The new SL 400 AMG Line: Start-up with new vigour
The SL roadster family from Mercedes-Benz is raring to go with a new engine. The SL 400 AMG Line is now endowed with a six-cylinder biturbo drive system. With a displacement of 2996 cc and an output of 245 kW, the SL 400 has 480 Nm of torque at its disposal.
As an automotive icon the Mercedes-Benz SL blends accomplished motoring at the highest level with exquisite style. Manufactured virtually completely from aluminium, the roadster also sets the standards in the category of luxurious roadsters with its numerous technical innovations. Not forgetting that the SL is entirely suitable for everyday use thanks to its retractable vario-roof. This makes it the all-rounder amongst sports cars.
https://youtu.be/nB6uWPsGDII
The SL 400 V6 engine boasts a six-cylinder unit with two turbochargers. With a displacement of three litres, the biturbo drive system develops a high full-load output potential of 245 kW with a charge pressure of 1.8 bar, and facilitates an extremely high torque of 480 newton metres at low engine speeds in the engine speed range of 1600 to 4000 r/min. This efficient six-cylinder meets stringent emissions standards with a CO₂ value of 178 g/km.
Mercedes-Benz SL 400 AMG Interior: aesthetic, stylish, sporty
The SL combines its aesthetically honed profile, which follows the Mercedes-Benz tradition, with a luxurious feel. Fine materials, perfectly finished with great attention to detail, distinguish the style and character of the interior. The luxurious seats in the SL 400 AMG Line are distinctive with horizontal fluting and the three-spoke AMG sports steering wheel in black nappa leather with a flattened bottom section adds to that distinctively sporty look.
Design: classic SL proportions
The dynamic AMG styling is evident in the front, rear and side skirts of the SL 400 AMG Line giving it that stylishly sporty and elegant luxury sports car look with balanced proportions: the long bonnet gives way to a compact passenger compartment that is set well back. A wide, muscular tail end giving the impression of raciness provides the finishing touch. Finely worked details, a striking tail end as well as ventilation grilles with chromed fins from the dynamic traditional Mercedes-Benz design heritage visually emphasise the SL legend. Chrome tailpipes in the rear further adds to that racey look.
An upright classic sports car radiator grille clearly marks out the new SL visually as a prestigious member of the current Mercedes-Benz sports car family. The centrally positioned star is a contemporary reinterpretation of the famous trademark, which now extends into the centre section with its organically flowing contours.
Dynamically slanting headlamps set well to the outside flank the striking front end and give the SL roadster its own unmistakable face. The headlamps come as standard with the Intelligent Light System (ILS). With five different lighting functions that are tailored to typical driving and weather conditions, and are activated depending on the driving situation, they offer the driver a much better illuminated field of vision. The striking curved sidelights and the horizontal strip of the daytime running lamps in the far ends of the bumper feature LED technology.
The SL 400 AMG Line comes standard with the ECO start/stop function and the popular 7G-TRONIC PLUS automatic transmission with a sporty configuration of driving mode S, has been optimised in relation to fuel consumption and comfort also contributes to the exemplary low fuel consumption.
Effortlessly superior across all speeds, nimble on winding roads – the SL 400 AMG Line provides no end of driving pleasure. Apart from the efficient engine, the sportily tuned yet comfortable suspension, which also boasts an intelligent lightweight construction, proves outstanding.
The standard suspension with Adaptive Damping System operates fully automatically. Depending on the driving situation, the damping forces are automatically adapted to the road conditions and vehicle status at each wheel. This action is infinitely variable, and covers a very broad characteristic damping map. Changing from minimum to maximum damping takes only 10 ms. The result is improved ride comfort, agility and handling safety. The driver is able to select a sporty or comfort-oriented basic damper setting by operating a switch. For instance, the steering knuckles and spring links on the front axle are also made out of aluminium to reduce the unsprung masses. The same also applies to virtually all the wheel location components on the rear axle.
The SL 400 AMG Line is fitted with larger perforated rear brake discs, front brake callipers and rear badges painted with Mercedes-Benz lettering.
Mercedes-Benz SL 400 technical data:
| Displacement | 2996 cc |
| Bore x stroke | 88.0 x 82.1 mm |
| Output | 245 kW at 5250 to 6000 r/min |
| Torque | 480 Nm at 1600 to 4000 r/min |
| Fuel consumption | 7.3 l/100 km |
| CO2 | 178 g/km |
| 0-100 km/h | 5.2 sec |
| Top speed | 250 km/h |
Like all BlueDIRECT petrol engines the biturbo engine in the new SL 400 also works with a direct injection system with spray-guided combustion, which Mercedes-Benz was the first car manufacturer to offer in series production. The system pressure is up to 2.00 (200 psi) bar, the pressure being variably optimised according to the engine’s mapping. Piezo injectors enable optimal mixture formation with up to five injections per power stroke. The third-generation direct injection is supplemented by rapid multi-spark ignition, MSI. How it works: Following the first spark discharge and a brief combustion period, the coil is recharged very rapidly and a further spark is discharged. The MSI system enables up to four sparks to be discharged in succession within one millisecond, creating a plasma with a larger spatial expansion than conventional ignition.
The rapid multi-spark ignition can be controlled to vary both the timing of the sparks and the combustion period to suit the relevant operating point. This provides scope for optimising the centre of combustion and improved residual gas compatibility. The result of this is excellent utilisation of the fuel with minimum emissions.
The SL 400 also offers two extraordinary innovations as standard: the unique Frontbass system developed by Mercedes-Benz transforms the luxury sports car into a concert hall, when the top is up and down, and the highly efficient MAGIC VISION CONTROL wipe/wash system takes water from the wiper blade to the windscreen as required and irrespective of the direction of wipe.
The SL 400 AMG Line is introduced at R1 212 600 inclusive of VAT (excluding CO2 emissions tax 178 g/km).
