For three days now I've been behind the wheel of this Andorite Gray S65 AMG and I've probably burned enough fuel to run a soulless Japanese hybrid for two weeks. Call me a heretic, but performance like this is worth paying $10 a gallon.
Consider the numbers: The S65's twin-turbo V12 is a god among engines, making its maximum 604 hp at an undramatic 4800 rpm. It won't even break a sweat running up to its electronically limited 155mph top speed.
The Clock Man
Smart Fortwo CabrioletMSRP: $16,590Engine Displacement: 1,000ccNumber of Cylinders: 3Transmission: Five-speed sequential manual
Peak Power: 70 hpPeak Torque: 68 lb-ft0-60 mph: 12.8 sec.Official Top Speed: 90 mphUnofficial Top Speed: 92(with tailwind)
Overall Length: 106.1 in.Wheelbase: 73.5 in.Curb Weight: 1,852 lbPassenger Volume: 45.4 ft3Cargo Volume: 7.8 ft3
Combined Fuel Economy:36 mpg (mfr. est.)Fuel Capacity: 8.6 gal.Gas Guzzler Tax: $0
Mercedes-Benz S65 AMGMSRP: $194,000Engine Displacement: 5,980ccNumber of Cylinders: 12Transmission:Five-speed automatic
Peak Power: 604 hpPeak Torque: 738 lb-ft0-60 mph: 4.2 sec.Official Top Speed: 155 mph (limited)Unofficial Top Speed:190-plus mph (ec est.)Overall Length: 205 in.Wheelbase: 124.6 in.Curb Weight: 5,035 lbPassenger Volume: 109.4 ft3Cargo Volume: 16.3 ft3
Combined Fuel Economy:13 mpg (EPA est.)Fuel Capacity: 23.8 gal.Gas Guzzler Tax: $3,000
More astonishing, however, is the torque: 1,000 Newton meters, or 738 lb-ft, peaking at just 2000 rpm. It's enough to run the car to 60 mph in 4.2 seconds, according to Mercedes' own test data. That's faster than a lot of so-called sports cars.
Plus, the car is a sleeper. The only clues as to its innate performance being subtle aerodynamics alterations, gigantic brake assemblies, and of course the Biturbo V12 badging. Aside from those things, it looks like just about any other Mercedes S-Class.
I find myself prowling the town in this car-this massive, 2.5-ton limousine-hunting unsuspecting American musclecars to blow off the road. On top of 738 lb-ft of torque, I've got dynamic lateral bolsters that inflate to keep me firmly ensconced in the infinitely adjustable multicontour AMG sport seats. The sun glowers through the tinted panoramic glass sunroof, but I've got cool air blowing up through perforated leather to keep my backside temperate in the 90-degree heat. I'm even getting a massage. The satellite radio is tuned to a classical station. Wagner's "Flight of the Valkyries" swells through the 14-speaker Harman Kardon surround sound-quite appropriate, I thought.
The sequence plays out over and over. The light turns green, I hammer the accelerator. The rear end squirms momentarily before traction control hooks up, and the car explodes off the line. Once the initial thrust begins, power delivery is preternaturally smooth and linear, your only clue to your actual velocity is the subtle g-forces pressing you into the seat and the cacophony of mechanical Armageddon roaring out of the polished, AMG-branded exhaust pipes. Past half throttle it sounds more like an outlaw offshore boat than a passenger car. Surrounding vehicles fall into the S65's wake like so many wind-blown leaves. For all of 4.2 seconds, I rule the street.
Contrast this five-seat cruise missile with the little white egg sitting next to it, the Smart Fortwo Cabriolet. Only a car company as prolific as Daimler AG could give us such a study in extremes. Where the S65 is the epitome of excess, the Smart is its antithesis.
Smarts have been sold in Europe since 1998. This is the second-generation version and the first developed to survive the SUV-enamored American market. Seventy Smart dealers have been scheduled to open this year, around two-thirds of them store-in-store operations within existing Mercedes-Benz dealerships.