We haven't seen any photos of the Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series except for the press photos and a few wallpapers we scrounged up. As far was we know, no one has actually seen the car in person outside of Mercedes-Benz, let alone photographed it. So imagine our surprise when we spotted one headed our direction while trying to crash the Ferrari-owners-invited-only North American debut of the Ferrari California in Monterey. We instantly forgot about trying to catch a glimpse of the Ferrari and turned our lenses towards the Black Series. Fortunately, Mercedes-Benz had no problem with us taking photographs of the car, and we were able to get plenty of detailed pictures. Enjoy the high resolution gallery below and we'll be back later with more from Monterey!
Mercedes-Benz recently launched a dedicated website for the SL65 AMG Black Series, and it's loaded with goodies for anyone who can't get enough of the uber coupe. The site has detailed info on all of the Black Series' features, as well as some new studio photos that we haven't seen before.
After months of spy shots and speculation, the Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series is finally out in the open. And with a $320,000 price tag, a twin-turbocharged 6.0-liter V12 and only 200 units on their way to the U.S., it's a serious stopgap between the deceased SLR and Mercedes' 2011 SLC gullwing supercar.
Mercedes' in-house tuners applied their tried and true philosophy to the SL65 AMG Black Series, beginning with a carbon fiber hood, fenders and trunk, along with nixing the retractable hard top in favor of a fixed carbon fiber roof with an integrated roll cage. As such, the Black is 550 pounds lighter than the stock SL65, coming in at 4,122 pounds.
Seven vents – three in the bumper, two on the hood and two in the fenders – feed copious quantities of air to the 6.0-liter V12, fitted with a duo of upgraded turbochargers. Power is up to 661 hp available at 5,400 rpm, while torque remains the same at 738 lb.-ft. With a five-speed automatic gearbox equipped with AMG's speedshift software, the Black can hit 60 mph in 3.9 seconds on its way to a gearing-limited top speed of 199 mph.
Expect the SL65 AMG Black Series to debut in Paris, with sales beginning in the U.S. early next year.
The online editors of Motor Trend have decided to spill the beans, which allows us to finally confirm the information circulating the interwebs regarding AMG's latest flagship supercar, the SL65 Black Series.
AMG has cranked an extra 66 hp out of the twin-turbo six-liter V12, now boosted up to 670 hp, while stump-pullin' grunt remains the same at 738 pound-feet. Unfortunately, all that torque still needs to be converted through a conventional five-speed automatic. The power boost, however, is only part of the equation that unburdens each horse of 1.6 lbs, now pulling just 6.1 lbs-per-hp instead of the "lesser" SL65 AMG's 7.7 lbs-per-hp. That reduction is thanks in no small part (but many small parts) to an ambitious weight reduction program that does away with the folding hard-top in favor of a fixed carbon-fiber roof, itself shaving 88 of the total 570 lbs cut off the curb weight. That figure is now down to a slightly more manageable 4,080 lbs, which is still in SUV territory for a two-seat sportscar. Carbon fiber is also features on the flared front fenders, hood, rear underbody diffuser and racing buckets. That reduced weight is sprung on fully adjustable coils with an electro-hydraulic Active Body Control suspension and one-piece forged alloys wearing Dunlop Maxx GT tires in 265/35ZR-19 dimensions up front and 325/30ZR-20 out back.
A deployable rear spoiler, flat-bottomed steering wheel and Alcantara-clad interior also factor into the package, which Mercedes says would be capable of hitting 220 mph if it didn't electronically limit it to 186 (300 km/h), but 60 will come in the three-second range. The extra kit is complimented by a lower hood line enabled by the Black's exemption from pedestrian safety regs due to its small production numbers: Only 350 examples will be made in either silver, white, black or red.
One of the biggest criticisms of the Mercedes SLR McLaren was that, impressive though it was, the performance just didn't justify the enormous price tag. Mercedes isn't about the make that mistake again, however, and is preparing the new Black Series version of the SL65 AMG towards that end.
As we've reported previously, the Black Series will get its performance edge through the application of the time-honored "more power, less weight" formula -- the same kind of thinking that made the Ferrari 430 Scuderia the all-eclipsing supercar it is over the "ordinary" F430. Most of the body panels will be replaced, including the heavy folding roof mechanism, while the track up front and in the rear are being widened significantly. All the extra go-fast is anticipated to propel the Black Series to performance levels that will rival that of the SLR McLaren, but at a couple hundred thousand less. And that won't even be the SLR's replacement, with the even faster SLC down the pipeline. We're promised a first look at the SL65 AMG Black Series this July at the German Grand Prix in advance of its official launch closer to the end of the year. (We'll always have Paris.)
