I just purchased a new 04 SL this past week.  Here's my impresion so far.  Keep in mind that I just came from a 2001 Lexus GS300, so I'm a little spoiled.  :-)

The car is a lot of fun to drive.  Very responsive, quick, quiet, etc.  The Bose 6 disk changer BLOWS AWAY the Nakamichi from the Lexus.  Very crisp bass from the sub, great highs... a dream!

The interior (as you may have seen already) is extremely modern and "space ship like".  This has a few challenges, however.  The biggest being that you really have to study the dashboard and learn where everything is... it is difficult to do by feel alone.  Luckily, the radio and cruise controls are on the steering wheel, so you are mostly only going to the dash for HVAC adjustments. (or Navigation computer adjustments.)

I really have only three "complaints" so far...

1 - The ride is not as smooth as the Lexus.  Most road bumps are tolerated, but the occasional minor (1 inch deep) pothole creates a rather loud vibration throughout the cabin. You also tend to experience a minor lean/roll in the seat when taking sharp turns.  Don't get me wrong, the ride is still very nice, but it does best at 70 MPH on the highway.

2 - On speed positions 4, 5 and 6, the HVAC blower motor makes a whisting noise.  At first I thought I had a vent closed, but I can't find one.  I plan to ask the dealer to take a look at this.  When the auto climate control decides to hang out in postion 4, I need to either manually turn it down, or break out the Advil.

3 - The heated leather seats take over 5 minutes to get to temperature.  This was MUCH slower than the Lexus, which would get warm after 60 seconds.

Overall, I certainly don't regret the decsion to purchase.  This is a great car, and certainly a great value considering I purchased the fully loaded SL for just a few hundred over invoice.  Great deal all the way around.

Good luck in your decision. I hope this helped.

-D