Mercedes-Benz has traveled to the Paris Motor Show to publicly unveil the electric version of its SLS AMG sports car. Â Dubbed SLS Electric Drive, the car is scheduled to go on sale in June of next year in its home country of Germany.
The SLS Electric Drive is powered by four electric motors that send a total of 740 horsepower and 737 lb-ft. of torque to all four wheels, making it the most powerful gullwing ever built. Â The car is capable of hitting 62 mph from a stop in a brisk 3.9 seconds before going on to a top speed that is electronically limited to 155 mph.
Feeding the electric motors is a 400-volt battery made up of 12 modules of 72 lithium-ion polymer cells. The battery is housed within the carbon fiber transmission tunnel, which is structurally integrated into the EV's body shell. The battery gives the car a maximum range of 155 miles. Due to the addition of all-wheel drive, the SLS's front suspension had to be redesigned for the electric version. Whereas the standard SLS employs a double wishbone axle, the Electric Drive features an independent multilink suspension with pushrod damper struts.Â
To offset the gain in weight that is brought on by electric motors, Mercedes has constructed the SLS Electric Drive's body out of aluminum. Â Visually, the biggest difference between the electric SLS and the gasoline-powered model is a grille that is similar to the one that is found on the A-Class.
When it goes on sale, the SLS AMG Electric Drive will carry a base price of €416,000, which converts to roughly $535,558. Whether or not the car will be offered in the United States is not currently known.
