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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL - more sporty luxury under the open sky is almost impossible

Name: Mercedes-Benz 600 SL 1992
Brand: Mercedes-Benz

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Created on July 21, 2016

Text:

Bruno von Rotz, translated by DeepL

Photos:

Daniel Reinhard

Daimler AG

Bruno von Rotz

MovieMaiD

Archiv

Daniel Reinhard

Daimler AG

Bruno von Rotz

MovieMaiD

Archiv

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - twelve cylinders and one star

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - before the xenon era

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - how the luxury class travels

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - especially fun in summer

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the hardtop was part of the standard equipment

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - luxury with upward prospects

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - elegant with hardtop

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the roof can only be opened when standing upright

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - even the hairstyle remains intact

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the windshield frame is part of the rollover protection

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - all you can hear from the engine is a quiet whisper

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - with hardtop

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - folded-out roll bar

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the roof closes fully automatically - flap open

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the roof closes fully automatically

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the roof closes fully automatically - even the windows lower and raise by themselves

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the roof closes fully automatically - even locking works by itself

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the roof closes fully automatically - and the closed car looks good too

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - comfortable and fast

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the speed limit is set at 250 km/h

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the fastest open-top car from Mercedes at the time

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - fourth gear is almost always engaged

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - driving requires hardly any muscle work

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - surprisingly handy for a two-ton vehicle

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the engine rarely needs to rev out

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - lots of wood and leather, but also plastic in the 200,000 DM/Franc car

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - almost all equipment was standard

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - only just properly run in, a 600 SL with 80,000 km

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - naturally with a Becker radio

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - Integral seats

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the wind deflector was standard and was copied diligently from then on

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the standard wind deflector is folded out manually

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - heavy doors with side impact protection

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - seat position, the mirror settings of all three mirrors and the steering wheel position can be saved

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the number of cylinders was marked on the flank

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - 12 cylinders in V-shape

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the V12 barely fitted into the engine compartment

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - almost 400 hp from six liters of displacement, the engine didn't have to overwork itself

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - where it says V12, there is also a twelve-cylinder inside

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - eight-hole rims were standard

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - Wiper for the halogen headlights

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the typical fluted rear lights

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the big star in the radiator grille

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - Mercedes sign on the front

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - the Mercedes star on the rear

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - Fuel filler flap right rear

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Mercedes-Benz 300 SL-24 (1989) - the last of its kind and its predecessors

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Mercedes-Benz 350 SL (1971) - 40 years of the SL - from the 300 SL 1953 to the 300 SL 1960, the 190 SL, the Pagoda 280 SL around 1970, the R117 and the 500 SL (R129) from 1989

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Mercedes Benz 300 SL (1988) - alongside its brothers from the R129 series as "Young Classics" on the Mercedes stand - at Retro Classics Stuttgart 2013

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Mercedes Benz 500 SL (1992) - was already designed by Bruno Sacco in the mid-eighties

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Mercedes Benz 500 SL (1990) - elegant interior

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Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (1989) - work on the clay model

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Mercedes-Benz 300 SL (1989) - practically without chrome trim

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Mercedes-Benz 500 SL (1989) - the components of the convertible

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Mercedes-Benz 500 SL (1989) - the electrical components laid out

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Mercedes-Benz 500 SL (1989) - Airbags for driver and front passenger

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Mercedes-Benz 500 SL (1989) - the interior of the integral seat

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Mercedes-Benz 500 SL (1989) - production took place in Bremen

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - with the twelve-cylinder engine at the front

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - with striking V12 lettering and hardtop

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - with distinctive V12 lettering and without roof

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - with a displacement of six liters and almost 400 hp

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1993) - from September 1993 it was called the SL 600

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1993) - a transparent hardtop was presented in Detroit

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1993) - exhibited like this in Detroit

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Mercedes-Benz R129 (1989) - at the Techno Classica 2014

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Mercedes-Benz R129 (1989) - Electronic wonder at the Techno Classica 2014

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View through the door of a Mercedes-Benz R129 - Motorworld Classics Berlin 2015

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Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - noch vor der Xenon-Zeit

Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - so reist die Oberklasse

Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - macht vor allem im Sommer Spass

Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - das Hardtop war Teil der Serienausstattung

Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - Luxus mit Aussichten nach oben

Mercedes-Benz 600 SL (1992) - elegant mit Hardtop

Summary

When Mercedes-Benz introduced the 600 SL in 1992, a twelve-cylinder engine was the order of the day in the top class. With 395 hp and six liters of displacement, the 600 SL easily eclipsed the already very agile 500 SL, but also cost the equivalent of a simple detached house. "Luxury is what you don't necessarily need," wrote one tester at the time. This driving report describes the Mercedes-Benz 600 SL, showing it in many photos from then and now, as well as in the sales brochure. Of course, you can also listen to the sound of the engine.

This article contains the following chapters

"Thank you, that's enough"
Microprocessor-controlled hydraulic marvel
Comfort motorization
On a proven basis
Extensive equipment
Very expensive
A lot of car for the money
Effortless locomotion
Further information

Estimated reading time: 7min

Preview (beginning of the article)

In 1989, the Mercedes-Benz R129 Cabriolet was one of the main attractions at the Geneva Motor Show. The open-top car, trimmed for safety and comfort, impressed with its modern design, which was the brainchild of Bruno Sacco. It was available with a displacement of three or five liters and six or eight cylinders respectively. Although the new sports car was somewhat more expensive than its predecessor, it also represented what was feasible. In the second half of 1992, Auto Motor und Sport magazine headlined a test report on the most opulent R129 variant to date with the headline "Thank you, that's enough". Götz Leyrer had had the pleasure of testing the 600 SL with twelve cylinders and six liters of displacement. And he was obviously of the opinion that more - displacement and luxury - was really no longer necessary.

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