1998 Mercedes-Benz SLK Mercedes reinvents the roadster. By Ray Thursby, New Car Test Drive .com

Sports cars have been with us in one form

or another for almost as long as there have been internal-combustion engines

propelling wheeled vehicles. At various times, the market for them has

expanded and contracted; one such period of shrinkage began in the late

1960s, leaving only a few contenders, most of them high-priced, to satisfy

the demand of a small but steady market for high-performance two-seaters.

Then came the Mazda Miata. Cute, fun and affordable, it was an instant

success. No real psychic ability was needed to see that other small, frisky

sporting machines would follow.

Now, there are three new members of the sports-car clan. All three--BMW's

Z3, Porsche's Boxster and the Mercedes-Benz SLK--are competing in a niche

slightly above the Miata, yet below stalwarts in the Jaguar XK8 and Porsche

911 class.

All three newcomers are impressive. All fit into a fairly narrow price

window centered at about $40,000, all are well-equipped, and all promise

as much over-the-road fun as most drivers can stand. Each carries a company

name synonymous with performance, quality and engineering, and each comes

from a company with plenty of sports car-building experience.

By the time the first SLKs hit the showroom, the little coupe/roadster

had already proven itself good enough to win the North American Car of

the Year award. Will it be good enough for you?