2008 -the Real Deal from M-B

[Astin]

i like it and i doubt the average "punter in the street" will actually pick the difference. the new steering wheel is really nice and the new leather colour is sweet too. i guess since the slk is based on the c-class it gets the benefit of the new model. onwards and upwards...

[taroliw]

Ah, but with all the focus on the exterior have we missed out on the other important interior changes? The one that jumps out most for me is the elimination of the silver buttons... they've all gone black. Honestly, I can imagine some situations where the change will help but it actually looks like of boring with black and black. Hmm.

I can't really see the gauge faces to see how interesting that change might be, but it seems more minor.

The other big thing is the change in telematics and COMAND (incl the addition of voice input). I wonder how that new interface will be to use when there is no scroll wheel on the center console and the arrow keys require a reach. Hmm.

All in all, it's an interesting update but not so dramatic that I feel my Trollup will suddenly feel old.

[Astin]

You are right tarilow. I hadn't noticed the other interior changes. The black buttons bring the SLK into line with most of the rest of the benz range - which is a pity I think because the SLK looked a bit special. Mind you - the ergonomics in many areas of the R171 are not first class. So if the price of a better ergonomic lay-out is a change to black plastic buttons then I guess that is acceptable.

Have M-B checked out the simple and effective interior lay-out of a Mazda MX-5? It still has more interior room, more cabin storage space, better roof down security (with lockable glove box and console boxes) and a more useable boot (trunk). And in Australia it is one third the price of an SLK-350.

Thank goodness the SLK still has the best engine (now even better!), gearbox, refinement, equipment levels and build quality otherwise we'd wonder what we had paid for.

[Shinigami]

Originally Posted by Astin

Have M-B checked out the simple and effective interior lay-out of a Mazda MX-5? It still has more interior room

I'm sorry, but you're incorrect.

First of all, the SLK has more interior space then the MX5 when it comes to Head and Hip room. The MX5 needs more leg and shoulder room since it's almost always sold as a manual and you need the space to move your arms and legs around. Note however, the SLK clutch is a little tighter then the MX5, so you don't need quite as much leg room to push it down, and the shoulder room in the SLK is smaller, partly due to the more enveloping seats that have shoulder padding and the like. The SLK is definitely larger inside overall.

Internal dimensions in inches for the SLK
37.9" Head Room
54.6" Hip Room
42.5" Leg Room
52.2" Shoulder Room
48.8 cu. ft. Passenger volume

Internal dimensions in inches for the MX5
37.4" Head Room (37" for the PRHT)
50.6" Hip Room
43.1" Leg Room
53.2" Shoulder Room
xx.x cu. ft. Passenge volume (can't find any info for the new MX5, but the old one was about 46 cu. ft.)

Originally Posted by Astin

more cabin storage space

Once again, you're not quite right. From my experience, the SLK has more cabin storage space, let me paste one post of mine which I wrote on this forum to answer questions asked by someone else:

Originally Posted by Shinigami

whilst the MX5 glovebox is a little larger, the SLK has quite a few other locations to put stuff in as you already may have seen (and most of these compartments also have locks when you lock your car, so that even if you leave the roof open, crooks can't go rummaging through your stuff):

a) The compartment above the radio. You can select to have this be a simple closeable cache for storing sunglasses (preferred) or the quite poor cup holder (which most would recommend you should not take for the simple fact that it's flimsy, and any drink that falls from the 'cups' down into the radio and aircon unit, may very well render them useless as it shorts out circuits).

b) Another compartment can be had in lieu of the cigarette disposal tray thingie underneath the radio and aircon controller unit. I recommend getting that as well (unless you smoke that is, and if so, shame on you ). Of course, if you need a cigarette plug for charging a phone or something like that, then you can still have a cigarette unit type power plug installed in the passenger foot well (just to the side where the gearbox is in the middle of the car). This should be there if you don't get the cigarette tray under the aircon controller unit. Probably best used for storing coins.

c) Then there's the middle compartment (where one would lay their elbow). This can be had in two varieties. One just opens up to show a big compartment (it's quite large), the other kind has a second compartment on top of it (like a secret one) if you choose to have your car equipped with a hands free phone unit tray. Whilst nice, this is not that useful because the cradle/tray can only accomodate some types of phones (and requires a specific attachment cradle for each one), and if you do choose it, then you lose some space for the actual compartment underneath...

d) And there's also the vertical compartment between the seats on the rear wall. This is usually used to store the canvas like wind safety net, but if you get a plexiglass one, then you can use this compartments to also store stuff.

