Mercedes-Benz SLK 200 R170
Year of manufacture: 1997
Power: 136 hp
Displacement: 1,998 cm3
Number of cylinders/valves: 4/4
Weight: 1,620 kg
Condition: perfect
Catalogue number: 23
Introduction
The Mercedes-Benz SLK class is the first generation of a series of compact luxury roadsters produced from 1996 to 2004. The name SLK can be easily decoded: S for „sportlich“ – sporty, L for „leicht“ – light, and K for „kurz“ – short. Essentially, it was a small and more affordable complement to the luxury SL convertible, based on the shortened W202 Mercedes C-Class platform.
Development
The SLK design, created by Michael Mauer and Murat Günak, was presented to the public on April 22, 1996, at the Turin Motor Show, where the automaker promoted it as a modern reincarnation of the 190SL model. Like its predecessor, the SLK features a four-cylinder engine and the same 2,400 mm wheelbase (the 300SL model, which the SLK also references with the double bulge on the hood, had the same).
Technical specifications
When Mercedes-Benz started serial production of the first SLK R170 model in June 1996, this roadster attracted attention not only for its attractive design, which bore the original signature of chief designer Bruno Sacco, but also for its completely new and revolutionary folding all-metal roof construction – the sporty coupe transforms into a convertible in just 25 seconds. This solution was openly copied by many other manufacturers. The basic principle of the hydroelectric roof mechanism was used not only in the successors SLK R171 and SLK R172 but also in the SL R230 and R231 models.
The foundation of the first generation SLK was a naturally aspirated two-liter engine without a supercharger, producing 100 kW, which however did not sell very well. The core of pre-facelift sales in 2000 was the 2.3-liter supercharged version with 142 kW, known as the SLK230. After the facelift, the 200K and 320 versions were added. For the former, the automaker added a supercharger, boosting power to 120 kW. The 320 version featured a naturally aspirated 3.2-liter V6 engine producing 160 kW. In 2001, the top offer SLK 32 AMG was introduced, which added a supercharger to the six-cylinder engine, increasing power to a very respectable 260 kW.
At the start of production, Mercedes was aware that in certain countries, taxes or insurance fees depended on engine displacement. This could be problematic because fees jumped significantly over two liters of displacement. The main 2.3-liter engine was therefore too large. Hence, for Italy, Portugal, Turkey, and Greece, Mercedes offered a two-liter engine taken from the naturally aspirated 200 version but fitted with a larger supercharger (Eaton M62) than the 2.3-liter version (Eaton M45) to compensate for the smaller displacement.
This version produced 141 kW instead of 142 kW from the larger engine. At the same time, the smaller engine had to have lower fuel consumption and emissions. Technicians therefore designed this version with an electrically controlled supercharger clutch that engaged around 1,500 rpm to prevent the engine from driving the entire supercharger unnecessarily at idle.
A total of 311,222 units of the first generation Mercedes SLK were sold, of which only 4,333 were in the AMG version.
