The 300SL Gullwing Reborn: The SLS AMG

The SLS, spreading its wings. (Photo courtesy of Mercedes.com)

Mercedes-Benz has recently been championing its newest creation, a tribute to perhaps its finest sports car, the 300SL Gullwing, the new SLS AMG. The SLS comes complete with all the technological bells and whistles Mercedes offers, like a SpeedShift 7-speed dual clutch gearbox, which controls a 6.3 liter V8 at 563hp, making it one formidable machine.

While some may wonder why it took Mercedes so long to produce a coupe in the image of the ghost of the legendary 300SL Gullwing--Eisenhower was President when the production version of the 300SL first came out--the wait makes the new SLS all the more alluring. Stylistically, the SLS is a modernized update of many of the classic elements of the 300SL, such as the large, centered three-point Mercedes star set in a sprawling chrome grille, which is flanked by singular headlamps. And, of course, there are the gullwing doors, which are as synonymous with Mercedes as the three-point star that adorns the front grille. Though it is (sadly) missing the unique red Tartan seats once available in the 300SL, it is still an undeniably eye-catching coupe.

As the first project for which AMG has been entirely responsible from the very beginning design stages, there are high hopes for the SLS. Mercedes' recent efforts in the upper brackets of the luxury car market have been less-than-remarkable: the McLaren SLR has been largely dwarfed in the market by the Enzo and Carrera GT, and the Maybach, despite all its publicity, has sold poorly. The SLS, however, riding the coattails of the acclaimed 300SL and representing perhaps the truest expression of the AMG badge (amongst production cars), is uniquely positioned in the market--and hopefully, successfully so--as a blend of modern technology and celebrated history in a way that only the Germans (and Italians) can do.