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All - I am looking at a pre-owned MB and I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice. Let me start by saying that:
1) I have been searching/lurking this forum and have learned a lot
2) I will definitely have a pre-purchase inspection before I do anything
I've run across a 1999 CLK-320 Cabrio with 44K miles on it. It's at a local Jag dealership but the salesman I'm working with sold it to the previous owner when he worked at a previous dealership several years ago.
It appears to be in excellent shape -- I called the MB dealer that did all the maintenance work and they reported that everything was serviced properly and at the proper intervals. The top (canvas) has been replaced and the car looks good.
For me, this car would not be a daily driver. I live in Minnesota so this car would be a third car (My wife has a Jeep and I drive a Murano), used strictly on weekends during the non-winter months. I would expect to garage it during the winter and from the looks of things, this is the same way the previous owner used it. The dealer is asking $8,995, which I think is high but we'll do some negotiating when the time comes.
Is there anything in particular, I need to be keeping in mind as I look at this purchase? I'm not naive about the higher cost of MB maintenance/ownership but I still want to make a smart and informed choice.
$9k for a 44k mile Cab with a new top seems like a steal to me if it is as nice and well maintained as you say it is. The only big issue would be to see if top hydraulics have been serviced.
$9k for a CLK320? Seems high to me. Sure, it's really low mileage, but some stuff just goes bad with age. Make sure everything rubber has been replaced fairly recently. It's got a timing chain, so you don't have to worry about that, but you still have the serpentine belt, all the suspension bushings and other rubber bits (ball joints, tie rod ends, etc) and others. The hydraulic system is one of the most common repairs, and it can be pretty damn expensive. There is a hole in the trunk liner that can be used to view the fluid level. You can find instructions on top hydraulics website. If it's not within the two markings, or it doesn't look clean, walk away or ask for a steep discount. A full cylinder rebuild from TH is somewhere around a thousand + labor, pretty easy to do the disassembly yourself and just mail them the cylinders though. If the pump is bad, that's another $600 IIRC for a rebuild.
Hello all. I tried to respond to some of you way back shortly after I joined but somehow things got gummed up.
Suffice it to say, I bought the car and got a GREAT deal. I drove it during August and September and then garaged it for the summer. I'm about to bring it out this month and am looking forward to spending more time on the forum.
Congrats on the purchase and the car appears to be in great shape as a pre-face lift example of the W208, ready for the local MB car show!! Beautiful car
08-08-2016, 02:16 PM
