Recall that it seems like we haven't seen a Mercedes sports car in a long time. In addition to the AMG GT, which already belongs to the category of supercars, from the previous CLK, SLK, and later SLC, there is basically only an SL-class pure sports car left in the mainstream market in Europe and the United States, not including the domestic market.
However, Mercedes-Benz did not completely abandon the sports car and recently released the latest SL43 AMG. As can be seen from the name, it is under the SL55 AMG and SL63 AMG, which still use the 4.0T V8 engine, a people-friendly version that uses the 2.0T engine.
The only remaining SL sports car in this generation, the wheelbase increased to 2700mm, while the engine compartment was also stretched, the length of the car reached 4705mm, and shortened the front overhang, so you can see that the SL has more Mercedes-Benz classic sports car cigar body proportions, so some retro shapes also have a tribute to the Mercedes-Benz 300SL. The front and rear of the car use Mercedes-Benz's latest family design, the sharp light set at the front and rear is already familiar to us, the bumper exhaust is more elegant, and the round four-out exhaust shape and silver multi-frame wheels are used.
The interior of the car is also updated to Mercedes-Benz's latest vertical screen interior, which is basically the same as the C-class we can see at present, but the dashboard retains the hood and uses a relatively traditional air conditioning outlet shape, the interior has a very obvious change compared to the previous generation, and also creates a strong sense of technology under its elegant shape. At the same time, since it is a convertible model, in order to prevent the reflection of the screen, the vertical screen in the car can be adjusted in the range of 12-32 °. The telescopic soft top has reduced weight by 21 kg compared to the previous generation SL and can be turned on/off in 15 seconds within 60 km/h.
Below are the highlights of the SL43 AMG, which uses the M139 in-line four-cylinder 2.0T engine and is positioned for the first time, equipped with 48V technology, maximum power 381 horsepower, peak torque 480 Nm, 4.9 seconds acceleration per 100 km/h, and a top speed of 275 km/h. Although the "43" number is used, it does not use the M254 engine on the C43 AMG, but the M139 on the A45 AMG/CLA45 AMG, but Mercedes-Benz applies black technology from F1 to this engine.
Mercedes-Benz used the world's first mass-produced electronic turbine with F1 technology for the SL43 AMG, installing a motor of less than 4 cm between the turbine impeller and the compressor impeller to drive the turbine through electronic control. In this way, before the exhaust gas enters the turbine air pressure, this motor can actively drive the compressor at low speeds to reduce the turbine hysteresis effect, which can provide an almost "instantaneous" power response, fundamentally solving the drawbacks of turbocharging technology.
Not only that, the motor can also keep the turbo at boost pressure when the driver lifts the throttle or even slams on the brake, so that the next time the throttle is pressed, there is no need to re-air pressure and maintain the most abundant reserve capacity. This small motor can reach up to 170,000 revolutions per minute and can provide up to 14 horsepower. This technology was derived from the Mercedes-Benz F1 team and was used in the 1.6T V6 hybrid engine of the Mercedes-Benz F1 car.
The application of this electronic turbo technology, although there is no significant increase in maximum power and power, it does significantly improve the responsiveness of the turbocharged engine, which is a more obvious improvement for the driving experience of a sports car. However, the appearance of this longitudinal M139 reminds us of another model that has attracted much attention, that is, the next-generation C63 AMG.
It has long been reported that the next-generation C63 AMG will abandon the current V8 engine and directly bypass the six-cylinder to use a 2.0T four-cylinder engine with more electric drive technology. Now it seems that with the SL43 AMG proofing, the next-generation C63 AMG will most likely also use this M139 engine with electronic turbines, and will also upgrade the engines of other 43 models in the future. However, in view of the "63" level, Mercedes-Benz may also further squeeze this engine, and with a drive motor, to reach the level of 500 horsepower in power.
In addition, the good news is that although the SL uses the "43" this time, this M139 is still a signed "one person, one machine", and the face is enough.