2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster Long-Term Road Test

Edmunds.com

2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster Long-Term Road Test

With so many intricate parts involved in the mechanical choreography of its soft top, our 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster is headed back to the shop.

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evodad

just what you want out of your $200k convertible

mercedesfan

This sounds to me like something that wasn't repaired correctly in the first place. The chances of a failure in exactly the same place twice in as many months is highly unlikely unless its operator error (something I highly doubt). I would consider going to a different dealership to have it fixed this time.

fordson1

Jesus - I have had my share of holding a dealership's service department by the hand to get a warranty repair done right, but I thought with a quarter-million-dollar car that kind of thing was supposed to go away - ? Guess not.

benson2175

It's warranty work. It's a really expensive car. They should have done it right the first time. They probably tried a quick fix. In my experience the thing about MBs is that a quick fix will turn into a long disaster down the line. Just do it right the first time.

agentorange

This car is turning out to be a bit of an expensive turd. The dealership is not helping either by the looks of it.

flapsmcgee

This car has had so many random little problems. You'd think a car this expensive would do a little better.

zcalvert

so this is right about the time that MB regrets giving you this for a test, right? the insane $ premium MB charges for their perceived built quality isn't looking so great at the moment.

duck87

Is it really dealership error? The car spent a long time in the shop, parts were ordered and stuff was replaced. Is it possible that the convertible top was just poorly designed. German engineering in the haus, jah?

mercedesfan

Reading these comments makes me realize what a tough job automakers really have. Aside from the faulty top, this car has had 3 issues: a dead battery, a rogue CEL that never returned (probably heat-soak related), and a console lid that got stuck once. This in spite of the fact that it was an abused press loaner prior to this test AND is a low-volume exotic. This car has proven to be incredibly durable yet people are ready to throw it under the bus for bad reliability.

duck87

@mercedesfan: I think most people are willing to forgive those particular faults since they're minor issues in the grand scheme of things... but this is the convertible top, which is a pretty major repair item and has failed twice now in quick succession

mercedesfan

@duck87,

Absolutely, the failed top is a big issue and I'm not trying to belittle it. Nevertheless, this is the only reliability issue they have had with the car. For a low-volume exotic with 23K miles on it that is ridiculously good. My M3 had way more

akula1

Ja, das ist ein Design error. Oy vey!