bunch of tire smoke doesn't produce grip.
The brand manager from AMG remarked that the new 6.3 amg ML will smoke the Porsche Cayenne turbo because the engine in the power band more effectively. Amg is not going backwards on their performance engines.