Automotive Trends

      The 2011 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG, shown here at the 2010 NAIAS, may not be the polarizing supercar that the SLR McLaren was, but the SLR didn’t have gullwing doors! The SLS is the first car designed and developed by the AMG division of Mercedes-Benz. Fitting then that the engine under that long hood is none other than AMG’s own 6.2L V8, pumping out 563-hp and 479 lb-ft of torque. Each engine is hand assembled by one technician in Affalterbach, Germany. Everything from the routing of the wiring to the topping off of the oil is handled by the expert craftsman identified by the signature nameplate affixed to the enigne. Tipping the scales at 3,573-lbs the SLS is a lean machine capable (according to AMG) of hitting 60-mph in 3.7 seconds and an electronically limited top speed of 197-mph. Try not to drool on the keyboard too much as you imagine yourself rocketing through all seven gears of the SLS’s dual-clutch transmission while being firmly planted in those red hand-stitched designo leather seats. Trust me, it gets messy!