Introducing the perfect marriage of luxury and performance: Welcome the 2009 SL63, a car that stands the test of time in both beauty and quality.  Although a monster of an engine lurks under the hood, she is just as much at home putzing around town as she is shredding tires!  Let’s dive right in!

BACKGROUND

And let’s start with this car’s history.  Ordered by a local executive here in sunny Southern California, this car has seen and easy carefree and loved life.  Never abused, raced or beat on!  It was loved and cared for just about 2 years before being sold with only 1,100 miles to a second owner, who too is an executive, who has continued to love and care for this beauty.  Painted in classic Black, this deep lustery color shines even in the dimmest light.  This deep black adds texture and dimension to the otherwise the mix of both strong and gentle body lines.  Standard features included:

A monstrous 518hp naturally aspirated V8

7-Speed Sport Transmission

AMG Active Body Control

Enormous 14.2″ front and 13.0″ rear brake rotors with 6 and 4 piston calipers respectively

AMG Body Styling

12-Way Adjustable Sport Seats

10 Speaker Dolby Logic7 Surround Sound

40GB Hard Drive with Nav

Premium Leather Seating

and SO, SO MUCH more. 

The base price of this stunning SL63 was $132,000 all but 7 years ago!  Then came the options!!

Paired perfectly with the deep black is a very special interior option.  This car features the Designo Espresso Edition with natural maple trim, sand upholstery, a charcoal Alcantara and charcoal exclusive leather. $5,800. Then the SL63 was given the Premium Package which added Active Ventilated Seats, Electronic Trunk Closer, Airscarf and Keyless Go for $3,050.  Then the car was optioned with the highly sought after Performance Package!  Bespoke 19″ AMG alloy wheels, Limited-Slip Differential, AMG Track Calibrated Active Body Control, AMG Compound Braking System, AMG Steering Wheel and most importantly, speed governor was removed for a new top speed of 186mph!  $12,500.  The car also featured the Panoramic Roof for $1,950 and the Parktronic system for $1,140!

With tax, destination charge, and fees this car cost ~$175,000 out the door only recently!  This is a HUGE amount of car, performance and money for the price.  The Performance Package in particular is a hard option to find due its extremely high price!

To put it bluntly, this beast is optioned with every feature you could want.  With only 35,000 miles, it looks and rides like new.  This black stallion has lived in sunny California for her entire life, and is therefore rust and corrosion free.   

CONDITION & SERVICE

This car has been ENTHUSIASTICALLY and PROFESSIONALLY maintained.  Moreover, it was serviced exclusively by Fletcher Jones, one of the most well respected dealers in the country.  LOADS of carefree miles to go!  Some people get nervous about the expense of a luxury car such as this.  In 35,000 miles, as evidenced the Carfax, only minor nonscheduled serviced has been needed.  No grenaded engines, no blown transmissions, no complicated electrical gremlins!

Let’s start on the engine and drivetrain:

-ENGINE

This engine has great miles for the year (a low average of about 5,000 a year), 35,000 miles appear on the odometer and the car shows the same care throughout. Starts right up, no issues, no check engine lights – ZERO stories. But let’s chat about that engine for a second. What an engine it is! GOBS of power – a tame kitten around town, a RABID BENGAL TIGER with a heavy right foot. The 518hp feels not a hp shy and the car springs to occasion if you give it the opportunity. And boy oh boy it sounds fantastic! It snarls, crackles and pops with a foot in it, and if going for a night out on the town with the husband or wife, this Jekyll and Hyde is just a nice, calm grocery getter!  Service B ~2,000 miles ago including oil, oil filter, cabin filters, bled brakes and multi-point inspection.  New coolant cap, new engine air filter at the same time.  Fuel injection service ~5,000 miles ago, Service A at the same time.  New starter battery less than 5,000 miles ago.

-TRANSMISSION

Shifts are incredibly quick, smooth and almost totally imperceptible. I was actually pleasantly shocked just how good this 7 speed automatic trans truly is! Shifts are telepathically good! No hanging onto gears too long, no dropping down when you don’t want it. It always seems to be in the exact gear you want, in the powerband and is lightning quick. Without a doubt one of the best automatics out there right now!

Lets move to the suspension and brakes:

-BRAKES

Babied and near new brake pads in the front and rear – loads of pad life! Rears were just replaced 2,000 miles ago.  Fronts have ~5,000 miles on them.  These brakes have been used with care and never been cooked or abused.  The car brakes great. Nice linear pedal pressure, not too soft, not too hard of a pedal. Great feel for the road in the pedal too – not too isolated!

-SUSPENSION

The shocks dampen the ride wonderfully and control the springs perfectly. No clunks, bangs, noises or knocks. They are tight in corners, but yet supple around town!

-STEERING

The steering is tight and has no excess play. It has a nice light-medium weight to it, with great road feel!

