Road Tests

The SLS was the first car totally designed by Mercedes-Benz’ AMG performance brand. And it sure impressed us, not only with its sheer performance, but by successfully pulling off the gullwing-coupe styling of the original SL. And we knew it was just a matter of time before this car arrived, the SLS AMG Roadster. Now it trades the gullwing doors for a folding soft top; so, let’s see if that was a good trade or a bad one.

Well in any transaction, there are usually winners and losers. Oftentimes when a hard top is traded for a soft one, the loser is body rigidity and handling. The fact that the 2012 Mercedes Benz SLS AMG Roadster rides on the same rigid aluminum space-frame as the SLS Coupe certainly helps to alleviate those concerns. 

But, not wanting to leave anything to chance, AMG added thicker door sill members, inserted bracing into the dashboard cross member, windshield frame, and center tunnel as well as bolted structural reinforcements to the soft top storage compartment and rear axle mounts. They also added an additional cross-member behind the rear seats for the dual roll bars. While it doesn’t have quite the same stunning look as the Coupe, the Roadster does exude the same classy aggressiveness typical of a sporting Mercedes.

The top is triple layer fabric, with glass rear window and folds in just 11-seconds, blending in very nicely with the overall design. Trunk space remains the same whether the top is up or down, and holds just slightly less than the Coupe at 6.1 cubic-feet. Rolling stock is 265/35/19’s up front and 295/30/20’s in the rear, on “flow-formed” lightweight alloy wheels.

While the looks certainly aim to please, under the SLS Roadster’s long hood lies an engine that’s even more eager to please. It’s the same naturally aspirated 6.2-liter AMG-designed power unit as the Coupe; that revs to 7,200 RPM, producing 563-horsepower and 479 pound-feet of torque along the way.

While we loved the classic red leather interior in our last Coupe, most of the staff loved our test Roadster’s heritage white leather and black stitching theme even more. There is a roomier feel to the open air seating, and the seats themselves are comfortable and supportive. As before, most controls are angled towards the driver and easy to reach. Red needle gauges on silver backgrounds have an aviation look to them. And they are easy to read at track speeds which we easily exploited at our winter testing facility, Roebling Road Raceway near Savannah, Georgia. 

Off the line, sprints to 60 were accomplished in just 3.6-seconds. That’s actually 3-tenths faster than we achieved in the Coupe last year, but track conditions were much more favorable this year. The ¼ mile was also a bit quicker at 11.8-seconds and 120 miles-per-hour.  Best times were achieved by putting the AMG Speedshift DCT in Sport-plus mode and letting it rip through the gears on its own. When it came time for ripping through the corners, the SLS Roadster loses nothing to the Coupe. Weight is up only 88-pounds, and we noticed no lack of stiffness without the presence of a hard top. 

The car still takes a bit of getting used to, due to the fact that you feel so far removed from the front wheels. But, as confidence builds, the SLS rewards aggressive driving with quick steering, good feedback, and smooth weight transitions. All-aluminum, double wishbone suspensions at both ends keep things relatively flat in corners. While the optional 3-mode adaptive suspension does even better. 

Although it lacked the optional AMG ceramic braking system, our car’s brakes worked great throughout our testing, offering good feel and fade free work. Straight line stops averaged a good 121-feet, and that was after a couple days of abuse.

On public roads, at more sane speeds, the SLS is no less rewarding. There are no supercar quirks to deal with, just a comfortable, almost daily-driver-like nature. Top down cruising is more in the old school Roadster vein, with lots of wind in your hair as you appreciate the stirring sound of that big V8. 

Government Fuel Economy Ratings for the Roadster are the same as the Coupe, 14-City, 20-Highway.  Expect to average around 16 miles per gallon of Premium in daily use.

Since we picked the SLS as one of our Drivers’ Choice Dream Machines, supercar pricing is expected. The SLS Roadster rings up about $7,000 more than the gullwing Coupe at $196,975.

Life is full of tough decisions. The 2012 SLS AMG Roadster is indeed a throwback, but one that also throws you back in your seat. It may have traded its gullwing doors for a folding soft top, but it lost nothing in the performance category during the exchange. So, now there is a choice; cool gull wing doors that everyone can see you get in and out of, or an open air cockpit where everyone can see you cruising around in. Whichever one you spend your lottery dollars on you’ll be a real winner.