Mercedes-Benz SLC review

The SLC was never a Boxster-baiting sort of sports car when it had a K glued to the bootlid, and the same is true now. Think of the car as a shrunken SL instead (rather than a real-world AMG GT) and it makes much more sense – this is your comfortable, insulated, 365 days-a-year all-weather roadster. Even an Audi TT feels more agile – and much more modern inside.

The AMG SLC 43’s new twin-turbo 3.0-litre V6 alters its character from lazy hot rod to far revvier, raspier noise-maker, but it’s still a fairly nose-heavy, comfort-not-speed kinda car. Stiffening the dampers up in the various modal settings serves only to make your passenger wince as the windscreen frame creaks and flexes, betraying the design’s age. The top-selling 250d diesel version is, probably, all the SLC you really need…