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| Design for alloys 'uncomfortable' |
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Not that such thoughts are uppermost as you bellow off into the distance, surprised and delighted at the pace (0-62mph in 4.9 seconds) and the sound effects. You could almost be driving a mini-Corvette - but does a Corvette have such stout body rigidity? With the metal folding roof latched to the windscreen, this feels an entirely solid coupé, and even with the roof folded, draught screen erect and AirScarf™ activated for a warm neck, this SLK feels all of a piece. And that's despite the AMG additions of lower and stiffer suspension, thicker anti-roll bars and 18in wheels. Those at the rear are 8.5in wide and carry 245/35-section tyres, while the 7.5in fronts bear 225/40s.
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| SLK 55 AMG will cost £47,730 |
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These suspension changes answer the chassis-ruining question in the negative. This is a taut, wieldy and highly entertaining device. with quick and meaty steering and lots of scope for nudging the tail out. The Mercedes ESP system never goes completely off-duty even when you've pressed the kill button, but on the road it matters little. Here is a compact Mercedes sports car with a focus and a firepower we've not seen before in the genre. It woofles contentedly when asked, crackles into life when goaded.
It looks keen, too, if a bit overdone with its louvres ahead of the front wheels, those strange sill-bulges ahead of the rear wheels and an uncomfortably aftermarket-looking design for the wheels themselves. This is all a matter of taste, and it's not mine.
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