Good point. I would be much more interested in the less expensive, less raunchy, more reliable Lexus version if it were better looking. In this class though, looks are huge part of the equation.

Even the vanilla, non-AMG version of the new SL looks garish and overdone.

Folks that makes this car heavier than a Charger SRT8, Corvette ZR-1, hell even a regular cab pickup-truck.

blowfish : It feels like any other automatic transmission, it goes through seven gears instead of five or six. It’ll go into 7th at city speeds if it can, but downshifts out of it quickly when you need to go, for fuel economy.

I wish sometimes they hide their identity instead of just always putting a Huge emblem on the front end. Yes we know your a Benz.

A fnd says the newer E550 with 7 spd shifts really smooth, didnt feel her shift at all.that cant be in the sport mode, is like Cadillac shifting slow delayed so you dnot feel any jerk at all.
Should you put pedal to metal it should bang you real hard though.

And kind of sad to have succumbed to all these weight: heavy luxo barge.
Not long ago I listened to one of these exhaust( maybe a 55 ), it sounded like a Corvette with dual exhaust. So where was the distinctive Merc sparkling sound?
In the old days Camaros, Vettes if wanted to sound like a Prancing horse, we buy the Stebros with dual pipe rear muffler. Now sadly a Merc is trying to sound like a Vette.
And a Merc sedan is looking like a Bimmer, so as the rest of nice cars wannabe.

But AMG didn’t call it the SL63 because their 6.2l engine performs like one 1.6% larger; they did it to connect with the famous 6.3l models from a generation ago. That’s lame. By no means uniquely lame, but lame nonetheless.

Next you’ll tell me that the Pontiac Lemans wasn’t even French.

It would appear that BMW has MB in a trance. How else woudl you explain the styling of the new S-Class (boot, in particular – shades of 7-series) and the new C-Class (particularly the styling of the flanks). The less said about COMMAND, the better.

What ever happened to styling that was understated, as well as elegant, and well-engineered vehicles without pointless electronic frippery?

As a current MB owner, I am sad to say that it is unlikely I will purchase another soon.

@Jay
The SL63’s new transmission is AMG’s answer to the dual clutch automated manuals found in Volskies and Ferraris.
Which Ferrari has a dual-clutch gearbox? I’m confused.

My bad. I meant to put F1-style paddle shifters. Text amended.

I think it’s a 6.0, but it’s based on the engine used in the ‘600′ models as well as the Maybach, which is indeed a 5.5 Biturbo V12.

AMG started of with that engine and increased the displacement and I’m sure some other things as well, resulting in a less than impressive 612 HP from a 6 litre biturbo as well as maximum torque that is limited because they couldn’t make a strong enough gearbox. It’s a challenged concept in many ways.

The 6.2 V8 is probably the first engine AMG designed from scratch themselves, although I’m still not sure about the “handbuilt” claim.

Anyway, they have cheated in the other direction too sometimes for marketing purposes, for instance, models with the 5,5 V8 are still called ‘500′ in Europe (in the US they’re called ‘550′. I guess it’s because names like S500 or SL500 appeal more to Europeans than SL550 because they have a historic ring to them, whereas in the US the larger the number behind the characters the better.

Besides, Mercedes-Benz and AMG has fudged with engine displacements before, especially when forced induction is involved. The “65″ engine is actually a 5.5 liter engine.

Picking nits perhaps, but since when did Marketing start trumping Engineering at AMG?

Great review, nonetheless.

Did you know that when first introduced in the 1950’s with the famous 300SL Gullwing, SL meant super-light.

I hear you on the weight!

Close on the SL, but it’s actually a German acronym….Sport Leicht or Sport Light.