[Howard2]

This is amusing, if nothing else.

Warren Brown - A Sweet Toy, but Don't Play Too Long - washingtonpost.com

 

[mtiede]

What the hell car did he drive? I had the SLK 320. The 350 is spacious by comparison and the electric seats are very adjustable. Perhaps the guy is a big guy or something. Or maybe this is the first sports car he has driven.

Though he complained about the seats too much, he did enjoy driving it. But I have made long distance trips in it and was surprisingly pleased by the "long ride" comfort.

Hey Easty, how did you find the "long ride" comfort (making adjustments for pushing the limits of human endurance) on your cross country trip. Did you find the seat tiring?

If they just added a little lumbar adjustment, for me, the interior comfort would be nearly perfect. In any case, the electric seats of the 350 are a huge improvement over the 320.

 

[MBSLRwannaBE]

i absolutely dont understand what he is trying to say here:
"And so, for all of you to whom such class distinctions are important, here is how you can tell a driver who can afford the SLK 350 versus the one who has borrowed it, or is struggling to make the car payments: The poseur drives the SLK 350 everywhere all the time, treating it like a commuter, which it really isn't."

okay so he's trying to say anyone who uses a SLK as a daily driver is a poseur? there are many people on this forum who uses SLK's (350's and higher) as a daily driver.

i drive my slk55 amg pretty much everywhere i go, obviously being my only car. i haven't found anything uncomfortable during long drives or 200miles+ days. so he's trying to say all of us using our SLK's as daily drivers can't make our payments or cant afford one. very funny

 

[SLK280DS]

I think the problem he had with the seats is that unless they are positioned at the lowest setting you can't recline the seat back very much.
I didn't like being classified as a 'poseur' since mine is a daily driver, too.

 

[NewMB]

I think the main point that he was trying to make is that the SLK is not a real practical car, which it isn't. Everyone who buys one knows that going in and thus, is not disappointed by the lack of trunk space, interior room, etc. The fact that it's impractical is one of its endearing qualities, IMHO.

 

[jpnwdc]

Wash Post Article

Warren Brown is not much of an auto expert. Most people don't take him too seriously. Usually his articles spend more time talking about some other subject and less time about the car itself.

How much space would anyone expect in a two-seater?? Duh!

 

[danketchpel]

My wife and I are surprised at how practical the SLK is for a roadster. The trunk is fairly large by roadster standards and the retracting hardtop means it's much better in bad weather and more secure in questionable areas.

I think Warren must be a fairly tall guy who had to push the seat way back against the rear bulkhead. I'm average height (5'9") and can recline the seat far enough I can't reach the steering wheel or see out the car.

Like many "auto writers" he'd probably be better off in a minivan or SUV........ where practicality and comfort wins over everything else.

 

[NewMB]

Like many "auto writers" he'd probably be better off in a minivan or SUV........ where practicality and comfort wins over everything else.

He's definitely an "auto writer" for a general audience and not the car afficiandos who read Automobile, Motor Trend, Road & Track, etc. There's no way his kind of critique would show up in those magazines. Different strokes for different folks.

 

[Ynot]

Warren Brown is not much of an auto expert. Most people don't take him too seriously. Usually his articles spend more time talking about some other subject and less time about the car itself.

How much space would anyone expect in a two-seater?? Duh!

Thank God, he sure didn't sound like an expert. Sounds like the SLK is the only 2 seat sports car he's ever driven. Compared to many 2 seat roadsters, the SLK is extremely comfortable and spacious. You can easily fit a week or two worth of stuff for a sport trip. I drove it around Germany and Austria and had nothing but smiles. It was very comfortable, I wasn't tired of shifting thru traffic in Munich. It's perfect, if I would make it a daily driver if I can. I have a toddler to haul around so I have to take my SUV.

 

[ludes]

"not designed to do comfortably -- take you round-trip 300 miles in one day." -- I beg to differ. My wife and I did almost 900 miles in one day (Annapolis, MD to Davenport, IA) as part of a three week tour of National Parks throughout the Northern Rockies (Rushmore, Yellowstone, Glacier, etc).

