Mercedes SLK

Mercedes SLK Models

All Mercedes SLK models are two-seat roadsters with a full power folding steel weatherproof top.

The original Mercedes SLK 230 Kompressor, with its supercharged 2.3-liter 190-horsepower four-cylinder engine, becomes the base model from now on. It offers the buyer a choice of either a new 6-speed manual gearbox (that replaces the 5-speed manual) or a 5-speed automatic transmission that can be shifted like a manual.

New for is the SLK 320, which packs a much stronger 3.2-liter V6 engine. This same engine powers the much larger and heavier E 320 sedan and generates 215 horsepower, nearly 15 percent more than the SLK 230's four-cylinder engine.

Driving the Mercedes SLK

The first thing you notice about the Mercedes SLK 320 after the new interior decor is that wonderful new sound when the engine starts. Mercedes designed the exhaust system to give the V6 version a distinctive, throaty exhaust note that adds measurably to the fun of driving the car without being too loud.

The new 6-speed manual transmission is far, far superior in shifting ease and feel to the old 5-speed manual, with the added bonus of one more gear for much quieter, smoother and easier highway cruising. The transmission is almost perfectly suited to the power and torque characteristics of the engine, and we would recommend it over the automatic for sheer driving fun. The automatic is no slouch in this department, however; the automatic's TouchShift manual shifting mode is very quick and precise.

The Mercedes SLK 320 is terrific fun to drive, in part because it is short and relatively light and now has a lot of power and lots of gears to choose. While the Mercedes SLK 230 is a sporty car, the SLK 320 is a sports car. The supercharged 4-cylinder engine in the SLK 230 runs out of steam pretty early, but the V6 just keeps going, and sounds less labored doing it.

In either case, you get anti-lock brakes with Mercedes' Electronic Brake Assist, traction control, and Electronic Stability Program, all of which will keep a driver out of trouble in wet, snowy or muddy conditions or when cornering at very high speeds on dry pavement. (Experienced drivers can switch ESP off for autocross and racetrack events, but all other systems are constant.)

New front and rear stabilizer bars keep the car from lolling around in corners, and the suspension has been modified to lower the car a full half-inch for better handling as well. But the Mercedes SLK quickly reaches the limits of the relatively small tires that come standard. Larger 225/45-17 front and 245/40-17 rear tires are optional for the performance driver.

Drivers of the Mercedes SLK will not only feel a vastly increased performance envelope in terms of acceleration and handling, they will be getting greater levels of safety and communications built into the price of the car.

Front and side air bags are standard in all models. Also standard is TeleAid, an emergency communications system that puts you in touch with a help center via cellular telephone and pinpoints your location via the Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) system.