All-New Mercedes-Benz SL Will Be Inspired By The Original 1950’s Roadster

Mercedes-Benz has already started testing the next generation SL, and now new information has emerged, roughly one year before its rumored premiere.

The sports car, which will continue to challenge the likes of the Porsche 911 Cabriolet, will have a distinctive styling, inspired by the original roadster of the 1950s, Daimler’s chief design officer, Gorden Wagener, told Autocar.

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“For me, the most beautiful SL is the original the 300. And I think we’ve taken some of that DNA, starting with the proportions, the surface, treatment, things like that”, he said. “In that respect, the new SL is probably the closest to the first one ever.”

Previous spy shots of the new SL don’t confirm Wagener’s statement, but they don’t rule it out either. The prototype spotted at the beginning of the year was heavily camouflaged and partially under wrap, yet we could see that the distinctive styling of the model is still present, including the long hood, open cockpit with a soft top replacing the folding hard top of the current one, as well as a smoother overall design.

The all-new SL is understood to be co-developed with AMG and will be built on the same platform as the next-gen AMG GT. Nonetheless, despite sharing the MSA architecture with the GT, it won’t cannibalize it.

“The GT is more of a race car, and the SL is more of a sports car”, Wagener told the British publication. “You will clearly see the differences.”

Besides ditching the folding hard top, the new SL is believed to boast a 2+2 seating configuration as well. This will make it a more proper rival to the likes of the 911 Cabrio.

As far the engine lineup is concerned, the entry-level model, the SL 450, should arrive with a 3.0-liter six-pot mild-hybrid, producing 362 HP. The AMG variants will boast the ubiquitous 4.0-liter twin-turbo V8, making up to 630 HP in the SL 63. An SL 73 PHEV could join the lineup, with an electric motor mounted on the rear axle and a V8 under the hood, adding up to a total of 805 HP.

Don’t hold your breath for a V12 though, as it’s very unlikely to happen due to stricter emission regulations.