SL 55 vs Z8 at the Nurburgring! - The Unofficial BMW M5 Messageboard (m5board.com)

mmunson · 14th April 2002, 13:58

The German magazine Sport Auto has published a "Supertest" comparison of the SL 55 vs the Z8...part of the test where track runs on both the Old Nurbergring the modern Hockenheim circuits
Below are some of the results.

In acceleration tests the SL 55 achieved:
0-100 km/h.....4.3 sec.
0-200 km/h.....13.8 sec.

Z8:
0-100 km/h....4.8 sec.
0-200 km/h....16.8 sec.

mmunson · 14th April 2002, 14:00

In cornering:

SL 55....1.15 g.
Z8 ........1.2 g.

Rezf · 14th April 2002, 16:29

I don't get it! In the Hockenheim circuit, the Sl55 posted faster speeds than the Z8 in each of the sectors, yet the Z8 finished faster in the time

atomic80 · 14th April 2002, 17:41

Quote:

Originally posted by Rezf
I don't get it! In the Hockenheim circuit, the Sl55 posted faster speeds than the Z8 in each of the sectors, yet the Z8 finished faster in the time

It's not always about how fast you can go in terms of top speed especially in the straights but rather how fast you can take the curves!

The Z8 does better in this category than the heavier SL55.

Ben_FR · 14th April 2002, 17:51

In my opinion, Mercedes-Benz is making a very very strategic move regarding the SL55. They made an extreme effort to get the AMG version of the new SL-series in the hands of magazines even before the base SL-series came out. It is clear they are launching a promotional campaign to strengthen the AMG brand by creating a car that can do exactly what most people (not enthusiasts) want.

That is, people want 0-60 (0-100kmh) bragging rights. Mercedes is trying to steal porsche-, bmw-, audi-, et cetera-ophiles to go AMG. BMW would never launch an M version concurrently with the newly introduced base model. People will associate the SL-500 as the brother of 'that really really fast new mercedes' and will see it as a porsche-turbo-beating luxury cruiser.

-Ben FR

alpywhite · 14th April 2002, 19:32

Very interesting stats! Thanks!

Z8 outshines in corner speed, but SL compensates with brute force. Over-compensates!

Suddenly it's like watching the Superbowl with 2 of your favorite teams...I LOVE both cars and don't care which one is overall winner...

Alps

MEnthusiast · 14th April 2002, 20:00

basically the SL AMG is a hopped up version of a "mass market" by MB standards, car.

The Z8 is a one offer, limited production run vehicle.

As such, the AMG is probably more practical for every day chores, but I have no doubt the Z8 is more fun for the occassional jaunt down that favourite windy road.

A_Train · 14th April 2002, 21:13

The new SL500 feels like it has some pep but is still hardly a rocket -- the Z8 will smoke it, and even putting that aside, the Z8 is just so much more fun. The SL55 should smoke the Z8, at least in a straight line, but probably will not be as fun and is not States-side until October. The top mechanism is awesome to watch.

Always thought the SL's, even the 600, were just too darn heavy. Hopefully, brute power in the 55 will compensate for the weight, as far as driving experience and enjoyment goes. The SL55 will be a very worthy competitor to the Z8 -- too bad there's no manual tranny for the 55. MB is never even a purchase thought because of this transmission situation. If the 55 had a real stick, or even a sweet paddle setup, it might make more sense on my end to go for it as a daily driver, simply b/c the top is so easy to deal with (glass window, no tonneau cover to deal with, 16 seconds and voila, all done), and there is some storage space with top down, even for a set of golf clubs.

The SL55 must be really heavy and piggish in the turns because the Z8 isn't too special in the turns -- good, yes, but surprising to see the turns could make up that much time for the Z8 against the SL55. Also, the brakes are good in the Z8, but not like a Porsche or anything. Maybe the MB's brakes got some fade after some deep and heavy braking during the circuit run, due to the sheer weight of the 55, which is about 500 lbs heavier than the Z8.

- A-Train

ALX · 14th April 2002, 21:53

In terms of fun, let us not forget the SL is an automatic! Where is the fun in that?

I'd pick the Z8 any day.

ALX

mmunson · 14th April 2002, 23:01

Not forgetting:

Its a full paddle shift auto, and you can select any gear you want and it will hold it and not move up until you tell it to. Pull away in 5th from the start even. The shifts are mounted on the wheel itself.

MH · 14th April 2002, 23:33

The handling for the SL55 is there. Not taking anything away from the Z8, it's just that it seems like peolple just don't want to give the SL55 the credit it derserves. And the Z8 isn't to special in the turns? I don't know about that. Is there any other BMW out right now that has better handling? The only car I can think of is the M coupe, but overall, no current BMW will go around the Nurburgring faster than the Z8. Correct me if i'm wrong.

chunpng · 14th April 2002, 23:38

Besides the paddle-shift, which shifts much faster than the auto, the SL55 also has the DFC type suspension. With one touch of a buttton, you can get sports suspension mode, and lower the entire car by up to an inch for more aggressive cornering.

The ABC sytem also eliminates dives, squats, and body rolls, shades of the comments about the Dinan and other suspensions.

I'm sure it's a HEAVY car, but given our traffic situations, I'm not sure a Z8, or a Porsche, could make that much of a difference, even in the twisties (crawling with bikes). So in 99+% of the driving situation, the SL is more than adequate. Gievn that the z8 is MSRP at $135,000, and the 966TT is at $150,000 ($10-$20k California market adjusrment on top

) the SL55 is almost a no brainer for me.

CP