Car Auto Design

Mercedes has a state-of-the-art supercar named the Mercedes SLS. With starting prices of around 180,000 bucks it's priced to directly compete with the likes of Ferrari, Porsche and of course Aston Martin. Besides all the distinctive overall performance comparisons there's one factor the super car has that the other ones don't - the gullwing Mercedes is back.

Entertainment: well, there is a 6.2 litre engine located in the front offering a rumble to match nearly anything to leave Detroit. With over 550 horse power the Mercedes SLS is an enjoyable drive even if the handling was a little poor. It is poised, dexterous and although its feels pretty stiff on the roads the actual combination of engine of handling offers a wonderful drive. The Mercedes SLS GT3 - which is the sports version - caters even greater handling.

Mercedes-Benz have vividly recognized how this car is going to be used and the SLS is available with common functions to cater every day usability like satellite navigation and also a more than decent stereo. However the gull-wings, as iconic as they're, certainly make it a pain to get in and out of the car, even make the vehicle quite wide and you really have to stretch to actually pull the doors down once you're inside.

The gearbox is a double clutched affair which works really well. There is a slight delay when you flick the paddles but overall it feels very sharp and responsive. The car is very obviously rear wheel drive. The seating position is very back and harks back to honest, old school GT's and combined with the sharp steering you have total faith in where the front of the car is going to go. This car can go round corners really, really fast - if you tried hard enough you could probably keep up with a four-wheel drive 911 Turbo. It is also blazingly fast in a straight line - very impressive for a heavy, front engined Grand Tourer.

Looking at value for money - can any car at this price be considered reasonable value? Probably not but put alongside its peers it is competitively priced. Let's look at it another way - against the Mercedes McLaren SLR, the SLS is quicker, handles better and is less expensive to the tune of almost two hundred thousand dollars. So, the SLS is a loud and raucous affair dominated by the enormous powerhouse of an engine - yet at the same time civilized by the usual high standard of refinement and usability that you would expect from a Mercedes-Benz.