Big engine placed in a small car is the formule ancienne for scintillating performance, standing the test of time for those who believe that too much is just barely enough. Mercedes-AMG’s SL 63 S E with gas-electric powertrain carries this concept beyond the 20th Century’s primitive lust for power.
Arriving in the U.S. market in limited numbers, SL 63 S E is the highest evolution to date of AMG’s Gentleman’s Sport-Tourer, packing a combined gas-electric horsepower rating of 805, and 1047 lb.-ft. of torque over a broad range of engine revs, delivering a sense of fathomless power.
Working seamlessly through a 9-speed gearbox and fully variable all-wheel drive system, SL 63 S E delivers supercar performance, unequivocally and without doubt. Yet retains the civility and refinement one expects of a Mercedes, a combination of power and glory unparalleled in the market today.
Set to Comfort, SL 63 S E happily toddles down boulevards to beautiful destinations, twin-turbo V8 murmuring subtly, sculpted seats and suspension cossetting, Airscarf ducts gently spilling warm air around shoulders and neck when driving top-down. Your own private view of heaven.
Outward indications of the monstrous power of the V8 and electric motor are the big footprint of the forged wheels and tires, and discreet badging on both flanks and on the rear bodywork near the pop-up active spoiler. And the cover panel for the battery’s recharging plug, placed on the right rear bumper cover, is another indication that something clever is afoot.
Only the astute lover of performance cars will recognize these outward manifestations of the beast within. Unsuspecting passersby or drivers in boulevard traffic will assume it’s a gorgeous German convertible for people of refined taste, but not a ferocious hunter.
Twist the AMG Dial of Destiny placed on the underside of the steering wheel’s right-hand spar to Sport, Sport+ or Track Pace if you’re feeling particularly aggressive, and this Gentleman’s Sport-Tourer becomes an automotive equivalent of Gentleman Jim Corbett, a crafty bare-knuckle boxer who was known for his good looks and sartorial splendor out of the ring.
In Sport +, SL 63 S E is capable of shaming all but the most outrageously cartoonish mid-engine supercars. One astute observer pulled up on my gunwales in traffic, the big V8 of his meticulously built 1960s muscle car rumbling. He gave me the look and I gave him a show. When he caught up at the next stoplight, his eyes were bigger than fish bowls. Yes, SL 63 S E can smoke just about any other car.
Press skull into the headrest, flatten the throttle, sidestep the brake and SL will leap with ferocity, reaching 60 mph in a couple of ticks under 3 seconds. That sort of acceleration tunes up the 30 or so muscles of the neck to sharpen that jawline and works the abdominals like a session of planks.
The rush out of the blocks doesn’t lessen at the established measurable of 60 mph but continues unabated till that graceful hood is piercing the air at speeds law enforcement would prefer I not mention. Once you lift off, and lungs have a few milliseconds to begin recovery, give a war whoop. Accessing the biological cleansing power of adrenaline once or twice a day will keep the mind clear.
AMG has produced a complete automobile, not just a straight-line hot rod. The first car completely engineered top to bottom by the boys at AMG, SL has sophisticated 5-arm suspension front and rear. For the sake of cornering precision and weight, SL 63 S E has metal springing, not a Mercedes airbag system. Highly adjustable dampers (shock absorbers) provide a palpable, distinct change in character depending on selected calibration.
Also, this is not a cartoon of a car, requiring a Fosbury Flop over a high and wide doorsill to land in a laydown seat, like mid-engine exotics often do. SL is German, built around a driver sitting upright, with clear field of vision forward, side and to the rear, especially with the top down, obviously. Long-distance touring in comfort is readily achieved. No sore tailbone, no aches in the lower back, no buzzing in the head from an engine placed behind the cockpit. In a front engine sporting vehicle, the engine is a musical instrument that never punishes.
On a mountain road in Sport or perhaps the more daring Sport+–the safety net of electronic stability control is much less in Sport+, so watch yourself–SL spears into corners with style, balanced, allowing strong application of power on the way out. Thankfully, both the transmission tunnel and the door panel offer excellent spots to brace the knees during hard cornering. Here the variable all-wheel drive system pays dividends, front tires clawing the pavement. SL 63 S E achieves that goal of all the best performance cars: it makes you look far more skilled than you really are.
The Dial of Destiny can also call up calibration for icy weather, and an EV mode of sorts, which is included for the U.S. as a novelty, but is needed in the EU and UK for covering the last few miles to a “Green” city center under battery propulsion. I confess I only used it for a few moments. Why use it when there’s a magnificent V8 on tap? Come on, we’re in America.
Unlike some recent hybrid supercars, SL 63 S E’s V8 delivers a rich symphonic performance. One does not think about the electric motor or its 2-speed gearbox, though one does sense it off-throttle heading to a stop sign. Instead, the power and the glory of the V8 sings at mid to high revs, with a rich baritone exhaust note. The car leaves no doubt where the vast majority of those 805 horsepower come from. The exhaust can turn any tunnel or sheer mountain cliff into a reverberation chamber, with sounds to stir the soul.
My SL 63 S E test car passed through the Mercedes-Benz MANUFAKTUR Studio for special paint and leather. For a car built in such limited numbers, why not order a paint and leather that express your own tastes, but are also classically handsome
MANUFAKTUR Studio offers over 50 colors, like the China Blue on my test car. Spend a few days around Stuttgart, enjoy the spaetzle and beer, visit Schloss Solitude and put in a few laps around the old Solitudering road course of Leonberg, and enjoy the process of commissioning a car that in one measure or another will likely be unique to you.
The photos here were all shot within perhaps 40 minutes of dawn’s early light glowing on the west-facing side of a mountain range, a rosy-fingered dawn, yet you can see the playfulness and richness of the color.
AMG has brought a thoroughly sorted variation of the performance formula of the ancients, with an ultra-high-performance hybrid. Big engine, big electric motor with 2-speed gearbox, fully variable all-wheel drive, lots of computers to ensure efficient delivery of power to the ground, and all tidily placed inside an impeccable body structure with equally impeccable suspension architecture. And that is the story of the today’s ultimate evolution of the Mercedes-AMG SL, the Gentleman’s Sport-Tourer for those who think too much is just barely enough.