Some of us in Cape Town thought power doors would have been a good idea, but maybe there are technical barriers to that. When I first climbed into the car, I felt for sure I'd crack my head sooner or later getting in and out, but I never did, as it happened. Over the two days I drove the car around the beautiful Cape Peninsular, I developed a kind of "SLR crouch" to get in and out - something owners will no doubt adopt too. The trunk is fairly roomy in this front engine, rear wheel drive two seater, but interior oddment space in the cockpit is not great.
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| I developed a kind of "SLR crouch" to get in and out - something owners will no doubt adopt. (Photo: Mercedes-Benz Canada) |
Of course, one of the big stories with this car is its carbon fibre bodywork. Carbon fibre has been used for some years in the aerospace sector - even for structurally critical military aircraft components. The material is also used for rudder units and wing flaps on several passenger aircraft. Use of the material has grown widely in the field of performance bicycles and most road or mountain bikes nowadays use at least a few carbon fibre components.
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| The SLR features a carbon fibre monocoque or, as Mercedes puts it, "passenger cell." (Photo: Mercedes-Benz Canada) |
According to Mercedes-Benz, carbon fibre offers the strength of steel or aluminum, but is generally 50 per cent lighter. The SLR features a carbon fibre monocoque or, as Mercedes puts it, "passenger cell." Since carbon fibre has very good energy absorption, the vehicle structure is highly crash-proof. The engine is mounted to the front of the main body structure using huge aluminum castings bolted to the carbon fibre "firewall" area.