Finally, you've got a recess behind your seat for storing the car papers/manual, and the SLK also has space on the doors for storing stuff if you so wish (which the MX5 if my memory serves right, does not). I usually put a coke/water bottle in here since I don't have the cup holder.

Some of the other storage spaces in the MX5 are actually a lot smaller, and the two recesses behind the seats in the MX5 are a real pain to use since the seats must be advances a great deal just to access them. Thus, the MX5 actually has only 2/3rds of the usable space the SLK has.

Originally Posted by Astin

better roof down security (with lockable glove box and console boxes)

So does the SLK! Or did you now know that the gloveboxes and the like automatically lock themselves when you lock your car? I can't remember how it was in the MX5, but I think you need to manually lock them if you want them to stay locked, unlike the SLK where it's all taken care of centrally. Do correct me if I'm wrong.

Originally Posted by Astin

and a more useable boot (trunk).

Not in my opinion. The SLK trunk has over 300litres of usable space with the roof up. The MX5 has 150litres of usable space be the roof up or down. When the roof of the SLK is brought down, the trunk space is still larger then the MX5's at 200litres of usable space. Some would argue that the SLK trunk space is not easy to get to once the roof is down, but once again I don't think this is a valid argument. The MX5 trunk lid and opening is a lot smaller then the SLK's, which means that overall, one can place some very large items, very comfortable inside the SLK's trunk. The opening may be smaller with the roof down, but it's not 'much' smaller then the MX5's opening which has always been kind of small. And if you want to free up all the opening space, then all it takes is 20 seconds to put the roof back up in order to get to the space in it's entirety.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a HUGE MX5 fan and I regularly poste on Miata.net as well, but when someone posts something that I believe is wrong, I take it upon myself to correct them.

[Astin]

Happy to stand corrected Shini - my comments only based on previous ownership of the MX-5 which I found much more functional in many ways as I noted.

:-)




A.

[Shinigami]

Originally Posted by Astin

Happy to stand corrected Shini - my comments only based on previous ownership of the MX-5 which I found much more functional in many ways as I noted.

No problem man, I'm a big fan of the NB (99-04) Miata/MX5 since it was the first convertible I ever drove, and thus fell in love with the whole convertible aspect of driving (maybe, just maybe I'll buy an NB this year as a third car to practice my manual gearbox skills).

Anyway, a lot of the aspect of comparing an MX5 with an SLK is purely subjective. Like I mentioned before, it's really up to the way we perceive things. For example, the SLK may have more room overall, but it might not feel the same due to the way the cabin contours itself around the body.

For example, one who sits in a Z4 might find the space inside to be a lot larger simply because the center console (the one with the radio and climate control buttons) don't curve down and towards the rear of the car like it does in the SLK. Instead, they kind of curve in towards the front of the car leaving a space much more angular underneath where the shifter is. It's the perception part which catches us and causes confusion.

It's like talking about our "butt dyno". One car may seem a lot faster then another, simply because it rides in a particular way, or we 'think' that just because we changed the air filter on our SLK's, that we suddently gained another 30hp (which is totally untrue of course).

But anyway... for what the SLK is, it's a great bargain. There are very few German cars with performance capabilites (and other capabilites) as high as an SLK with this particular price tag. YES, you can get cars which are faster (a Corvette Z06 comes to mind) that are just as expensive as an SLK55 AMG, or perhaps cars which are much cheaper and provide just as many "sensations" as the SLK (MX5 or S2000 come to mind), but as an overall package, it has been said before:

"The SLK is not perfect, but it is very good in many other ways".

And in the end, that is what counts the most

[SLK280DS]

Unlike many on this forum and others I really like the look of the 2009 SLK. So much so in fact that I just placed an order for a 2009 SLK 350 in Arctic White/Gullwing Red !

[NewMB]

Originally Posted by SLK280DS

Unlike many on this forum and others I really like the look of the 2009 SLK. So much so in fact that I just placed an order for a 2009 SLK 350 in Arctic White/Gullwing Red !

Congrats! Even though some (including myself) have made some nitpicky comments about the 2009, it's still a tremendous car and one that I would certainly purchase if I was in the market for an eye-catching convertible. All cars, even those with great pedigrees, have to undergo changes from time-to-time to keep the marketing guys happy. With the SLK, the changes are very subtle. The basic "soul" of the car continues on (which is a good thing)...