The Mercedes-AMG SL has been given too many jobs. It is the successor to the SL line, of course; that already means it is a follow-up to both the McLaren F1 of the 1950s and a long line of grand tourers that followed. It is also the replacement for the magnificent, dearly departed AMG GT roadster, a very different front-engined sports car that was built from the ground up for performance. With no S Class cabriolet coming this generation, it also serves as the brand's apex luxury convertible. Given that it is being asked to serve as a grand tourer, a front-engine performance car, and a luxury car for three separate sets of returning buyers, it is obvious that the SL will not better its predecessors at every possible job. What is so amazing about the car is how close it comes.
As the name suggests, the problem was handed over to the company's AMG performance division for a ground-up solution. It would be the company's fourth ground-up effort, after the limited-but-beloved SLS AMG supercar, the 911-fighting GT, and the inexplicably unrelated GT four-door. As that choice suggests, the resulting car is performance-oriented and far more aggressive than the SL it replaces.
Faced with the challenge of replacing both a brand’s performance and luxury cars with just one successor, AMG's solution is to throw every single modern car industry trick at the problem. Despite its name, the AMG GT was too harsh on normal roads for the average SL buyer; the GT buyer would in turn find the SL too soft to keep up with their desire for responsive performance. An AMG Active Ride Control suspension (standard on SL 63s, but optional on the less-powerful SL 55) solves that problem, both providing on-road comfort wanted by one group and accommodating the performance desires of the other with hydraulic anti-roll stabilization.
It is just one of many trendy choices made on the car. Not only is it the first all-wheel-drive SL, the AMG Performance 4Matic+ system features aggressive torque vectoring. The power being sent to the wheels comes from a turbocharged 4.0-liter V-8 that will be familiar to almost every AMG owner of the past generation, an engine that was an early player in the push to replace displacement.
The interior is also defined by modern trends. No matter how badly you might want to, you cannot ignore the screen. All of the many luxuries in the SL's glorious cabin are controlled by a beautiful but terrifyingly unintuitive MBUX infotainment system split over a glass dashboard and a huge portrait-orientation tablet in front of the center console. Climate controls on a touchscreen will not be new to most buyers, but a convertible top accessed through a menu and operated by sliding a tab that looks like the early iPhone unlock screen will be. There will be times when you urgently need a feature and cannot find it on either of the two performance mode control knobs or any of the four densely-packed spokes of capacitive buttons on the steering wheel; when that happens, you will be resigned to asking the voice control system to open the right menu until you learn every corner of the interface.
This is a shame, because the SL excels in creature comforts. The interior is masterful, perfectly aligned for a comfortable driving experience and appointed with materials that just feel impressive. Noise is impressively quieted with the soft top up, the company's tradition of exceptional seat design continues with two massaging seats that look good standing still, and, in this SL 63's pleasant Sienna Brown and black two-tone, accents like the textures on the speaker jump out under sunlight. At night, they blend in well with the modern standard of just a-little-too-much ambient lighting.
That means a driver and one passenger will be in absolute comfort with the top up in any condition. I spent most of my week with the SL 63 experiencing hard rain during an unusually stormy week in San Diego. I decided to take the grand tourer on a grand tour. It was sunny in the desert, so I chose to head to Palm Springs for an overnight stay in town and a day on its most famous (and always dry) roads.
In 48 degrees and light rain, the first hour of driving was unremarkable. That changed quickly when I reached Anza. That, as it turns out, was the lone point on the route where the rain turned to snow. That light dusting had cleared off, but cold roads and a native Californian's inexperience with ice meant I was all too happy to turn on the car's low grip performance setting, slow my pace, and finally turn on a heater. Those few miles were a highlight, a chance to see California’s high deserts in the rarest of conditions with no concern about the road beneath.
But Anza comes just before the descent into the Coachella Valley on Highway 74, the stretch of road that brought me here. The storm had crashed along the top of the mountains, and the valley below remained completely dry and relatively warm. That meant it was time to put the roof back down. Here, the car's grand touring capabilities shine: The specific combination of such a wonderful cabin (now heated by the brand's Air Scarf neck warming system) and such a responsive car made for a blissful final few miles of driving, a great reminder of why cars like this exist in the first place.
