Mercedes Roadsters: 50 fascinating years of a legendary sports car
The Mercedes sports cars bearing the legendary “SL” in their model badge have passed a new milestone: it is now half a century since the start of their career as one of the world’s most fascinating and desirable motor cars. To many people, they sum up the whole concept of a dream car. Top-notch design, ground-breaking engineering and sheer driving pleasure – these qualities have been the trademark of every SL over the past 50 years, from the ear-liest days right down to the SL sports car of today and the second-generation SLK-Class which will make its market debut in spring 2004. Since 1954, the SL and SLK Roadsters have been sold to more than 870,000 customers in every continent of the world.
In February 1954, the “International Motor Sports Show” in New York saw the birth of a phenomenon. It was here that Mercedes-Benz presented not just one but two of the soon-to-be-legendary SL models to the press and public: the 300 SL gullwing coupé and the open-top 190 SL.
The 300 SL, with its eye-catching “gull-wing” doors and the performance of a full-blooded racing car, was an instant hit with the showgoers of the time while the 190 SL, an open-top sports car with a folding soft top, founded the Mercedes-Benz Roadster tradition. It was only in 1957 that the 300 SL too presented itself in open-top guise, and made the leap from gull-wing coupé to roadster.
Whatever the exact chronology, the 300 SL is still regarded as the first in a long line of charismatic Mercedes sports cars. It was this model whose immediate forerunner, the racing version, had drawn the attention of American auto importer Max Hoffman with a string of successes on the track. Hoffmann was so enthusiastic about these vehicles that he asked the company’s Board of Management in Stuttgart to develop a civilian version of the sports car. Thus began the unstoppable rise of the 300 SL. The striking gull-wing doors of this model were just one of many claims to fame. Other unconventional engineering features included the intricate but extremely sturdy tubular spaceframe chassis and a high-performance direct petrol injection engine which produced 215 hp, a sensational figure for the times. The same technology was also featured in the later open-top version of the 300 SL.
1963: new Mercedes Roadster with pagoda roof
The 300 SL and 190 SL continued in production until their successor arrived in 1963. This new model created quite a stir, particularly due to its quirky appearance. Its most striking feature, alongside the crisp new lines, was a removable hardtop which dipped inwards in the middle. This unique feature immediately made one think of a Japanese pagoda – and “pagoda”, in fact, soon became its nickname. Interestingly, however, it was safety considerations rather than styling which inspired its development. Mercedes engineer Béla Barényi, the pioneer of modern-day passenger car safety engineering, had patented this unusual roof shape some years before, in 1956, as a design which offered extreme rigidity and maximum occupant safety in an acci-dent. Equally impressive was the large headroom which the pagoda model offered when the hardtop was in place.
At the same time the SL had evolved into a highly civilised sports car which was particularly in its element as a tourer. And like its predecessor, this second generation model also included some ground-breaking technical highlights. These included safety bodywork and an easy-to-use soft top. The bonnet initially sheltered a 150 hp 2.3 litre six-cylinder engine which gave the SL 230 a top speed of 200 km/h.
1971: the SL Roadster acquires an eight-cylinder version
In 1971, the “pagoda” model was followed by a new SL sports car which was des-tined to continue in production for 18 years, until 1989 – longer than any other Mercedes passenger car. The advanced styling of this classic ensured that it continued to look contemporary throughout its long production run. To this day, its combination of distinctive curves and clean, frill-free lines gives it a handsome and iconic appearance.
From every angle, the powerful, self-assured, luxurious and masculine third-generation SL, which came with an equally tasteful removable hardtop, presented a well-proportioned roadster profile.
Striking characteristics included elegance, quality and also safety, since the crash performance of this open-top two-seater was way ahead of the standards of the times. Furthermore, for the first time ever the SL was now also available in an eight-cylinder version. Developing 200 hp at 5800 rpm, the new engine gave the Roadster a 0 to 100 km/h acceleration time of just 10 seconds, while at 212 km/h its top speed was an advance of 12 km/h on the previous model.
1989: new standards in design and safety
The successor model made its first public appearance at the Geneva International Motor Show in spring 1989. It set new standards not only in terms of superb design quality and top-down driving pleasure but also, and above all, on safety. The fourth-generation SL took occupant protection to the same level as a Mercedes saloon. For example the standard-fitted safety package included a sensor-controlled pop-up roll-over bar which in a crash or extreme driving situation was extended into position automatically by a combination of spring and hydraulic power in just 0.3 seconds. The A-pillar, incorporating internal tubular reinforcement, further enhanced the protection provided by the unique automatic roll-over bar.
