Rode in an SL65 AMG Mercedes yesterday
 

A friend of mine has one of these cars. Had an SL600 previously which was about 500 HP and 600 ft. lbs.; ran 11.9's stock from the factory. It was very smooth and pulled good, but was very misleading at how fast you were accelerating.

The new SL65 doesn't mis-lead anyone. It makes 604 HP and 738 ft. lbs. from a twin-turbo V-12. This car hauls a$$! I mean it plants you in the seat and puts a huge smile on your face when you push the throttle. I would be in big trouble with this car! It just does everything well; huge brakes, quiet, and accelerates like a rocket.

And guess what? There's an upgrade for the computer to take it to 650 HP and 850 ft. lbs.! And he'll be doing that soon!

Thanks for the ride, it is probably the funnest car I've ridden in!

Jody

Sounds like quite the sleeper, Jody! All that luxury with performance as well. I bet he has fun with everything at the stop lights!

Yep, with the traction control you get some wheelspin, a quick reduction of power and then you're gone!

Jody

Simply amazing

Okay, I wasn't naming names!!!!!!!!! Yep, that is one fun car Charley! Thanks again for the ride!

Jody

Thanks for the ride, it is probably the funnest car I've ridden in!

That was a dead giveaway Jody,you thanked a member of the board. :D

By the way beautiful car Charley!

That's just crazy! Jody, did you look at the motor - can we drop it in a 69? :D

So does this one have adjustable ride height, too?

You know, Charley and I talked about that. No matter how much money you spent and what you did to it you would not be able to get a 69 Camaro to be like this car. That doesn't mean you can't build a 69 to out accelerate, out-brake, etc. because you can. But as a complete package of looks, comfort, quiet, handling, braking, acceleration, etc. this thing does everything well.

I still like my 69 though! :D But this would be a killer driver, if I could avoid tickets somehow. :rolleyes: Well that and win the lottery! ;)

Jody

Wow....
 

Awesome vehicle...You have great taste Charley. I was fortunate enough to take home a CL600 coupe from work for a couple of days to do some competitive benchmarking...It was a couple of years ago, and it had the "standard" V12...I believe the rating was about 390hp or in that region. Fantastic vehicle, I can only imagine how this one feels...and you can put the top down.....awesome.

Charley, you are alot of folks Hero, man. The car Guru. Way too cool.

amg
 

Mercedes AMG group makes some awesome stuff. I have an S-55 AMG that hauls ass for a big car. Jody, you lucky dawg!!! Charley always has the cool stuff and a nice guy to boot. I like the Yenko in the background also - low mile original with upgraded motor right!

That IS a VERY sweet machine
 

Can you imagine this bad boy on an early sunday morning run, overseas in European Spec Trim, out on the Autobahn?

Charley, we all know that thing is only a stepping stone until you finally find an SLR. :D

I've had the pleasure of driving an SL65 as well, and they are amazing cars. Deceptively fast, nice and smooth, very quiet, comfy, etc. I can't imagine a better daily driver! :) They are AMAZINGLY tame to just putt-putt around town in. If you never put your right foot down, you would have no clue of the real power of the car. Mercedes/AMG did one heck of a job!

However, I tremble in fear of the thought of any electrical gremlins. They've packed so much "stuff" into them it seems to be a matter of when, not if, things start going wrong. A buddy of mine right now is fighting another issue in his SL600... a couple years ago the dealer replaced the interior harness when the seats moved and the climate control freaked out when he went to roll the windows down, then 6 months later they replaced the engine harness when they couldn't clear a check engine light, and now the headlamp wipers and washers turn themselves on and pump the washer tank empty every time you start the car, and then turn off. On top of that, his 10 month old CL55 is having issues with the electric windows/door actuators getting out of sync when you open and close the doors.

Fantastic cars, as long as everything is in working order.

Don't get me wrong; I'm not knocking them and I'd love to have one, but being able to put up with the quirks and occasional problems seems to come with the territory and is something I could live with. :)

Charley, I wish your transmission the best of luck in coping with 850 ft/lbs. I know the AMG boys had the engines cranking out even more than that on the dynos but they had to electronically de-torque the thing to get the trannies to hold up. Do they perform any tranny upgrades along with the engine/chip upgrade? Something along the lines of more line pressure for more grab on the clutch packs?

Another thing, just wondering, who is offering the chips? Brabus? RENNtech? Someone else?

Troy

Oh sure...now you tell me... Renntech does the computer upgrades to the engine and trans computer. They have detailed instructions on how to locate and remove them on their web site. You ship them the computers and they send them back. I figure I will put more miles on before I do anything too stupid.