I'm 6 foot, 185 pounds and didn't have any complaints about the seats or interior space (the wife is only 5'3" so she was great). The trunk was a little tight for a trip that long but we made it work so that we could drive top down through the parks with all our luggage on board (the secret is to mail your souvenirs home every few days).

 

[GernBlansten]

Odd comments regarding being a "poseur." My car is leased through my practice and is my daily driver. My wife has the more practical car. I don't have any problems with the practicality of the SLK and I can't drive it enough. It's fun.

I'm not sure what would make me want to drive a more practical and less enjoyable car on a daily basis.

 

[phatchink]

oh no i'm a poseur!!!

 

[alroumi]

Why would you be considered a poser if you drive it daily, What If you really wanted to get every $ you spent on your car? , Isnt that called ''Using'' the car rather than being a Garage Queen collecting dust.

 

[alroumi]

Ohh and I dont beleive he has been driving the SLK, I need to see actual pictures and nothing borrowed from MBUSA.

 

[slktyperice]

I think he was just annoyed to drive through traffic with the 6MT. Being a stick driver for 6 years, this was nothing new to me, and it's pretty much second nature once you drive a stick car. He probably drives a Chevy Impala or another boat like that.

You'd have to be at least 6'0" with a huge rear end before you start feeling cramped in the SLK. Also, the sports suspension can be quite uncomfortable on long drives or on bumpy roads if you're not used to it. I switched from the non-sport SLK350 suspension (rides like an E-class) to the SLK55 suspension (I can feel every bump in the road vibrating through my spine), and since I'm young, I'd suck it up with the discomfort just so I can have the amazingly better handling the SLK55 sport suspension provides. This Warren guy would rip on the SLK55 suspension if he reviewed it.

Oh well, we shouldn't overreact on this guy's comments. We SLK drivers all know and love our own cars for what they are: fun, fast, attention-attracting, and satisfying. We love our cars so much that we don't care about how much it costs, how uncomfortable they are on long drives, and how inconvenient they are (can't even go to Costco to get too much stuff, or carry more than 1 (maybe 2) passengers).

 

[cyberdrakon]

have the guy drive a pontiac solstice and then ask him about the practicality of storage space.

Also, i drive a debadged slk55 as my daily driver. of course that means i'm a poser as my other car is more of a cruiser/show car (that is in lots of little undrivable pieces in my garage right now). His logic is flawed. I don't drive the van as a daily driver or a truck, i use those for work. My daily driver must be fast and comfortable, not about storage.

 

[slktyperice]

have the guy drive a pontiac solstice and then ask him about the practicality of storage space.

Also, i drive a debadged slk55 as my daily driver. of course that means i'm a poser as my other car is more of a cruiser/show car (that is in lots of little undrivable pieces in my garage right now). His logic is flawed. I don't drive the van as a daily driver or a truck, i use those for work. My daily driver must be fast and comfortable, not about storage.

Yes, but Eddie you don't have a wife and 4 kids to drive around daily. =) Unless you want to try stacking them in the passenger's seat.

Funny because sometimes I *do* have to pick up my two brothers (14 and 16) from high school, and I have the 16 year old sitting on the seat, and the 14 year old on the ground (I'm dead serious). Not comfortable, but it does do the job. Now another time, I was in Vegas with 3 girls in the SLK....and... ;-)

 

[mtiede]

Yikes, is there an air bag disabler to protect that guy on the ground? I will have to look around. I'm never in the passenger seat so I hardly know what goes on over there

 

[Shinigami]

f'k 'im. The SLK has more room in it then the MX5, Z4, S2000, Solstice and Sky.

I've done a 2000km trip in one day, and it went fine.

He's just your average journo who doesn't know s***.

 

[Dr. Aaltonen]

Well, we all have our opinions. Is it so bad, that somebody doesn't like it? Personnally, I couldn't care less. The fact that there are for sure people that do not consider SLK the best car in the world doesn't make my satisfaction any less