Where each one leads
Ford Mustang
- On Canada's official test the most frugal 2026 Ford Mustang uses 9.1 l/100 km, the 2015 Mercedes-Benz SL 12.4.
Mercedes-Benz SL
- Against cars of the same age, the Mercedes-Benz SL comes out better at its first MOT test (passes 29% more often than average) than the Ford Mustang (passes 6% more often than average).
Only measures that do not depend on how many cars were sold: pass and failure rates against cars of the same age, ratings, fuel use and CO₂. How we compare
At a glance
| Ford Mustang | Mercedes-Benz SL | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1981–2026 | 1990–2022 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 55,766 (2010–2022) | — |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 12,016 | — |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 7,283 | — |
| In traffic in Finland | 1,553 | — |
EEA new-car registrations (CC BY 4.0) · DVLA licensed vehicles (OGL v3.0) · RDW (CC0) · Traficom (CC BY 4.0) · generations: Wikidata (CC0).
Reliability and problems
| Ford Mustang | Mercedes-Benz SL | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | 83% | 83% |
| … against cars of the same age | +6% | +29% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 1.1% | — |
| … against cars of the same year | −37% | — |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 68.9% | — |
| US owner complaints | 9,231 | 41 |
| Most complaints about | Air bags | Electrical system |
| Model year with most complaints | 2005 (705) | 1994 (15) |
| US recall campaigns | 81 | — |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 3,373 | 73 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 95 | — |
Complaint, recall and bulletin counts grow with the number of cars sold and are not adjusted for it. UK MOT: DVSA anonymised MOT results (OGL v3.0); New York: DMV inspections; complaints, recalls, bulletins and investigations: NHTSA (public domain); odometer: RDW (CC0).
Safety
| Ford Mustang | Mercedes-Benz SL | |
|---|---|---|
| NHTSA overall rating | 5★ (2027) | — |
NHTSA New Car Assessment Program, most recent rated model year (public domain).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Ford Mustang | Mercedes-Benz SL | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | 9.1 l/100 km (2026) | 12.4 l/100 km (2015) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 13.9 l/100 km | — |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 266 g/km | — |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 332 kW (445 hp) | — |
| Average mass in running order | 1,851 kg | — |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €85,667 | — |
| Average odometer in Finland | 92,000 km | — |
Canada: NRCan Fuel Consumption Ratings, most frugal version of the latest year (OGL Canada). Europe: EEA monitoring of new-car CO₂ and on-board fuel meters (OBFCM), CC BY 4.0. Price: RDW catalogue price (CC0). Finland: Traficom (CC BY 4.0).