On Wheels

At once common and extraordinary, the Mercedes SL has enjoyed iconic status since it was first offered as a production car in 1955. Strongly associated with style, glamour and the good life, nothing says, 'I've made it y'all!' quite like a Mercedes-Benz SL.

Emitting a ferocious bark, the hand-assembled 6.3-liter V8 spins to life in the nose of what (to casual observers) had previously appeared to be a garden variety Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan. Strollers stop, heads turn and mouths fall agape.

The 'baby Benz' has been on our shores for four generations now. It's a steady good seller, though perhaps not the flashiest in the small-luxury heap. Not that there's much of a 'heap' there. Thanks to the influence of BMW and Audi, the small-luxury segment tends to be more about sport than luxury.

Because they are in the same basic category, Mercedes C-Class cars are often cross-shopped against BMW 3 Series cars. And while Mercedes usually skews more toward the luxury buyer and BMW skews more toward the sporty driver, there are many sporty drivers who covet the three-pointed star.

'I've been rich and I've been poor. Rich is better.' Sophie Tucker

I considered, very seriously, the notion of the Mercedes S-Class. I did the math, and determined that it would take approximately 170 flights within the continental U.S. to equal the cost of one S550. In an average year I make between twenty-five and fifty flights…so, I would have to travel in an S-Class instead of flying for about six years to make the numbers work.

Finally - an open straight.

We really wanted to be excited by the all-new M-Class. The 'minivan of SUVs' received a long-overdue redesign for 2006, and got a wider, longer body, a much more stylish face and interior, and a range of new engines. So why aren't we blown away by the new ML350?

Multitaskers of America, your chariot has arrived. Mercedes' all-new R-Class is designed to perform just about any automotive task and it's even got the class to look good while doing it. Oh, sure, they call it a “crossover” for lack of a better designation. Mercedes’ R500 is equal parts minivan, SUV, station wagon, and luxury sedan.

Now this is what they call an extreme makeover. Mercedes' cute SLK roadster has spent its entire life as a respectable and somewhat mousy entry into the sport-convertible market. Even the AMG versions, which were capable of running with Corvettes, wore the same squarish sheetmetal. They were decent cars, but they didn't stand out. They didn't 'pop,' to use the fashion lingo.