The SL-Class of 1989 was the first production car in the world to be fitted as standard with an advanced-design integral seat, i.e. a seat with integrated three-point belt. The seat frame was also designed to absorb energy in a side impact. Around 20 patented solutions are to be found in this seat alone.
Between 1989 and July 2001, more than 180,000 units of this model series, internally coded R 129, were built.
2001: fourth-generation SL with leading-edge technology
The current SL-Class, which now comprises three models, with six-, eight- and twelve-cylinder engines, raised the bar even further on both engineering and styling. A supercharged AMG version developing 368 kW/500 hp is also available.
With its comprehensive safety concept, the SL-Class sets the benchmark on vehicle safety for a new generation of sports cars. Its systems cover every aspect of vehicle safety, from accident avoidance based on electronic vehicle dynamics systems like SBC™, ABC, Brake Assist and ESP® through high-strength body construction to fastest possible accident rescue following an accident. In addition to the high structural strength, occupant protection is further enhanced by two-stage driver and passenger airbags, innovative head/thorax bags in the doors, integral seats, belt tensioners, belt force limiters and the sensor-controlled roll-over bars.
Also new in this class is the vario-roof, which allows the SL to offer an open-top motoring experience without compromises, combining the top-down fun of a roadster with all the comfort of a Mercedes coupé.
While the styling of this Mercedes sports car mirrors its advanced technology, it also stresses appeal, driving enjoyment and the fascination of top-down motoring. Discreetly but effectively, in a nod to SL tradition, the designers have also incorporated cues from the very first SL of 1954. Typical SL features have been stylishly woven together with new elements from the Mercedes design language of today. Combined, these show the road ahead for the future of the Roadster. These include twin head-lamps with a particularly dynamic new treatment.
SLK-Class: compact Roadster acquires cult status
With the legendary 190 SL, Mercedes-Benz demonstrated all of 50 years ago that even a small roadster can offer big driving pleasure. Mercedes returned to this idea when it unveiled the SLK-Class, which has been setting new standards in this vehicle class ever since autumn 1996. This benchmark position is based not only on techno-logical leadership but also on another characteristic sports car quality: emotional appeal.
Visual appeal, advanced engineering and exemplary safety – these are all hallmarks of the compact Mercedes Roadster, which has long since become a contemporary cult car and is in great demand on both the new and the used car markets, where the SLK-Class is one of the leading performers in terms of value retention.
Having been sold to over 308,000 enthusiastic customers all over the world, picked up more than 40 international awards and assumed the position of world leader in its market segment, the first generation of the SLK-Class can look back on a proud and successful record.
Eight years after the premiere of the first SLK, and 50 years after the premiere of the first SL Roadster, the second generation of the SLK-Class was presented to the pub-lic in spring 2004. As refreshing, enlivening and potent as an Italian espresso, the new Roadster displays even stronger sporting credentials than its predecessor.
At the same time, the new SLK also expands on the established and familiar strengths of its predecessor – for example with its further refined, space-saving vario-roof, a range of even more advanced safety systems and one-of-a-kind new develop-ments like bi-xenon headlamps with cornering light function, the 7G-TRONIC seven-speed automatic transmission and the AIRSCARF neck-level heating system (optional features). The new SLK-Class comes in a choice of three different models: the four-cylinder SLK 200 KOMPRESSOR, the SLK 350 with newly developed V6 engine and – for the first time in this class – an eight-cylinder Mercedes-AMG model.
The design language is equally dynamic: handsome, racing-inspired features like the eye-catching nose, the radiator grille fins and the twin-pipe exhaust system, are a reminder that the SLK comes from a company whose great Roadster tradition stretches back exactly 50 years.
Mercedes engineer Frank Knothe: a 38-year relationship with the SL
At the Mercedes-Benz Technology Centre in Sindelfingen, Frank Knothe has been actively involved in development and testing of the Roadster models for the past 38 years. Knothe's professional career began on December 1, 1966, when he joined Mercedes-Benz as a 24-year-old engineering graduate. One of his first tasks was to integrate a 2.8 litre six-cylinder engine in the SL models of the time. On the successor model too, Knothe worked with Mercedes Development Chief Rudolf Uhlenhaut, who had a big hand in the innovative design and engineering of the "R 107" through to his retirement in 1972. Following the launch of the "R 129" in 1989, Frank Knothe and his team also assumed responsibility for the development of the SLK-Class, whose innovative vario-roof made a big impression when it came out in 1996.
Today, as the S-, SL- and SLK-Class model series Director, Frank Knothe is responsible for full-vehicle development and testing of all these models. Privately, he drives a 1985 300 SL, which has picked up a lot mileage and a lot of memories along the way.