Mercedes SLS AMG Roadster - Sport And Comfort

By removing the top, the SLS is unfortunately sulphurous fly butterfly doors. In return, the AMG V8 takes you into lyrical flights that are difficult to remain unmoved. With its soft top, the Mercedes SLS AMG Roadster had to write off its doors butterflies. Too bad, but it was obviously impossible to do otherwise. Otherwise, nothing has changed, almost. At least when the hood is in place. For when the roof is folded behind the seats, the line of the SLS becomes at once much flatter. A feature that enhances (again!) the impression of width, especially for the rear. In profile, the car seems to literally “casting Mercedes SLS AMG Roadster on the road. The great art!

Despite the summer heat of the end of September, a few miles from city traffic needed to extricate themselves from the coast and head towards the hinterland is an opportunity to manipulate the hood. Fully automatic, the system can be operated while driving up to 50 km / h. It takes only 11 seconds for the hood folds into Z behind the seats, hardly encroaching on the boot volume: 173 liters, 176 liters against the cut. Particularly light, the structure of this triple-layer fabric top is made of steel components, magnesium in aluminum. The glass rear window is injected seamless. This technique allows a perfect and flush the absence of any gap prevents wind noise at high speed. For the SLS Roadster, like the cut, leading to 317 km / h.

After strolling the beach, up to business. Towards the passes of the Alps of Haute Provence. Gradually increasing the pace, you realize the extraordinary work done on this stiffening convertible version. The development has eMercedes Roadstersentiellement SLS AMG concentrated on the walls of the rocker, part of the windshield and different reinforcement bars: between the hood and the tank to stiffen the rear axle and behind the seats. All this in the weight increasing by only 40 kilos (1,660 pounds) from the cut. Even on poor surface and using the 650 Nm of torque naturally aspirated V8, the SLS Roadster does not flinch.

While the first sequenced tight turns begin, I want to “play” with the Ride Control button. Mercedes SLS AMG Roadster has Comfort, Sport or Sport Plus suspension hardens to individual desires. Between the excessive hardness of Sport Plus (to be reserved for circuits) and the phenomena of pumping comfort mode (for the ride), the intermediate position is entirely satisfactory. For the ESP too, you can choose between On, Off and Sport. The first position is very intrusive and tape it to the bitumen out of corners. Sport mode gives more freedom to the rear while intervening in cases of excess. Perfect for me. It remains only to get drunk in the V8 major concerto, punctuated by passages of reports from the dual-clutch transmission which, by the way, deserves to be faster and more responsive sporty driving. To offer this SLS Roadster, count 204,490 euros, 10,000 euros more than the coupe.