Although there is some overlapping in price and performance, the lighter SLS AMG is considered more of a sporty track-oriented car, compared to the heavier and more luxurious Mercedes-Benz SL which is a grand tourer especially with its optional V12 engine.

[14] Compared to the SLS AMG Roadster, the SL is a hardtop convertible with technological and comfort amenities, and it also has available heated seats with a massage function.

[17] The SLS AMG was assembled largely by hand, with its chassis and aluminum body shell produced by Magna Steyr in Graz, Austria and then transferred to Sindelfingen, Germany for assembly, with its engine being hand built by AMG in Affalterbach, Germany.

[18] The SLS AMG was officially introduced at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show, and sales commenced in mid-2010 in Europe[19] and in mid-2011 in the United States.

[20] AMG SPEEDSHIFT DCT 7-speed dual-clutch automatic is connected to the engine through a lightweight carbon fibre driveshaft in a transaxle arrangement.

[22] The SLS AMG has double wishbone suspension with forged aluminium control arms and coilovers, front and rear.

The SLS AMG has a retractable rear wing which extends at a speed of 120 km/h (75 mph) for stability and handling and acts as an airbrake when braking.

The SLS AMG includes 9.5x19-inch (front) and 11x20-inch (rear) AMG 7-spoke light-alloy wheels with 5-twin-spoke wheels and 10-spoke forged wheels available as an option, 265/35 R 19 front and 295/30 R 20 rear tyres, a tyre pressure monitoring system, Formula-1-style LED fog lamp/reversing light, black diffuser insert, dual exhaust tips with chrome finish, an electronically retractable rear wing automatically deployed at a speed of 120 km/h (75 mph), choice of 9 exterior colours including the AMG ALU-BEAM silver (an approximately US$12,750 option applied at a specialized location in 7 layers by hand after the surface of the car first receives additional polishing and finishing, with each flake of paint aligned to create a gleaming sheen of bluish silver that has the appearance of molten silver, a labour-intensive process that restricted Mercedes to only 2–3 cars finished in that colour per week[31]), designo magno allanite grey (matte), AMG magno sylvanite grey (matte) and Mars Red (metallic), an instrument cluster with LED upshift indicator and two white backlit dials, COMAND APS multimedia system with its 7-inch screen between the two centre air vents, AMG DRIVE UNIT facing the driver, E-SELECT shift lever, Nappa leather upholstery, solid metal and (optional) genuine carbon-fibre trim; choice of five leather colours for the interior upholstery (black, classic red, sand, porcelain and light brown), sports seat backrests made from magnesium, sports seats with two-zone seat cushions and four-way lumbar support and optional Memory package (three configurable individual settings), integrated head restraints and sporty transverse fluting upholstered in designo leather (in optional classic red, sand and porcelain), performance leather steering wheel in a three-spoke design with 365-millimetre rim, a 3.7-litre glove compartment with a spectacles section, a 176-litre luggage compartment, carbon-fibre driveshaft at the rear axle, AMG SPEEDSHIFT DCT 7-speed sports transmission, 3-stage ESP with acceleration skid control system, optional carbon ceramic brakes (an approximately US$12,500 option), and a 1,000 watt stereo system (an approximately US$6,500 option).

[39][40][41] Various minor changes and variations ensued, as identified below, with a very small gain in power (though the torque remained identical) and in the case of the final edition in model year 2015, certain visual add-ons (a fixed spoiler and carbon-effect).

Full-LED headlamps, AMG 10-spoke light-alloy wheels with smooth-surfaced design, 265/35 R 19 (front) and 295/30 R 20 (rear) tyres, AMG Drive Unit angled towards the driver, sports seats made of quality Nappa leather in a black/white colour combination, performance leather/Alcantara steering wheel and the door linings, centre tunnel.

[48] The drivetrain has been in development since 2010 as a result of the cooperation between Mercedes-AMG and Mercedes AMG High Performance Powertrains in Brixworth.

Notable changes include a sequential six-speed racing transmission with shift paddles mounted on the steering column, an integrated multi-disc locking differential and traction control, adjustment facilities for the springs and shock absorbers; the suspension height, the stabilisers, the track width and camber; a rack-and-pinion steering with a more direct ratio and servo assistance, AMG 18-inch light-alloy wheels, a steel racing braking system with racing ABS, seat shell (individually foam-padded, featuring the HANS (Head And Neck Support) system located in a high-strength carbon-fibre (CFRP) safety cell, a six-point racing harness, an optimised fire extinguisher system and the central display positioned within the driver's field of vision.

Official introduction took place at the 2010 New York International Auto Show[50] followed by Puebla in Mexico,[51] and the 2010 Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance.

Features includes an exposed carbon fibre hood with central air outlet, carbon fibre front splitter on the front apron, fixed carbon fiber rear spoiler from the SLS AMG Coupé Black Series, the choice of 2 exclusive AMG forged light-alloy wheels (inlaid in matte black with the spokes and rim flange in a high-sheen finish, completely painted matte black highlighted by a pencil thin high-sheen rim flange), designo magno graphite matte body colour (from the SLS AMG GT3 "45th ANNIVERSARY"), struts of the rear apron in high-gloss black, red-painted brake callipers, 265/35 R 19 (front) and 295/30 R 20 (rear) Dunlop Sport Maxx Race Cup tires as a no-cost option, designo Exclusive leather upholstery in a diamond-stitch pattern at centre panels of both the seats and the doors, contrasting topstitching in silver with black leather upholstery, silver seat belts, black floor mats edged in silver leather, high gloss carbon fiber trim, "AMG FINAL EDITION – 1 of 350" badge on the carbon fibre centre console, 3D seam (a fine strip of Alcantara) set into the leather-covered upper dashboard, contrasting topstitching in silver at 3D seam, AMG Performance steering wheel in Alcantara with a silver 12 o'clock marking and black metal inserts, high-gloss black surrounds of the air vents, sports seats with an embossed AMG crest in the head restraints.

