Any one who owned sl500, please chime in.

I'm thinking on potentially getting a new weekend, nice weather car and I have been looking around at options that usually fall in the "cars I always liked" category. (The 308 stays, of course)

Among few choices is the 03/04 SL500.

I'm curious as to what you guys have to say as far as the owner's experience. It seems like the car has a soft spot with many owners, but on the other hand I did read many comments that the models have their faults which include air suspention components, etc. I do not mind maintaining a car, but like anyone else I'd prefer not to pay crazy $ to keep it in good condition. Obviously, I'd look at a well maintained car.

Thank you.

 

I've got a '98 SL500 I'm going to let go. White/tan, about 28K miles I think. I have cared for it perfectly. Original owner. Meticulous care.

Never a problem. Except that time in Miami when I thought fog was coming out of the AC vent as I looked at the drivers side mirror. I realized the "fog" was outside the car, coming from around the mirror, when a little flame came out.

It was nothing really. Just interesting motoring stories. New carpets and under hood pad last year. About perfect.

They all will eat up tires in about 12K. Really. I couldn't believe it. You might get more but you won't want to.

Nice boulevarder and date night car. Will hustle if you ask it to. I've always been easy on it. A Sunday driver. But I did DD it for a short time.

 

I believe the active body control (ABC) is an expensive repair waiting to happen. I've never read of a preventative schedule to keep the servohydraulics from leaking past the valves once the fluid gets contaminated with metal particles from the valves. Maybe regular fluid changes/flush would help (every 30k miles perhaps?).

I know if I ever bought one of the SL, S, or CL from that vintage the suspension system would be gone through throughly before buying the car, and completely serviced with new hoses and fluid change at a minimum. Not sure if it is a DIY job to change the fluid, it incorporates the steering pump as part of the system. I've successfully changed the PS pump in an ML, but that is much simpler than this system.

IIRC this is an issue up until about 2008 model year when they made changes to the system.

 

Get a PPI by a MB dealer, and have them triple check the suspension system.

Occasionally, the output shaft on the transmission can act up, which will cause a whining sound (after the car has some time to heat up).

If you want more of a "drivers car" look at the pre-2003 SL's. The airmatic in the 03+ models isn't to everyone's taste. IMO, airmatic is clunky around town and begins to float once you reach 80mph. I do like being attached to the road and involved in what the car is doing--call me crazy for liking that.

The did offer some Designo packages which add a bit to retail price. If you haven't looked at them, do check them out.

There is a V60 bluetooth puck that can be inserted in the old Motorola cradle that will connect with most "smartphones". The puck costs about $450 from a dealer.

 

i would consider the sl55 (amg) instead of the sl500.
however, both the sl55 and the sl500 had "issues" with the abc suspension, especially before the second generation abc was introduced in 2007

check out my post (#54) after clicking on the following link:
http://ferrarichat.com/forum/showthread.php?p=140318230&highlight=sl55#post140318230

 

I went round and round and went down the path of a bare metal restoration of a pre-cat 450SL.

 

FYI: there is a nice SL55 AMG forsale at Flemings Ultimate Garage in MD. Asking $36,990

Tony Fleming is a good guy to buy a car from.
http://www.flemingsultimategarage.com/2004-mercedes-benz-sl55-amg--c-1700.htm


Hand built 5.5 liter supercharged V-8 @ 493hp! F1 style paddleShiftable 5-speed auto, active suspension, mirror finish java black paint, black leather power seats, Heated and air-conditioned seats, power folding hardtop, 19” custom alloys w/ fresh hi-speed radials, factory navigation, Harmon Kardon sound w/ CD changer, rain sensing wipers, Xenon lights, originally $120K MSRP! A true daily driver exotic, great looking and fast.
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^^^Be wary of aftermarket wheels on MB. They will bend and vibrate if they aren't perfect. Welcome to the nutty land of Benzville. Those on the SL55 are quite atrocious to boot IMO.

 

I would avoid this dealer like the plague.

Unfortunately my boyfriend has bought a car from them that is no where near the condition they claimed. The cars are no where near the quality that they advertise, and by no means offer the customer service that advertise.

Their rating with the BBB is an F.

This car has been in his possession for less than 5 months. The car was supposed to be a frame off restoration a show able drivable car. This car has never seen inclement weather. It is stored in an temperature controlled garage. It has been driven less than 200 miles.

This is what they consider a quality floor replacement.... It appears to be put in with liquid nails.



This car also has several spots of rust through in the under carriage and supports.





The paint looks great on the upper half of the car but once you get it up on a lift in decent lighting.. you find

Runs in the paint



The paint is cracking



Oh these are supposed to be new quarters and fenders.. Why are they rusting





Oh I could get into the mechanical issues with this car too... The rear end which is supposed to be new is anything but.... The brakes were locking up..... The exhaust knocks even you go over a small bump. We give them credit the inside of the car is beautiful. Even the clock works but he bought a car to drive.

Here videos of the car....

First Flemings video to be fair...

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yIusq6sKdog[/ame]

Now ours...

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RnhPyMLFElQ[/ame]

Oh I have more proof if interested. I also have been contacted by over a dozen others who have had similar dealings with Flemings.

