Captured: Brabus 800 Roadster

If AMG isn’t crazy enough for your tastes, you have two options: commit yourself, because you’re obviously unstable, or go see Brabus. The German tuning haus specializes in amping up Stuttgart’s finest luxury sedans.

 

Case in point is its latest offering, called the 800 Roadster. Yes, it’s based on a Mercedes-Benz SL65, and yes, the number 800 is an indication of horsepower. It also has over 1000 pound-feet of torque (1047 to be exact). For reference, the McLaren P1 hypercar that debuted earlier today only has 663 pound-feet of torque, while the 6.7-liter, Cummins turbodiesel, found in the Ford F-650, pumps out a mere 800 pound-feet of torque. It’s not until you start looking at commercial trucks from companies like Mack and Peterbilt that you start finding higher torque numbers. That’s how bonkers the 800 Roadster is.

 

Top speed for the Brabus 800 Roadster sits at an impressive 217 miles per hour. Thanks to the quick-shifting AMG Speedshift transmission (which is somehow able to cope with the extreme torque), the 800 will hit 62 mph in just 3.7 seconds, and can double that speed after an additional 6.1 seconds.

 

Through some bizarre association, extreme performance must mean extreme looks. Brabus has given the standard SL a pretty thorough going-over. The two most obvious changes are the 20-inch wheels and their accompanying low-profile tires. By Brabus’ standards, they aren’t horrible. We doubt even the SL’s excellent suspension tuning can save the 800 Roadster from a rough ride, though.

 

The other big addition is the carbon fiber hoodscoop. We find it a bit much, but it at least appears to be functional. Other changes include tweaks to the body kit, with a more racier look overall. As a whole, it’s clearly an aftermarket car, but it’s not really gaudy or too showy.

 

The interior has been doused in leather. Leather seats, leather footwells, leather floor mats, all of which feature quilted stitching. It’s a bit much at first, but the craftsmanship appears quite good, and it certainly adds to the bespoke appearance of the 800.