Mercedes-Benz-Blog TRIVIA: From "Sport Light" To SL Legend - PART V

Mercedes-Benz-Blog TRIVIA: From "Sport Light" To SL Legend - PART V

In May 1955, the Gullwing - of which almost 500 units had meanwhile been supplied to customers all over the world - was joined by a new family member, the 190 SL. The little brother, its prototype having been displayed alongside the 300 SL in New York as early as February 1954, had been revised stylistically and resembled the 300 SL in its appealing design. Its four-cylinder engine with an output of 105 hp was far from generating the Gullwing's outstanding performance but it did permit a respectable top speed of 170 km/h. The small SL was particularly popular with the ladies who appreciated not only the car's sporting, elegant outfit but also the possibility of open-top motoring. The two-seater was equipped with a recessible roadster top and optionally available with a removable hardtop. The 190 SL, of which 25,881 units were produced until 1963, marked the beginning of a unique roadster tradition which has been continued to this day. Since 1996, Mercedes-Benz has been offering the equally successful SLK-Class in the 190 SL market segment, the SLK being one of the most popular cabriolets not just because of its styling and its innovative vario roof.

The seats are also very, very comfortable with plenty of adjustment in all directions. Especially nice is the seat movement buttons located on the door, in easy reach. When first confronted with the myriad of buttons that are dotted throughout the interior, it may seem overwhelming. Don鈥檛 worry; they鈥檙e laid out in a very logical fashion and fall to hand easily. The COMAND system will take a few goes to get the feel of how it works, and although it鈥檚 not as initially intuitive as other systems, you come to grasp its layout fairly easily. The voice control makes things nice and easy, though, and in a few minutes you鈥檒l be entering destinations on the sat-nav, and making phone calls on the Bluetooth. Practicality is high on the list, with generous foot, leg and head room in all seats, and a 540 litre boot that鈥檒l swallow plenty of luggage. The interior, then, gets a big tick of approval.

Under the bonnet, things are also salivation material. There鈥檚 5.5 swept litres of classic German bent eight. The velvety-smooth engine glides through the rev range without a hint of coarseness. It just pulls harder and harder as you reach to upper notches of the tacho - noticeably so from 5500rpm - and slips into the next gear almost unnoticed. At low revs you wouldn鈥檛 even know what engine is powering the car, but as you press on the beautiful V8 growl comes alive, without ever being intrusive. Perhaps it鈥檚 a little too quiet for someone who enjoys mechanical symphonies. The 0-100km/h sprint is dealt with in a snappy 5.2 seconds, but the massive cross-drilled brakes wash that off quickly and cleanly. Brake pedal feel is nothing short of perfect, with no over-assistance either. There鈥檚 no question about the automatic鈥檚 brilliance, also. Seven speeds will see to it that you鈥檙e in the right gear at the right time, and that the transitions between ratios are smothered. You鈥檒l notice them at full noise, no doubt, but they鈥檙e still unimpeachably smooth. There are paddles if sir is so inclined, however the 鈥榖ox is smart enough in Drive to leave them alone.

Also deterring their use is the slowish response times when selecting gears manually. The E500 doesn鈥檛 really need them, though. It鈥檚 more supremely comfortable cruisemobile than track weapon. The suspension set up also indicated this. Airmatic is Merc-speak for air suspension, and in Comfort mode, there鈥檚 a bit of roll and wallow to keep passengers, erm, comfortable. It still needs a little work, as minor imperfections still make it through, with the dampers not quite able to catch the initial shock of small bumps like a coil-sprung set up would. On smooth roads devoid of potholes, it鈥檚 a dream. Sport mode firms it up a fair bit and allows a bit more involvement as it ups your cornering limits. Turn in is sharp on Sports mode, too, but the steering is quite light, and with the glossy wood segments on the Elegance model line, the steering wheel can get a little slippery at the top and bottom.