Cars Reviews

Mercedes-Benz and its in-house tuner AMG recently revealed its updated SL fleet but there’s one important model that we still are yet to see. The car is the upcoming SL Black Series from AMG, a super-sports version of the SL that could potentially upset the SLR flagship in the performance stakes. Heavily camouflaged prototypes have been spotted testing in Germany, each of them sporting new bumpers, widened fenders and an oversized GT wing, and now we have a new rendering that gives us a hint of what lies beneath the thick camo gear.

The latest Black Series edition will be based on the turbocharged V12 SL65 (pictured) but will develop up to 670hp (66hp more than the standard model) and 1,000Nm (738lb-ft) of torque. Engineers decided not to bump up torque levels due to the limitations of Mercedes’ older five-speed automatic.

The car has also undergone an intensive weight reduction program, which sees it weigh in 570 pounds less than the standard SL65. This results in a 6.1 pounds per horsepower ratio and should see the car accelerate from 0-60mph in less than four seconds. The car’s top speed will be electronically limited to 186mph although AMG engineers insist it’s capable of reaching 220mph when delimited.

To shed all the pounds engineers removed the car’s folding metal hard top and added a fixed carbon-fiber unit – this alone saves 88 pounds. The car’s bonnet has also been replaced with a carbon unit and more of the lightweight material was used for a new rear-lip spoiler (which rises at speeds above 60mph) and diffuser. The end result is a kerb weight of just 4,080 pounds.

Other modifications to the SL65 include a widened track, the addition of flared fenders, new Dunlop Maxx GTs measuring up to 325mm in the back, forged one-piece alloy wheels, bigger brakes and a new front grille.

AMG plans to build just 350 Black Series SLs all up and first sales are expected early next year.