Mercedes SL v Porsche 911

I have a '94 Mercedes SL, and I was wondering, would it out-handle a car of the same vintage?

I know the handling of the modern 911s is very good, but I hear the old ones were constantly hampered with that rear engine, being very snappy at the tail.

I know when pushed the SL goes round corners like its on rails, and when you finally do reach the limits it lets you know in a very progressive manner.

So I what is the verdict? Does would the SL outhandle a '94 911?

Reply to
Oliver Keating
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In the hands of average drivers, maybe, sometimes. If the 911 is being driven by somebody that knows how to drive them... not a chance in hell.

Reply to
Richard J. Sexton (At work

Never. No way. Not even close.

Reply to
DS

Yes. The "old ones" you're thinking of are *very* old - the tail-out wildness of the 911 was pretty much tamed by 1994 :-). The

911 will outhandles the SL because the SL is a grand tourer rather than a sports car, and though Porsche has been gradually leaning in that direction itself, as it's buying public gets older and more into creature comforts, it's still a heart a sports car and in the upper limits will show its stuff. If you rarely cross the century mark while driving and don't go to the track, the SL should be more than sufficient - they're very good cars in their own right. Emanuel
Reply to
Emanuel Brown

The thing is, I took my '94 SL to the track the other day. And I never realised just how well it handles. Yes, it is very comfortable and un-sports car like in that respect, but I kid you not it will outhandle virtually every other sports car.

I was just wondering, because I know people think of the SL as a bit of a joke car when it comes to handling, a pretend sports car. But it really isn't

Reply to
Oliver Keating

Bold words, Oliver :-) How hard did you push it in the turns? In my experience, the suspension on the SLs is too softly sprung to handle aggressive driving, though the engine performance is there. I suspect a bout in a Porsche on the same track would change your mind about your SL's handling. Emanuel

Reply to
Emanuel Brown

No question about the Porsche. It has to be the 911 or nothing, as all the model sales testify. The 968 was excellent by all accounts. Wasn't it or something similar even seen as a potential successor to the 911 by the management?

DAS

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Reply to
Dori Schmetterling

: The 968 was excellent by all accounts. Wasn't it or : something similar even seen as a potential successor to the 911 by the : management?

Yes... it's called the Cayenne :-)

---Brett

Reply to
the game, man.

The 928 was the intended 911 replacement, when Porsche thought the future lay in front-engined cars with serious horsepower. It was named Car of the Year by almost every publication going at the time, but it just didn't catch on. The 911SC was essentially a bug-fix version to cleanse the taste of the 2.7L cars from everyone's memory, but by 1980 they'd decided to keep the 911 around. Emanuel

Reply to
Emanuel Brown

Yes, sorry (also to Bill D), my typo. I meant the 928, not 968. I think we are agreed that nothing sells like the 911, however good it is.

DAS

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Reply to
Dori Schmetterling

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