-CHASSIS

This is another incredibly surprising and wonderful part of the SL63 that few people may discuss. The chassis, or structure/backbones of the car, are critical to a good handling car. But too tight and the noise and harshness will be too much. Too soft and the car will not handle well. Whoever designed the SL63 deserves an award. It is WAY more comfortable around town than any BMW, but yet tight that when hustled feels confident and tight. I was stunned by just how good this chassis is! Its communicative, forgiving, comfortable and tight all in one! Its a car lovers dream! 

Let’s continue to the exterior:

-PAINT

The paint is very nice! It is a 9 out of 10 easily. Shiny, beautiful Black paint was recently polished, finished and waxed by a highly acclaimed detailer here in LA. It looks FANTASTIC. CLEAN and CLEAR CarFax. NO ACCIDENTS. There are a few small and easily fixable cosmetic flaws.  The center lower grill on the bumper had a few rocks make their mark on it which caused some breaks.  This is a common piece to scoop up highway debris and is not expensive to replace.  There are also a few scrapes on the lower side of the front bumper from low driveways and such.  Again, like the grill, hard to notice, but present and common.  There is one scrape which is on the passenger side of the lower bumper which is a little easier to see than the others, but someone still almost needs to point and say “look there”  for it to be noticeable. This is a dry SoCal car! That means no rust lurking under the surface ready to pop up and ruin your paint! If there was a place to buy ANY car, it is dry, warm SoCal. No rain and no road salt!

-WHEELS

The wheels are in stunning shape and with the exception of some very very light flaws on the lip.  Again, you need someone to point them out unless you are face to face with the wheel. They look brand new and shine beautifully!!

-TIRES

Tires only ~ a year old with 80%+ life remaining and ready to go countless thousands of miles! No leaks, no issues!

-GLASS

Not to let a pebble defeat this car, the windshield and glass are great shape!

-CONVERTIBLE TOP

Works perfectly, no noises or issues!

Onto the cabin:

-SEATS

The leather seats are fantastic!!! They are incredibly supportive with what feels like zero foam wear. The leather is SO soft and comfortable. I truly love driving this car. You sit bolstered comfortably and in wonderful seating position in these buttery soft seats! The leather has been very well cared for and shows only EXTREMELY minor flaws at worst. The interior has been recently cleaned and conditioned as well! Words don’t express well enough just how wonderful the seats are in this beauty! With dual seat heaters too they are a very nice place to spend time! The multiple power settings, memory positioning and adjustable and telescoping steering wheel allow for a comfort position for near any driver! The gauges even tilt with the steering wheel so you are able to keep an eye on your information without the wheel blocking your view!

-HEADLINER

Beautiful and clean!  No issues!

-CARPET

Beautiful carpet in the car! It has been shampooed and cleaned as part of the overall detail. VERY nice, near flawless!

-NAVIGATION

Fully functioning, easy to use Navigation system! Voice commands, easy to read and easy to navigate menus. Nav CD update performed in late 2014.  Wonderful!

-RADIO/CD CHANGER

OEM radio sounds fantastic – deep, rich sound with clear lows and well defined highs. The Bose system allows you to hear parts of your favorite songs you never even noticed before!

-AC/HEAT/HVAC Panel

AC is ice cold and Heat is earth core hot!

-STEERING WHEEL

The leather is nice with some light wear and shaped beautifully for around town and spirited driving!

-KEYLESS ENTRY

Remote keyless entry arms the alarm with a press of a button! The keyless start works perfectly too. Just keep your key in your pocket, sit in the car and press START!

-CARGO AREA

Beautiful, essentially unused trunk with the optional trunk carpet looks beautiful!

The Experience

Driving this Mercedes is truly is fantastic. It is SUPER quiet inside, pulls and handles like a sports car and is as comfortable as a Rolls Royce. It has LOADS of power, a communicative chassis, wonderful strong brakes, a well tuned suspension and is an absolute treat to drive.  That said, for those of you that enjoy cars, but aren’t looking for something to become deeply involved in the driving experience, fear not – this car is a wonderful, casual, great place to spend time. Easy to drive and otherwise a beautiful luxury car! For those of you who are looking to take that next step in the driving experience, DO NOT IGNORE THIS CAR! This is the car to end the supercar reign. The M6 experience doesn’t compare especially with their transmission that never seems to be in the right gear. The Aston frankly just feel cheap compared to the SL63! This car is a dynamic experience to drive and should you choose to, a very interactive and incredibly fun place to spend time! Don’t spend big money on a car from a “turn-em-and-burn-em” style dealer when all they do to promote the car is say a few things they think people like to hear. As you may tell from my ad, I know cars and what they need and the details that make them tier 1, from a tier 2 or worse and I hope to have addressed them to those of you that know as well. If an ad says “Low miles and well cared for” Ask questions! If you don’t get thorough, well addressed answers, start planning more money and more aspirin.