Yes my boyfriend got to look at the car BUT the lighting was in their favor and they would not open the garage doors for better lighting when he he tried to look under the car. It drove decent on their test drive BUT the drove around the block. The mechanical issues occur once the car is warmed up. Yes he contacted Flemings their answer was he is SOL with this car. The 1 year warranty they hook you in with doesn't exist.

The point of my post is to warn others away from Flemings Ultimate Garage. Google them and look deeply. They sell a few decent cars but many more that are not what they are advertised as.

 

Hi everyone,

I would like to say thanks for the comments and links on the subject. Very much appreciated.

Mike.

 

Let me just say having worked as a car salesman for my friend's dealership in my younger days, its wrong to totally blame the dealership for everything. They didn't make or manufacture the cars, they are in the business to buy wholesale cars and sell them at retail prices. Its the consumers job to do their homework, have it inspected to their liking, pay for a PPI if you have to.

I would agree that Tony is a slick salesman, its his job to be. But I would buy a car from him any day. Why? Because I do my homework, know what I'm buying usually, and whether I buy from the Mercedes dealer down the street or a used mom and pop shop makes no difference to me, if the deal looks good in my favor, I will do it. I bought a brand new Mercedes a few years ago from the Benz dealer, 3 years later it started acting up, a total lemon. So glad I traded it for a Toyota. My point is, its not the dealer, sometimes bad things happen to good people.

Fleming's sells lots of different cars, your friend chosed to buy a 43 year old restored car, the world is not perfect. You had plenty of opportunities to have it checked out before you bought it. Oh well, I do wish you the best and hope you get some enjoyment of driving the car then being more interested in a museum piece all dolled up.

cheers.

 

I agree and disagree with you position on the salesmen. While it is certainly the responsibility of the buyer to understand the pitfalls of buying a used car, it is also the responsibility of the salesman to be honest about specific questions on the car.

Let's take an SL500 for example. If a buyer were to ask if the dealership had to correct anything on the ABC system, the salesman should be honest if they just patched it up to keep all four corners of the car level and the dash light off. In my experience most would claim ignorance if anything had been done, and wouldn't exactly knock themselves out trying to find out back in the garage either.

Ironically information like this is really what separates a real salesman earning his money versus just a warm body trying to close a deal. There are good salesmen out there and they tend to keep a loyal group of buyers coming to them again and again. For the rest, potential buyers become cynical and don't believe a word they say and only half what they write down.

 

this is honest good advice.
if practiced by a used car salesman, however, not many cars would get sold!
caveat emptor!

 

I have owned three 129-series SLs (1991 SL300 5-speed, 1994 SL600, 2001 SL500) and one 230-series (2004 SL600). All have had issues that IMO are unacceptable in a car with that kind of price tag. I can second the comments others have already posted in this thread about leaking ABC systems in the first years of the 230-series SLs. My '04 SL600 also had electrical problems with the seatbelts that proved very costly to scope out and fix. Whether its a MB dealer or independent shop doing the work, nothing on the SLs is cheap to fix. Perhaps that is one of the reasons their values drop like rocks as they age. Keep these issues in mind when considering a purchase and out-year costs.
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I may be wrong, but I think there was a SL 350 R 230 without air suspension.

 

A friend of mine is a Mercedes tech and has warned about how expensive the suspension is to fix/replace. There are coilover systems that can be purchased to replace the air suspension for much less I believe.

 

The SL350 (from what I remember) was available without air suspension, but not sold in the USA.

As for the coilover kits, they are readily available for all models except the SL65's.

Regarding maintenance costs, it's a Mercedes. They break. When they're working right, they're probably the best cars in the world. You can't cram as much technology into a car as MB does an expect it to work like a Toyota. Figure $3k per yer running costs max. Additionally, figure in a $2-5k deferred maintenance cost to be spent within the first week of ownership. If you are looking at either a SL600 or SL65, then you can plan on $4-15k "restoration" cost within the first week of ownership. By "first week of ownership" I mean, take the car to either a dealer or an indy before you even put plates on it. Drive it 5 or 10 miles before you register it, make a list of everything that's wrong, then dump it at a shop to have everything fixed (as well as whatever the shop finds that needs sorting).

 

It was a rite of passage for some of the boys in church youth group to take the wheel in a respected mentor & church member's SL.

Given what I knew then, now & has been confirmed by prior posts on this thread . . .

What about the few generations of SLK?

 

The SLK's have never quite tickled my fancy. Seems kind of like the Porsche Boxster/Cockster--only buy them if one can't afford a real 911. No offense to anybody that owns one! *flame suit on* I did however take a spin in an SLK55, and that is a different story. The M113 in it really draws your attention away from what the car really is. Quite a hoot. Maintenance cost wise, the SLK would be significantly less than the SL's. One word of warning: stay away from any SLK made prior to 2004. They are junk (at least the ones I've seen).

 

SLK always seemed like a softer, slightly more flabby take on the Boxster. It is more a cute cruiser than a real sports car IMO. That is fine if that is what you want. Even back in the early days, you couldn't get a manual in the AMG versions.

The SL in all its versions for the past decade seems like a luxurious (and often quite fast) convertible two-seater that would be a great second or third car, but other than a straight line I wouldn't think it would be all that much fun as a driver. Again, only a slushbox transmission, although I think the most recent ones have paddles available for it.

Who wouldn't want an SL65 with three pedals? Even the SL65 Black had a slushbox IIRC.