Where each one leads
Mercedes-Benz SL-Class
- Against cars of the same year, the Mercedes-Benz SL-Class comes out better in New York safety inspections (fails 61% less often than average) than the Nissan 350Z (fails 28% less often than average).
Nissan 350Z
- Fewer Nissan 350Z cars in the Netherlands carry an illogical odometer record (12.3% against 15.9%).
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
| Mercedes-Benz SL-Class | Nissan 350Z | |
|---|---|---|
| Model years in the US safety record | 1996–2013 | 2003–2009 |
| New cars registered in Europe | 21,089 (2010–2022) | — |
| Licensed in the United Kingdom | 14,178 | — |
| On the road in the Netherlands | 3,368 | 820 |
| In traffic in Finland | 520 | 116 |
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
| Mercedes-Benz SL-Class | Nissan 350Z | |
|---|---|---|
| UK MOT first-time pass rate | — | 72% |
| … against cars of the same age | — | +25% |
| New York safety inspections failed | 0.8% | 1.6% |
| … against cars of the same year | −61% | −28% |
| Illogical odometer records (NL) | 15.9% | 12.3% |
| US owner complaints | 31 | 657 |
| Most complaints about | Service brakes, hydraulic | Suspension |
| Model year with most complaints | 1998 (12) | 2003 (275) |
| US recall campaigns | 7 | 3 |
| Manufacturer service bulletins | 102 | 521 |
| NHTSA defect investigations | 5 | 4 |
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).
Fuel, emissions and price
| Mercedes-Benz SL-Class | Nissan 350Z | |
|---|---|---|
| Official combined fuel use, Canada | — | 11.9 l/100 km (2009) |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol | 17.1 l/100 km | — |
| Real-world use in Europe, petrol hybrid | 12.1 l/100 km | — |
| Official CO₂ of new cars in Europe | 270 g/km | — |
| Average power of new cars in Europe | 391 kW (524 hp) | — |
| Average mass in running order | 1,935 kg | — |
| Dutch list price when new (median) | €154,478 | €54,340 |
| Average odometer in Finland | 134,000 km | 158,000 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).