New-Generation Mercedes-Benz SLK Roadster Hits the Streets
The First 2012 SLK Coupe/Roadsters arrive in the U.S.
WALLAND, TN – The very first of the new-generation 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK coupe/roadsters are arriving in the U.S. The 2012 SLK represents the third generation of a sports car that rocked the automotive world when it unveiled the first automatic retractable hardtop in modern times. The new SLK boasts a wide SLS AMG-inspired front grille with a long hood as well as relatively wide doors and a short rear section. The SLK convertible is available in U.S. showrooms this month with a suggested retail price starting at $54,800 (excluding D&D).
Arriving in Knoxville yesterday afternoon, June 13, I picked up my assigned red SLK at the airport and drove the Foothills Parkway to Blackberry Farm in the Smokies. This morning, we received the technical briefing on the new features of the car, which are described below from the official press release, and then left for a day of driving that included parkway and backroads driving in the Smokie Mountains National Park this morning, and then a brisk drive
Herealong the famous Tail of the Dragon this afternoon.
My take-away from two days in the car? This is a car that will be popular with the person who enjoys driving a stylish two-door roadster with a comfortable weather-proof retractible hard-top, (average age just over 50 and 44 percent women, according to MBUSA), and has enjoyed previous generations of the SLK.
This time around, it might also appeal to the person who is also looking at the Porsche Cayman or Audi TT and enjoys enthusiastic motoring on challenging backroads, and even race tracks. The appeal starts with the styling. First-gen SLKs looked like little SLs; second-gen got interesting with a McLaren nose treatment, but the third-gen is all SLS from front or rear.
Get in and the redesigned seats with their confidence-inspiring side bolsters, plus the flat-bottomed steering wheel that looks as if it was lifted right off the C63 tell you the car is ready to be driven hard.
Once you're underway and starting to challenge the twisties as we did on the fabled curves of the Tail of the Dragon on the Tennessee border, the car takes on a different character from the way it felt negotiating the access roads around the airport and through the small towns outside Knoxville.
There are two primary reasons for that. As you take off, the fantastic exhaust note that is sounded when you press the loud pedal, sounds as if it must have been tuned by the same exhaust engineers who did the SLS and the new CLS. Who would have thought that Mercedes-Benz was ready to rock the neighborhood?
The responsive feel is also partly to the steering which, through a combination of a mechanical variable-ratio steering rack and a variable power assist that stiffens up as speeds increase, giving you a feeling of control that wouldn't have been suspected when just tooling through town or navigating a parking garage, when the steering is less responsive and more assisted.
Of course, there's still that roof, now even faster going up and down, and one of the few retractibles still left in the roadster market. For the techno-buff, a new dimension has been added to its personality in this third-generation incarnation. For something that every friend will want to see, owners can option the Magic adds the new Magic Sky Control roof panel that turns transparent or opaque at the touch of a button -- the first such electronic shade in a mainstream production automobile.
We drove the first model that will be released in the line-up, and is arriving now at the dealers, the naturally-aspirated 3.5 liter six-cylinder 302-horsepower model with improved automatic transmission. Early next year a four-cylinder turbocharged engine will be added to the lineup, and that model will be available with a six-cylinder manual transmission. Soon after we can expect to see an AMG version, probably with one of the new turbocharged engines in the 2012 lineup. Right now, we think that enthusiasts will like the current model, but the two alternatives will add the necessary variety to make this new pop-top a hot seller in the M-B lineup.
Here's the MBUSA Release that came with our press kit
MAGIC SKY CONTROL
The standard convertible roof panel is made of body-color polycarbonate, and an optional
Panorama Roof features a see-through panel. Also optionally available is a MAGIC SKY
CONTROL roof, in which the tinting of the panel can be changed by the occupants, using the same electrochromic technology as automatic dimming mirrors. Sandwiched between two layers of glass, a chemical film called a matrix polymer holds oblong nano particles that lineup uniformly when electrical current is applied, allowing light to pass through. When the electrical current is turned off (via a button above the rearview mirror), the nano particles disperse randomly, reducing light and tinting the roof panel.
New Direct-Injection Engines
The 2012 SLK line debuts with the SLK350 model, powered by a new 3.5-liter V6 engine that features direct injection and multi-spark ignition. With even more power and better fuel economy than its predecessor, the new SLK engine generates 302 horsepower and 273 lb.-ft. of torque. Early next year the SLK250 will join the line-up featuring a new turbocharged 1.8-liter direct injection four-cylinder engine that produces 201 hp and 229 lb.-ft. of torque.
New Transmission
The 2012 SLK line features a new transmission with a more advanced torque converter lockup clutch that provides even better fuel mileage, more responsive driving, quieter operation and increased durability. The new transmission is also designed to work best with a new type of low-viscosity ATF transmission fluid – colored blue instead of the usual red. Together with new planetary gears, bearings and internal seals, the “FE-ATF” fluid provides less friction and improved fuel mileage.
ATTENTION ASSIST
The SLK comes standard with the innovative “ATTENTION ASSIST” system, which couples a steering movement sensor with intelligent software that can identify the erratic steering corrections drivers make as they begin to get drowsy. When the system senses drowsiness, a warning message appears in the instrument cluster, and the driver is also alerted by a display that says, “Time for a rest!” Sophisticated enough to disregard sporty driving, the system works between 50 and 100 mph. Elegant in its simplicity, ATTENTION ASSIST essentially adds new computer software to existing sensors.
The First Retractable Hardtop in Modern Times
Spearheading a trend that’s still changing the auto industry, the latest SLK is best known for its distinctive retractable hardtop. With the top up, it’s a quiet, weather-tight coupe – push a button, and about 20 seconds later, the car is topless. Thanks to its pivoting rear window, the folded roof of the SLK takes up relatively little trunk space. Like the retractable hardtop of the larger SL model, the rear window of the SLK pivots to match the curvature of the top as it’s being lowered.
AIRSCARF and AIRGUIDE
An optional AIRSCARF system can extend the open-air driving season into the cooler months. Built into the seatbacks of the SLK, the neck-level heating system blows warm air from the driver and passenger-seat head restraints, allowing occupants to cruise comfortably with the retractable hardtop open in cooler weather. AIRSCARF even compensates automatically for changes in vehicle speed. A standard fabric air deflector mounts to the SLK roll bars, helping to reduce air buffeting.
Going a step further, an optional AIRGUIDE wind deflector mounts to the back of the roll bars. Consisting of two Plexiglas panels, the wind deflectors can be adjusted independently by the driver and front passenger.
