Mercedes-Benz SL600
What it costs to keep fuelled
$3,429a year, fuel only
The 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL600 is EPA-rated at 14 MPG combined (11 city / 18 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 1071 gallons, $3429 a year in fuel, or $0.229 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 1994–2009 run it averages 13.9 MPG, improving by 1 MPG over 15 model years.
The band is how far one gallon carries it: 14 of the 60 MPG this scale runs to. The square tick is the two seaters average, 21.4.
- Fuel, per year
- $3,429 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.229
- Per kilometre
- $0.142
- Gallons burned/yr
- 1071
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
Test figure — not a road resultSOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Start from the EPA combined figure for the model year — a laboratory test cycle run to a fixed procedure, not a road result. Where a year sold several engines or drivetrains, the trims are averaged and the trim count is printed beside the row so you can see how much averaging is behind it.
- Fix a pump price. This site keeps one reference price, $3.20 a US gallon, fixed JUL 2026 and printed next to every dollar figure it produces. It is an assumption with a date on it, not a quote — put your own price in.
- Fix an annual distance. Every annual figure on this site uses 15,000 miles a year, roughly the US average. A cost per year with no stated distance is not a number, it is a mood.
- Divide distance by economy for gallons, multiply by price for the year's fuel, divide price by economy for one mile. The per-kilometre line is that last figure divided by 1.609344 — the same money, in the unit most of the world drives in.
- Stop there. No depreciation, no tyres, no insurance, no servicing. This is the fuel line of the ledger and it is labelled as one; depreciation usually dwarfs everything on it.
gallons/yr = miles/yr ÷ MPG fuel $/yr = gallons/yr × $/gal cost $/mi = $/gal ÷ MPG cost $/km = cost $/mi ÷ 1.609344
The full method, the licence note, and what a test figure cannot tell you →
Re-run the ledger at another pump price
Every line above rests on one pump price. Here is the same entry re-costed at six others, because the price is the part that changes while the test sheet stays put.
| Fuel price | Per mile | 10,000 mi/yr | 15,000 mi/yr | 20,000 mi/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50/gal | $0.179 | $1786 | $2679 | $3571 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.214 | $2143 | $3214 | $4286 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.229 | $2286 | $3429 | $4571 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.250 | $2500 | $3750 | $5000 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.286 | $2857 | $4286 | $5714 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.321 | $3214 | $4821 | $6429 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.357 | $3571 | $5357 | $7143 |
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole service history, sheet by sheet
15 model years on file. Read down the combined column: a nameplate that got heavier shows it here long before any brochure admits it.
| Year | Combined | City | Highway | EPA fuel cost/yr | CO₂ g/mi | Trims |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 14 MPG | 11 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2008 | 14 MPG | 11 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2007 | 14 MPG | 11 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2006 | 14 MPG | 11 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2005 | 14 MPG | 11 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2004 | 14 MPG | 12 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2002 | 14 MPG | 12 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2001 | 14 MPG | 12 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 2000 | 14 MPG | 12 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 1999 | 14 MPG | 12 | 17 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 1998 | 14 MPG | 12 | 18 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 1997 | 14 MPG | 12 | 19 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 1996 | 14 MPG | 12 | 19 | $5500 | 635 | 1 |
| 1995 | 13 MPG | 12 | 16 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
| 1994 | 13 MPG | 11 | 16 | $5950 | 684 | 1 |
Where a model year offered several engines or drivetrains, the figure is the average across all EPA-tested trims that year — the trim count is shown so you can see how much averaging is involved.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Marked against the rest of the two seaters bay
Among the 105 two seaters models tracked here, the Mercedes-Benz SL600 ranks 90 on current figures, against a class average of 21.4 MPG — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: Ferrari 458 Italia (14.5), Audi R8 Spyder (15), Cadillac Allante (15), Chevrolet Corvette Z06 (15), Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder (15).
Tailpipe CO₂ is rated at 635 grams per mile, which works out to roughly 9.5 tonnes a year at 15,000 miles.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Mercedes-Benz SL600 get?
The 2009 Mercedes-Benz SL600 is rated at 14 MPG combined by the EPA — 11 city and 18 highway. Across all 15 model years in the database it averages 13.9 MPG, ranging from 13 to 14 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Mercedes-Benz SL600 cost in fuel per year?
At 14 MPG and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 1071 gallons — roughly $3429 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.229 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2009 model is $5500.
Has the Mercedes-Benz SL600 become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 13 MPG in 1994 to 14 in 2009 — an improvement of 1 MPG, or 8% across 15 model years.
Is the Mercedes-Benz SL600 efficient for its class?
It ranks 90 of 105 in the Two Seaters class on current figures, against a class average of 21.4 MPG. That is 7.4 worse than typical for the class.
Pull another logbook off the same shelf
Same class, nearest economy first — the ones a buyer is genuinely choosing between.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Cost per mile, per kilometre and per year are computed at a reference price of $3.20 a gallon over 15,000 miles, fixed JUL 2026 — set your own pump price. Estimates based on official test figures and average fuel prices. Real-world consumption varies with driving style, load, terrain and maintenance.
