Review of the new Mercedes-Benz SLK 350

Admit it. You didn't take it very seriously when you heard that Mercedes' latest SLK was going to be a genuine challenger to the likes of the Porsche Boxster and the BMW Z4. Evolution's all well and good, but the giant leap forward required to take on sporting roadsters of this calibre was surely too much for the SLK - a car which had garnered a reputation as pretty, amiable but rather limited. Think again. The car to redefine your scrambled points of reference is the Mercedes SLK350.

No, seriously. The SLK350 is a car that makes the Z4 feel contrived and does enough to keep the Boxster on its toes. It walks a very fine line between outright sportiness and refinement whilst at the same time offering enough styling gems to mull over without descending into visual gimmickry. It also has a lot of engine. These days '350' doesn't register all that far up Mercedes' ladder of ever more ridiculously powerful engines but pause for a moment and consider what, in this case, it means.

It hefts 301bhp of poke which means that, even when fitted with the new '7-GTRONIC' automatic gearbox, it'll still stop the watch at 5.5 seconds for the sprint. With variable camshaft control on both intake and exhaust sides of the engine - a first for Mercedes - this engine offers a lot of grunt for its relatively modest size. Despite this, it'll still average 31mpg.

"The SLK350 is a car that makes the Boxster feel old and the Z4 feel contrived"

Whereas powerful versions of the old car such as the SLK32 AMG were effortleslly quick in a straight line, this is only one part of a car's dynamic make up. When it came to tacling a bumpy, rutted road, the SLK wasn't too happy. The latest model is a whole lot better in this regard and driving in convoy with a Porsche Boxster is an education. The SLK350 absorbs so much more of the sort of bump that requires corrective action in the Porsche that although there isn't quite the same feeling of tactility you get with a Boxster, you'll cover ground at the same pace. What's more, in complete contrast to its predecessor, the harder you push this generation SLK, the better it gets. The steering is very direct at just 2.75 turns lock to lock and the variable assistance is one of the best systems around, the amount of assistance dropping off smoothly and imperceptibly the quicker you go. The gearchange is also the first manual shift in recent Mercedes history that it's possible to work up an enthusiasm for.

The basic shape of the SLK has been left unchanged, the characteristic short boot and long bonnet creating a more aesthetically pleasing profile than most of the other hard top convertibles, many of which have rather odd proportions. It's a bigger car than before, the body being 72mm longer and 65mm wider, which means more space inside for beefier occupants. The roof mechanism has been widely copied and now no longer amazes bystanders but folds neatly into the boot in 22 seconds. The swivelling rear window means that with the roof folded there's now a good deal more space available in the boot - a notable issue with the old car.

The SLK is a car that's associated with engineering novelty, however, and Mercedes don't disappoint this time around. The AIRSCARF neck-level heating system delivers a warm flow of air from the headrests, enabling SLK owners to drop the roof without experiencing the chill fingers of the typical British climate. This system monitors road speed and temperature and adapts the fan speed accordingly to ensure a toasty 'scarf' of hot air.

Safety provision has been well and truly revisited too, the latest SLK featuring a 40 per cent increase in the use of high tensile steel alloys. For the first time in an SLK, Mercedes is using adaptive airbags which deploy in two stages according to the severity of the accident. Twin stage seat belt load limiters also feature and recently developed head/thorax airbags respond to side impacts. A sensor triggers the side airbags and both belt tensioners during a vehicle rollover, with solid roll-over bars behind the seats also helping to prevent injury in the unlikely event of such an accident.

The styling is a good deal more aggressive in its detailing than the cute first generation car. The distinctive arrow-like tapering of the front bonnet is reminiscent of both the McLaren Formula One racer and the Mercedes SLR McLaren supercar. Twin exhausts, a deep front spoiler and purposefully blistered wheel arches give the SLK a welcome dose of attitude.

The Mercedes SLK350 is a vehicle that causes a reassessment of the current state of the roadster art. For the 100 per cent purist, the Porsche Boxster will still be top of the pile, but for most of the people most of the time, the SLK350 beats it hands down. You've no idea how difficult it is to write that. Here's a car that demands to be taken extremely seriously.

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