It’s no secret that Mercedes-Benz has almost completed work on the next iteration of its SL roadster, as the German company itself recently published several technical details along with official shots of the car, albeit still wrapped up in camouflage.
However, if these leaked scanned images of the 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL brochure turn out to be true – and from what we can tell, they seem genuine, you can get your first gander at Stuttgart new roadster model in the gallery after the jump.
The scans, which were posted on the Germancarforum website, confirm our suspicions that the all-new SL roadster carries an overall shape very similar to the outgoing model with several styling cues borrowed from the smaller SLK.
More or less, it's the same story inside the cabin, which is extremely SLK-like in the details, be that for the instrument panel layout or the center console design.
Underneath the sheetmetal, Mercedes tells us that the 2013 SL is constructed almost entirely (89%) from aluminum, with the exception of high-strength steel integrated in the A-pillars and the (even lighter than aluminum) magnesium in the rear panel.
The new construction has allowed the Germans to shave some 140kg (308 pounds) over the current model. According to Mercedes, "the effect is rather as if a heavyweight-class passenger had got out of the car and taken his heavy flight luggage, too".
The new SL retains the current model's retractable hardtop solution, while adding several new tech features such as an innovative windshield cleaning system, as well as new engine lineup.
Mercedes plans to reveal the next SL to the public for the first time at the Detroit Motor Show in January, but chances are that we'll have our first official look at the roadster model before the end of the year.
Story References: Germancarform
