Deluxe droptop: new Mercedes-Benz SLC convertible
By David Flynn, September 27 2016
The newest open-air Benz is fun, fast and – here's a surprise – affordable, certainly more so than you’d expect from the German marque.
$70,900 (excluding dealer and on-road costs) will get you behind the wheel of the 2017 Mercedes-Benz SLC, which is now rolling out to dealers.
That’s a chunky $16,300 off the previous SLK 200 base model. Yet this mid-life makeover of the SLK – which now bears the SLC moniker, in a nod to its C-Class underpinnings – also adds plenty of features to the folding hardtop roadster to help it line up against rivals such as the BMW Z4 and Audi TT.
Standard kit across the SLC-Class range includes a nine-speed short-shifting automatic transmission, heated leather seats, a reversing camera, satellite navigation, a DAB+ digital radio and Apple CarPlay integration for the 7-inch display.
The elongated signature bonnet gains a diamond radiator grille and revamped headlights, bookended by new bumpers and 18-inch alloy wheels.
The folding metal roof can open and close at speeds up to 40km/h and gives the SLC a clear edge in the creature comfort stakes.
For all its high-end appeal, there’s no mistaking that this is a car built for the joy of top-down driving. And there’s none of this 2+2 rigmarole – the SLC remains an proudly selfish two-seat tourer.
The Mercedes-Benz SLC family kicks off with the SLC 180, powered by a 1.6 litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol engine, at $70,900, with the 2.0 litre SLC 200 variant at $83,855.
At $99,855 the SLC 300 gains some eye-catching AMG influences in the wheels and body styling, alongside lowered sports suspension, keyless entry, cruise control and neck-level heating.
And if you want to go all out, the AMG SLC 43 is your tempting entry point into the roadster world of AMG. $134,615 secures you a race-tuned 3.0 litre V6 twin-turbo engine plus AMG sports suspension, high-performance braking system and Nappa leather sports seats, mated to a panoramic sunroof and Harman Kardon surround sound system.
David Flynn is the Editor-in-Chief of Executive Traveller and a bit of a travel tragic with a weakness for good coffee, shopping and lychee martinis.
14 Dec 2015
Total posts 16
My two favourite pastimes, flying and driving. Couldn't be better.
Emirates Airlines - Skywards
30 Nov 2015
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I feel its a shame that Daimler AG changed the nomenclature for the SLK to SLC. SLK stands for Sportlich, Leicht, Kurz, or as we know it, Sporty, Light, Short. I've been a Mercedes driver for many years, and had the original SLK R170, SLK R171, SLK R172, and have ordered a SLC R173 being made in Bremen atm, it does not seem to fit well into that class, it always had it's own class. I like the new colours, especially the blue. The pictures in the article all show the top end, no change out of 150K on road.
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