[8] The Japan model was set to be delivered in June 2014, which included 20 Coupés, 5 Roadsters, the choice of 6 body colours (Fire Opal solid, Obsidian Black metallic, Elysium Silver metallic, AMG Imola Grey (premium), designo Magno Graphite (matte) (premium), designo Mystic White 2 (premium)), black designo Nappa full leather interior upholstery with silver diamond pattern stitching at door centre panel, seat centre; anthracite roof liner, choice of 3 soft top colours for Roadster (black, beige, red), carbon fibre wing mirrors, Bang & Olufsen BeoSound AMG sound system and optional AMG Carbon-Ceramic brake discs.

Other notable highlights include electronically controlled AMG rear-axle differential lock with a shorter rear-axle ratio, new AMG RIDE CONTROL performance suspension (tauter basic tuning and electronically controlled two-stage damping, coil-over spring retainers to enable adjustment of wheel loads, elastokinematics 50 / 42% more rigid (front/rear axle), track width increased by 20 / 24 mm (0.79 / 0.94 in) (front/rear axle)), new wheel carriers on front axle and new front stabiliser tuning, matte black with high-sheen AMG 10-spoke light-alloy wheels in particularly light forged design with optimised strength (10 in × 19 in (250 mm × 480 mm) front, 12 in × 20 in (300 mm × 510 mm) rear), Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 sports tyres (275/35 R 19 front, 325/30 R 20 rear), AMG speed-sensitive steering with newly calibrated power steering characteristics, AMG ceramic brake discs (measuring 402 mm × 39 mm (15.8 in × 1.5 in) at the front and 360 mm × 32 mm (14.2 in × 1.3 in) at the rear) with increased hardness, wide flared wings with an added width of 13 mm (0.51 in) (front) and 26 mm (1.0 in) (rear) on each side, darkened headlamps and black surrounds for the rear lights, front apron and rear apron with diffuser along with side sill panels in Black Series-specific design (carbon fibre-reinforced plastic front splitter, carbon inserts in the side sills and the rear apron made of carbon fibre, enlarged air intakes with carbon-fibre flics), carbon-fibre bonnet with central air outlet, Alcantara black or Alcantara black/red interior AMG Performance steering wheel with Alcantara upholstery, metal bezel features a high-gloss black paint finish to match the high-gloss black surrounds of the air vents, Alcantara strip in anthracite across the entire width of dashboard leather with red contrasting stitching in the leather, designo leather and Alcantara upholstery (including bottom section of the dashboard, door centre panels and on the AMG sports bucket seats in Alcantara), deleted COMAND APS multimedia system replaced by a carbon-fibre trim element (COMAND APS is optionally available), AMG DRIVE UNIT, red seat belts and red contrasting stitching on the AMG sports bucket seats, the upper and lower section of the dashboard and the door panelling; floor mats with red edging and optional Bang & Olufsen BeoSound AMG surround sound system.

Optional AMG Aerodynamics package includes a fixed adjustable carbon-fibre rear aerofoil as installed on the SLS AMG GT3, rear aerofoil braced by aluminium elements on a special insert on the boot lid, additional carbon-fibre flics on the front apron.

[89] The production version was unveiled at the 2012 Paris Motor Show, with market launch initially scheduled for June 2013.

[92] The production number has been officially confirmed: only nine SLS AMG Electric Drive were sold to the customers worldwide.

[103] The SLS AMG E-CELL competed in the 2011 Silvretta electric car race that took place in the Montafon region of Austria.

[105][106] At VLN Nürburgring, the SLS AMG GT3 was admitted into the SP9 class with "Balance of Performance" set to 1,350 kg (2,976 lb) and 409 kW; 548 hp (556 PS),[107] and won its first race in October.

Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG branded shoes were produced and sold in collaboration with Italian designer Santoni.

A TV advert with Michael Schumacher telling the story of an experiment with the SLS AMG demonstrating its technical highlights from preparation and test phases to the realisation was produced.

The TV ad was premiered on 30 January 2010 on all major television channels with a 60-second roadblock, followed by a 45-second version in reruns until the end of March.

In addition, three editions of an online magazine provided extensive information on the performance ("Milliseconds"), the lightweight construction ("Milligrams") and the design ("Millimetres") of the SLS AMG.

[116] As part of the SLS AMG Roadster launch in the UK, a video featuring David Coulthard catching a speeding golf ball hit by professional golfer Jake Shepherd with a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG Roadster was produced, and was independently verified by a Guinness World Record adjudicator as title of farthest golf shot caught in a moving car.

[119] Minichamps produced a limited (197 units) edition of SLS AMG GT3 1:18 scale model car for the IAA 2013.

[122] According to a post on mbworld.org by a Mercedes-Benz executive, total U.S. sales of SLS AMGs several months earlier were as follows: 1,837 coupés and 884 roadsters.

[125] Designed to compete against the Porsche 911,[126] it relies on forced induction for its power and is available as a 340 kW; 456 hp (462 PS) GT and 380 kW; 500 hp (510 PS) GT S.[125] Moers was also quoted as follows: "Speaking to Autocar at the (2015) Geneva Motor Show, Mercedes-AMG boss Tobias Moers confirmed that the company has no plans to create a new supercar to replace the SLS.

"[127] In his review for Top Gear, Jeremy Clarkson praised the SLS AMG highly, saying it is "the greatest car on earth," noting that "it's more powerful than the Ferrari 458, louder than any Lamborghini, and it's way more fun than the 911RS GT Turbo 3S or whatever this week's ultimate Beetle (i.e., Porsche) is called.