2023 Mercedes-AMG SL43 Feels Like A Big Step Backward

For decades, the Mercedes-Benz SL class has represented the very best of what the world’s oldest car brand could do. It was meant to be peak style, peak luxury and, in some cases, peak performance. Whether it was the famed 300SL Gullwing, the 230SL Pagoda or even the R129 SL600, you knew the person driving it had money as well as style. Then 2011 hit, and the streak was broken. Fortunes were reversed again when Mercedes launched the 2022 SL but with the debut of the 2023 Mercedes-AMG SL43, are things once again heading in the wrong direction?

I don’t think I’m uncharitable when I call the R231 SL-Class the low point for that storied badge. It felt like an afterthought, and I don’t recall anyone being particularly sad when Mercedes killed off the AMG versions in 2018 and the whole platform in 2020. When Mercedes announced it was bringing the SL back in 2022, a lot was riding on it, but luckily, the R232 SL was amazing.

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Don’t get me wrong; my beef with the SL43 doesn’t stem from that 375 hp number. That’s totally adequate and the SL43 doesn’t feel slow. The real problems are slightly more complex than that. First, this little engine is vibey — as in it creates a lot of vibrations that are felt in the car’s cabin. If this was a rowdy little sports car like a Honda S2000, I’d be fine with that. This is a $110,000 luxury convertible, and that’s not ok.

Next, the engine makes many noises, as performance engines are wont to do, but none here are especially nice. This is obviously exacerbated by having the roof down, which you will do at some point. It’s not that four-cylinder engines can’t sound good; there are plenty that sound awesome. This one just doesn’t. It’s coarse and raspy under acceleration and gives econo-car vibes when at idle. Again, it’s not really fitting for such an expensive flagship roadster.

The engine gripes would be bad enough, but the real turd in Mercedes’ SL punchbowl is the nine-speed auto. I don’t know if it’s because my test vehicle is pre-production, but I found it nearly impossible to leave from a stop smoothly and low-speed throttle changes were always herky-jerky. This persisted in manual mode and in all drive modes. It just makes for a bad experience; I’d not recommend this car on this alone. Hell, if a car that sells for half as much did this, I’d still not give it a pass.