2009 Mercedes-Benz SLK-class Review
Hi, I'm Mike Hanley with Cars.com and I'm here with 2009 Mercedes Benz SLK. The
SLK is a retractable hardtop roadster and for 2009, it gets some significant updates. It’s
not without its flaws though and most of those are concentrated in the car’s cabin. The
big change to the second generation SLK for 2009 is this new grill and bumper in the
front. You can see here it’s split in the middle that kind of gives it the look of a formula
one race car to some degree. But overall the general shape carries on much as before with
sleek athletic styling with the tops up or down.
The SLK’s retractable hardtop roof gives it great isolation from the road and extra
security as well. It’s operated by a switch on the center console and goes down quickly
and quietly stowing in a portion of the trunk. It’s make the cabin more enjoyable, when
it’s cold outside you can have the optional heating packaging in the SLK and that comes
with Mercedes’ Air Scarf System which is a fancy name for saying that it blows warm air
all around your neck and had from the vent in the seat. And the package also includes
heated seats and the mesh windscreen.
Even though the SLK is a pretty small roadster, its trunk is decently sized. With the roof
up, there's 9.8 cubic feet but Mercedes includes a divider which is pretty common in
convertibles to show you how much space you have left underneath when you put the top
down because the top is going to take up space here. So you can put in a bag, a small
suitcase like this and it still fits underneath giving you room with the top down.
One of the biggest changes for 2009 is actually under the hood. This is the SLK 350 and
it comes with a 3.5 liter V6 engine. That engine now makes 300 horsepower and it works
with a seven speed automatic transmission. Mercedes says this combination is good for
zero to 60 times or about 5.3 seconds which is pretty fast. And its EPA fuel economy
estimates are 18/26 and while a manual transmission seems like it would make a lot of
sense with this engine, Mercedes doesn’t offer one.
The SLK case cabin is definitely cozy if you’re a taller driver but hurting matters is the
optional power seats that this car has because as you move them backward to get more
leg room, the backrest automatically starts tilting forward to avoid hitting the back of the
rear of the cabin. Now that doesn’t help driver comfort overall, maybe something you
won’t notice if you're not especially tall but it is something to keep in mind.
Additional changes to the cabin include an updated audio display for 2009, a new
steering wheel, and some updated gauges. But otherwise, it carries over much as before
and it looks a little plain considering this car starts at about $50,000.00. The SLK
definitely makes a nice accessory for a summer afternoon drive but its cabins sure
starting to show its age. And now there are new competitors like the 335 I convertible it
has to go up against which a compelling alternative to this Mercedes.
For additional information this car or any other, go to Cars.com and our blog, Kicking
Tires.
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