2005 Mercedes-Benz SLR McLaren

We've seen the misleading spy photos, heard the underestimated performance claims, and doubted the production delays (exaggerated, by the way). The SLR is a breathtaking 600-horsepower super Gran Turismo that leapfrogs its steel-bodied GT rivals. It'll be here next spring--there's already a two-year (1000-car) waiting list--and we've driven it. Well, at least a near-production prototype.

Rocketing away from a stop, the SLR's acceleration is severely limited by grip. The AMG-built supercharged twin-intercooled 5.4-liter V-8 (now said to be producing about 600 horsepower and just under 600 lb-ft of torque) overwhelms the specifically designed Michelin rubber. While the engine shares its displacement, architecture, and location of manufacture with other AMG products, we're assured the overachieving V-8 is SLR-specific and takes almost twice the time (about five hours) to build as any other AMG production-car motor. Thanks to the car's low 5.1:1 power-to-weight ratio and slippery shape, a mid-11-second quarter-mile time is an easy estimate to make.

The only transmission offered is a next-generation AMG five-speed automatic with SportShift R. Three shift modes are available at the twist of a knob: Comfort, Manual, and Sport. In Manual, there are three additional shift programs with varying degrees of aggressiveness. While button-actuated upshifts in this mode seem only slightly quicker (we're talking milliseconds) than in other AMG SpeedShifts we've driven, the downshifts are brilliant.

Steering is predictable as engineers wisely chose to avoid a fashionable and robotic-feeling electro-hydraulic system. Instead, the SLR uses a conventional unit that ramps up to a fixed-ratio just above idle. Turn-in is beyond crisp, and the car's tendency is to oversteer on its rather short wheelbase (around 100 inches). Likewise, the suspension is decidedly old school, favoring development driver-tuned Bilstein coil-over dampers over AirMatic electronically controlled shocks and springs. The same praise cannot be applied to the car's brakes, however.