When the first generation of the SLK came to Malaysia, it was so popular that anyone who wanted to buy one would have to sit on a two year waiting list. It was Mercedes’ “affordable” sports car, launched at a time when people were still prosperous and belts were still loose. It came with a folding steel roof, which wasn’t as common back then as one would expect- most convertibles were of fabric design.
More importantly, it was offered with a range of engines that was similar to that of their entry-level C-Class. This made the SLK significantly more budget friendly and a more realistic proposition for the salary men looking to add a convertible to their life. The generation that followed it wasn’t nearly as popular, although this could be put down to the market taking a turn for the worse and bad timing in general. Re-positioning of the model also meant larger engines and a higher-end outlook, making it less appealing for the mass market.
The third generation came back to it’s roots in a way, with a revised engine lineup and positioning that fell more in line with an entry level convertible. Prices were still high at launch, although it adopted the styling of the SLS AMG at the time and that provided a slight halo effect that made the SLK somewhat more desirable. Come next year, Mercedes-Benz intends to rename the SLK line to the SLC, in an effort to acknowledge “the traditionally close relationship with the C-Class”.
While we’re not exactly sure how that works from a marketing standpoint, or the exact reasoning behind this, the SLC renaming comes with a facelift and a few changes to the model lineup. The lowest spec model globally will now be the SLC 180, which runs on a turbocharged 1.6-litre motor with 156 hp (not far off the original SLK 200’s 136 hp). The top spec model is also repositioned as the SLC 43, shedding the 5.5-litre V8 in favour of a 3.0-litre V6 with 367 hp.
Also new to the SLC range is the 9G-TRONIC transmission, which has 9 speeds as the name suggests. It’s standard across most of the range, save for the SLC 180 and SLC 200 where it is available as an option. The facelift works on redesigning the front end to fit in more with the new AMG GT-led styling and sharpening up certain aspects of the design.
The new model line-up at a glance:
SLC 180 | SLC 200 | SLC 300 | SLC 250 d | SLC 43 | |
Number of cylinders/arrangement | 4/in-line | 4/in-line | 4/in-line | 4/in-line | 6/V |
Displacement (cc) | 1595 | 1991 | 1991 | 2143 | 2996 |
Rated output (kW/hp at rpm) | 115/156 at 5300 | 135/184 at 5500 | 180/245 at 5500 | 150/204 at 3800 | 270/367 at 5500-6000 |
Rated torque (Nm at rpm) | 250 at 1200-4000 | 300 at 1200-4000 | 370 at 1300-4000 | 500 at 1600-1800 | 520 at 2000-4200 |
Combined fuel consumption from (l/100 km) | 5.6 (5.6) | 6.1 (5.7) | (5.8) | (4.4) | (7.8) |
Combined CO2 emissions from (g/km) | 127 (128) | 142 (133) | (134) | (114) | (178) |
Efficiency class | B (B) | C (B) | (B) | (A) | (D) |
Acceleration 0-100 km/h (s) | 7.9 (8.1) | 7.0 (6.9) | (5.8) | (6.6) | (4.7) |
Top speed (km/h) | 226 (223) | 240 (237) | (250) | (245) | (250) |
