You've seen the all-new Mercedes SL and now you get to know more about it. A day after a full gallery of official press pictures leaked onto the internet, the company has made it all official - and the flagship roadster is an innovative creature in many respects.
Most significantly, the new SL is produced almost entirely from aluminium, making it 140kg lighter than the car it replaces, despite it being longer and wider. This alloy structure is also more rigid than the steel frame of before.
Two direct injection petrol engine options are offered to begin with. The SL 350 kicks things off with a 3.5-litre V6 good for 225kW and 370Nm, while the flagship - for now - is a SL 550 fitted with a 4.7-litre twin-turbo V8 that pushes 320kW and 700Nm. Mated to a seven-speed Driver-Adaptive autobox, expect the V6 to reach 100km/h in just 5.9 seconds and the V8 to sprint it in 4.6.
As for the expected AMG version, the performance division will have to come up with something extremely wicked to trump the current 450kW V12 SL 65. But we suspect a highly tuned version of the new biturbo V8 is on the cards in line with today's environmental focus.
Two suspension systems are available, both with the Agility Control system as standard, but with the fancier option offering Active Body Control.
The roadster is fitted with a new electromechanical Direct-Steer system with a steering ratio that can be varied in accordance with the steering wheel angle.
The more spacious 'wrap-around' cabin follows the design trends first seen in the SLS and SLK and offers two types of wood trim.
Like the smaller SLK, the SL also has an automatic folding hard top, which can also be ordered in a special glass that can change from transparent to shaded at the push of a button thanks to some smart molecule manipulation. The top opens and closes in a competitive 20 seconds.
Mercedes-Benz also boasts that its new roadster has the lowest wind noise in its class (comparable with a closed-roof car) and the best comfort during open-air driving.
Another party trick is Magic Vision Control, which prevents water from landing on your head when you use the wash/wipe system thanks to water dispensers built into the wiper blades. These wiper blades are also heated, making it easier to clear up the windscreen on a frosty/snowy morning.
Another innovation is what the company calls the FrontBass system, which uses the spaces in front of the footwell as resonating chambers for the woofers to deliver clearer, richer sounds from the audio system.