Jason Harper

May 26 (Bloomberg) — How does one describe the sensation of hurtling from a standstill to 60 miles per hour (97 kilometers per hour) in 3.8 seconds?

Snugged into a heavily bolstered seat in a $300,000 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series coupe, I’m about to get a real-world illustration. The 661 horsepower, twin-turbo, V-12 is strangely silent, a snake coiled in wait, until I stomp on its proverbial tail, going full on the gas. It strikes immediately.

Imagine the sudden snap of a heavy rubber band. Then imagine you are riding inside that rubber band. There is a sense of violent separation from the road, then a firm hand pushing you back into the seat as both turbos unleash. The engine’s outrageous 738 pound-feet of torque fires you down the road like a projectile out of a rifle barrel.

And here’s the best part. Keep standing on the gas and 60 mph sweeps by as you rush toward the electronically limited top speed of 199. Rock stars, arms dealers and other unrepentant bad boys of the world take notice: The SL65 Black Series is a machine for you.

The evil shop elves at Benz’s AMG performance arm took a pre-existing model, the $100,000 convertible SL550, and had their dark ways with it.

They removed hundreds of pounds of weight by substituting carbon fiber on the roof, fenders, trunk lid and hood, and then shoved in the largest engine they could fit. After adding the meanest body panels and front end they were able to conjure, the easygoing convertible became a fixed-roof coupe for maximum rigidity.

Limited Edition

The result is a car so full of bad attitude and drunk power that it appeals only to speed-loving scoundrels, so it’s probably a good thing that Mercedes is making just 350 worldwide, with 175 coming to the U.S. AMG makes a performance version of every Mercedes model, and there already is an extreme version of the SL (the SL63), which starts at $200,000 and has a V-12 engine making 604 hp.

Yet some dark force inside the halls of Stuttgart decided that a few models should get uber-extreme treatment, earning the “Black Series” moniker.

Last year, we had the first example, the 2008 CLK63 Black Series. Fewer than 400 were produced at a price of $135,000, and Mercedes says a few are still available.

I first drove the SL65 Black Series last March during the Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance, near Jacksonville, Florida. The classic car show brought out hundreds of beautiful and exotic cars, from super-rare Bugattis to flawless Ferraris.

Not Pretty

It was hard not to compare the SL65′s blunt and muscled exterior to the finessed and elegant styling of classic SL models on display, especially the mid-1950 300SLs with gullwing doors. With a flat roof and wide, aggressive fenders, the SL65 is striking, but not beautiful. (Mercedes is creating a new supercar with gullwing doors, called the SLS, out this spring.)

Nonetheless on Amelia Island’s arrow-straight roads I got loads of attention even among the rest of the exotic hardware. Part of it was simply the roaring sound from the massive engine. There’s simply no mistaking it for a plebian Benz.

Sadly I got few chances to see how it handled on curves, though the staggered-size Dunlop tires (19 inches in front, 20 in back) grabbed the road tenaciously, even when charging from a standstill.

The brave or idiotic can turn off the stability and traction controls, but I’d suggest doing so on a wide-open parking lot and pre-dialing 911.

Unfair Fight

Using all that prodigious power to overtake other cars is devilish fun, though it’s about as fair as a fistfight between Mike Tyson and Captain Kangaroo. Have no doubt that you’re the bully of the highway. Other drivers will cringe as you blast by and a wave of V-12-produced sound crashes over them. Even Dick Cheney would be afraid of this thing.

The five-speed automatic transmission is programmed to rev the engine to match downshifts and can be manually shifted using behind-the-wheel paddles. Still, it’s a long way from some of the great transmissions I’ve tested recently, most notably the seven-speed dual-clutch system on the new Ferrari California.

Suspension is stiffer than a double martini and will leave you feeling just as bad the next morning. It’s not a car you’d choose for long trips and only accommodates two. You also lose one of the SL’s greatest charms — the folding hardtop.

The all-black interior is spartan, with lots of exposed carbon fiber and a smaller steering wheel with the bottom squared off.

Considering the price, even the rich might consider opting for the “regular” SL65, saving a cool $100,000 and retaining the folding roof for sunny days.

Then again, if you’re the kind of outlaw who drives a Black Series, you probably have no interest in sunshine.

The 2010 Mercedes-Benz SL65 AMG Black Series at a Glance

Engine: Twin-turbo V-12 with 661 hp and 738 lb-ft of torque.

Transmission: Five-speed automatic.

Speed: 0 to 60 mph in 3.8 seconds.

Gas mileage per gallon: 12 city, 18 highway.

Price as tested: $301,750.

Best feature: The incredible torque.

Worst feature: You can’t put the top down.

Target buyer: The unrepentant bad boy.

(Jason H. Harper writes about autos for Bloomberg News. The opinions expressed are his own.)

To contact the writer of this column: Jason H. Harper at Jason@JasonHharper.com.