The storm had passed the next morning. In these conditions, the 577-hp V-8 finally had purpose. It is still turbocharged and light on displacement, but the relatively small motor delivers big power in the same satisfying way AMG buyers have come to expect: with a little bit of theater. That is a good fit for a grand tourer in particular, even if I prefer the high-revving, high-displacement engines that accompanied these cars in a time before turbos took over.
Returning to Highway 74 in better conditions, I find a perfect road for the SL’s performance capabilities. The combination of active anti-roll and quick-thinking all-wheel drive give you the expected explosion out of a corner, but where the SL really shines is how it all feels. It is engaging enough to make you feel like a part of the experience, rather than a conductor of a machine smart enough to do what is asked of it. That is a feat in anything, but particularly in a car with so many systems between the driver and the road. It all feels connected, and it all feels like so much more than an overgrown cruiser with enough hydraulic and mechanical assistance to hold a corner at speed.
Of course, it is also fast enough to occasionally make you feel like you probably do not need to be doing any of this. The numbers flashing on the screen are certainly far higher than what was possible in an S-Class coupe, and, with huge stone walls on either side in some stretches, enough to keep a driver wondering how much faster cars really need to be. On that perfect stretch of road, it is every bit of performance car you would ever need.
And, on top of it all, the car is as stylish and imposing as a grand tourer should be. It looks good sitting still, particularly with the top down and every inch of the well-appointed interior on display. The Panamericana grille is striking, and it leads elegantly into the rounded shape that reflects a little bit more of the SL's history as a sleek grand tourer and less of the AMG GT's time as a more hardcore front-engined performance car. This car is Hyper Blue Metallic, a color so striking that my grandmother requested I bring the car over for her to see after she saw it on my Instagram page. To date, she has never done this for any other car.
The focus on the MBUX system may be a dealbreaker for some. It is certainly cumbersome, and it requires a level of patience to learn that will turn buyers uninterested in the tech off ever getting the most out of it. It is one of many ways the car is far more complex than its competitors, but Mercedes is betting that what owners of other cars may see as needlessly complex will jump out to their buyers as cutting edge.
But that cutting edge is what worries me. The small displacement, big horsepower, turbocharged V-8. The torque-vectoring all-wheel drive. Major system controls confined to a touchscreen. ADAS systems that automate the simplest parts of driving. Even the hydraulic anti-roll bars. These are the tools of the moment; my concern is that this car may also be a prisoner of the moment. It will age quickly, the advancements will be surpassed within the next half-decade, and what comes next may leave all of this looking either primitive or misguided.
In 50 years, we will look at things like the SL 63 and easily tie them to a time and place. This is not a bad thing, the same can be said of every 1957 American sedan and every late 90s sport compact. The SL is, however, a standout choice in the grand touring segment. Both the Lexus LC priced well below the SL 63 and the Ferrari 812 GTS priced well above it have drawn rave reviews in part for how they prioritize memorable naturally-aspirated engines. The Ferrari Roma and Portofino sacrifice natural aspiration for turbocharged power, but they retain rear-wheel drive and a focus on relative simplicity. Even the Porsche 911 Turbo, which is another all-wheel drive 2+2 with big turbocharged horsepower, integrates that into the age-old shape and rear-mounted flat six of 911s past. What all of these cars have in common is that they, like the SL, are genuinely magnificent total packages. Where the SL differs is that it is timely, not timeless. That standout choice will not be for everyone.
The other dealbreaker is the price. The SL 55 starts at $137,400, but the SL 63 starts at $178,100. Add in a $4500 Burmeister sound system, $8950 carbon ceramic brakes, and other options and you quickly cross $200,000. The new SL is so many things, but it is not a performance bargain.
The Mercedes broadly competes against all of those grand tourers, but on pricing the SL 63 only competes directly with the 911 Turbo. That is a lofty benchmark for any car, but it gets even more ambitious when the car meant to hit it is also replacing the S-Class coupe. The SL does an astonishing job of balancing both of those goals, but it requires a little bit of compromise: You have to be all-in on technology allowing your V-8 grand tourer to do everything, and you have to trust that it’ll all work. Whether or not you would take that over a 911 Turbo is a philosophical question more than anything else.
