If you follow our Twitter feed, you might know that we were at a super secret unveiling of Mercedes Benz brand new 6th generation SL in November. Flown down via private plane to their design studios in Carlsbad, we were sworn to secrecy, our phones confiscated, thrown in a van and blindfolded. OK, we weren’t blindfolded but you get the idea. After an hour-long strip tease, where they showed us first the chassis, then several really cool innovations — including placing bass speakers at the foot of the front seats, allowing the woofers to use the surrounding aluminum as its own echo chamber — they finally pulled the curtains off their signature drop-top. What we saw was quite beautiful — a move forward for the Tri-Star, who had lost a bit of its convertible touch after the iconic “R1o7” SL that lasted (incredibly) from 1972 to 1989. The new 2013 SL takes the last generation’s design and updates it with touches from its SLS AMG supercar, including its headlights and erect profile. The interior cabin has also been fully remodeled, the idea being that the driver is wrapped around by the dashboard and center console. It’s made to feel significantly different whether the driver is driving with the hardtop down or up. Racecar vs. Tourer. Well we were supposed to wait till tomorrow for the embargo, but today photos leaked out via Germancarforum so we’re posting them up now. No word yet on powertrain, but it is known that the 6th generation 2013 SL will lose 308 lbs. Not a bad diet.