Originally published Aug. 25, 2012
GUNNISON – The 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL550 roadster, for an hour or so last Saturday afternoon, became a showpiece among a couple hundred classics in sunny Gunnison.
The beautiful Benz attracted attention when parked in front of the gazebo in Jorgensen Park where I was delivering a short talk prior to receiving the Lee Iacocca Award at the 25th annual Gunnison Car Show.
For me, it was an absolute humbling experience to be linked to the Iacocca honor, which was presented by Mike Callihan, president of the Gunnison Car Club and former Colorado lieutenant governor under Gov. Roy Romer.
The SL550 is one of my all-time favorite automobiles, and it was fortuitous to come my way for the 290-mile drive to Gunnison on Friday morning, Aug. 17. It’s the sixth-generation SL since the 300SL Gullwing was introduced in 1955.
The new one has grown by 2 inches, yet its new lightweight aluminum body has let it shed 260 pounds and retain outstanding ride and handling.
It has zoomed to the top echelon of today’s high-tech automotive wonders.
A 4.7-liter, twin-turbocharged V-8 generates 429 horsepower and 516 lbs.-ft. of torque, and shifts from its 7-speed automatic transmission are as smooth as anything on the road. The driver can choose from comfort to sport to manual modes, and paddle shifters lend excellent control when the transmission’s operating manually. At stoplights, the powerful engine shuts off, then is running again the moment brake pressure is eased.
If the SL, speeding down the highway, wanders a bit to the white line at the edge of the road,the lane-keeping-assist feature turns the front wheels slightly back into the driving lanes.
Active bolsters in the seatbacks inflate automatically to keep occupants in place through turns; the sharper the turn, the tighter the bolster squeezes the driver or passenger in place. Vents beneath the headrests in the seatbacks will flow warm air on the occupant’s neck during cold weather.
A change of tint from light to dark can be accomplished on the panorama top with push of a button above the rearview mirror.
As I mentioned in my talk, “This SL seems to have everything. Well, not quite everything, it has no luggage space; Jan and I had to send two of our bags with Dale and Sandy Wells (son and daughter-in-law).”
Though its rear end looks sizable, much of the space is eaten up when the three-piece retractable roof splits and folds in.
Jorgensen Park was filled with 250 cars for Gunnison’s annual affair; “best in show” was a 1934 Ford owned by Collin L. Sprau of Chicago.
Following Jan and me to Gunnison were 30 members of our family; we ranged from 13-month-old Ava Zink to this great-grandpa, one of the older automotive columnists in the country. We invaded Garlic Mike’s restaurant for dinner Saturday evening.
Sunday morning, Jan and I in the SL550 joined 50 or 60 of the classic cars in a caravan to Crested Butte, 25 miles away, where the cars were parked for viewing along the main street while the drivers andriders breakfasted in the little mountain town.
Jim McDermott, whose family was longtime General Motors’ dealer in Gunnison, nominated me for the Iacocca award, which is “for dedication to excellence in perpetuating an American automotive tradition.” All proceeds go to the Iacocca Family Foundation for Type I diabetes research.
I was automotive editor at The Denver Post in 1978 at the time of Lee Iacocca’s famous split with Henry Ford II; Iacocca then turned around an ailing Chrysler Corp. and brought it back to prominence. Iacocca, 88, resides in California.
In our drive home from Gunnison, the Mercedes’ manual-mode shifter got a workout through the mountain canyons, up and down the hills and around the twists and turns to Salida, Buena Vista and Fairplay.
Sidebar: No more tuneups
Notice the look on the mechanic’s face the last time you asked for a tuneup? That’s because there are no more tuneups.
Valves no longer need adjusting, ignition timing is computer controlled and there are no carburetors with which to fiddle. About all that’s left of the old tuneup drill are the spark plugs. These are often good for 100,000 miles, so don’t change parts just to change parts.
That’s not to say you should ignore scheduled maintenance. Save up for those big 60,000- and 120,000-mile services when the timing belt, spark plug wires and coolant are due for replacement.
– Creative Services Staff
