Finally, the disguise has been peeled off of Mercedes‘ all-new supercar, the SLS AMG. And what can we see? Exactly what we expected: a modern successor to the legendary 300SL Gullwing, with a remarkably upright windshield. The front is pure modern Mercedes, a bit on the blocky side with large headlamp clusters, a long hood and a giant 3-pointed star. Of course there are the gullwing doors along with retro strakes on the front fenders. The short rear deck, though, is a bit more squared-off than we expected, reminding a bit (dare we say) of the old Acura CL coupe. A flush-mounted rear wing rises at speed. The driver-focused interior appears nicely done, if slightly understyled, in typical German fashion…..
Leverkusen, 04 September 2009. The legendary Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca in California can now be viewed from your PC on Google Street View. Racing fans can travel the entire circuit – starting at Andretti’s Hairpin to the infamous Corkscrew Curve – from the perspective of a race car participating in the final leg of the 2008 American Le Mans Series. The tour was filmed using a spherical, multi-lens camera mounted to a vehicle, and combined with additional photographic imagery, GPS and other geo-spatial data to produce a true image of the race track at eye level.
Mercedes-Benz SLS
Finally, one amazing looking car from Mercedes-Benz. An homage to the old SL300, including gull wing doors! If only it were not 177,000 Euros.
Due to be revealed at next week’s Frankfurt Motor Show, the 300SL-inspired “Gullwing” is packing a front/mid-mounted version of the venerable 6.3-liter V8 fitted to the majority of AMG’s offerings, mated to a seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox channeling 563 hp and 480 lb-ft of torque to the rear wheels. Weight is pegged at around 3,500 pounds, allowing the SLS to run from a rest to 60 in 3.7 seconds. Top speed is 197 mph and optional carbon ceramic discs should bring the party to a halt with supreme authority.
