WuTangAZ

Hi everyone, this is my first post on here.
I'm 19 and strongly considering getting an old Benz with around 100K miles for around $4K. I know that's sort of high miles but I also know these older Benzes if well taken care of can run for hundreds of thousands of miles and MBs are usually much better taken care of than your average Honda or Ford.
If I go with a W209, what are the things I should look for or be concerned about? After what amount of mileage are problems most prone to start happening? How would you value miles/dollar, like if there was one with 20K less miles, would it be worth spending an extra $1K? What are the most common and most feared problems with these cars and how costly/labor intensive is it to fix? Have you had any problems with your CLK?

My girlfriend's Uncle was a MB mechanic for 20 years and would come with me to check out whatever I'm considering and since he misses working on the cars, he would help me with any labor virtually free of charge. And he says he can buy parts for cheap but my girlfriend has a pretty wealthy family that only drive MB's so I'm not sure if his definition of "cheap" lines up with my own.
He also recommended staying away from anything after 02 because they started relying on computers more and far away from S Classes as he saw S Classes the most regularly and can be very expensive to fix. Would you say this is a fair assessment and to stick with a W208? Sometimes I see CL's or 03 CLK's come up at fair prices on craigslist and they look pretty tempting.

Any info and input's greatly appreciated. I've been thinking about this for a year now and everything worked, I'd definitely rather have an 01 Benz than an 06 Accord.

I've seen plenty of these over the past year but here are the type of ads I see. Tell me why you would or wouldn't buy some of these.
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/cto/5727929147.html
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/evl/cto/5728627502.html (I notice the bumpers slightly loose on the passenger side)
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/nph/cto/5724973327.html
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/wvl/cto/5664244646.html
https://tucson.craigslist.org/ctd/5711558621.html

superfectabx

I have a 2002 CLK bought it used, It had 134K miles on it. Now I have 199354 almost 200K on it.. The only thing I have replaced is steering damper $35.00, Center Link $185 2things that were bad due to age of the car.. Other than that NO leaks, car runs strong. Love this car. Of course regular maintenance, oil change, air filter, transmission serviced, sparkplug replaced. Good Luck.

WuTangAZ

Thank you very much for your reply. Obviously your experience isn't universal but it makes me feel good to hear about someone buying a CLK at 100k+ miles and getting another 100k out of it. I won't even be driving that much so it will probably take me years just to add on 50k.
Couple hundreds in repair here and there aren't bank breaking, I'm just scared of a $1,000+ repair within a year or so. I'd be taking that risk with any car though.

These are the 2 ads I'm REALLY considering. If I could feel confident either of these cars would last me I'd buy them either in a second. Anyone have any input on which I should go with?
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/cto/5705805858.html
https://phoenix.craigslist.org/cph/cto/5727929147.html

superfectabx

You have to know a little or at least have someone go out with you that knows about car. Make sure there are No oil leaks, how does the engine sound, Wheel vibration, brakes? you can tell the thickness of the pad by looking at it. AC works? Radio Works? Just check everything cause each one that doesn't work will cost you $$ to buy the parts. That gray one is like mine. Here's mine.

2MERKS

Wise beyond your years!! Most of us at 19 yr old was probably driving a very old beater...lol
The CLK to is a very strong vehicle. I own a 99 which has 118K on the dial, and if i could ever figure out how to add pics i would post my ride.
Whichever you decide get a PII !!
GL

exhaustgases

And you know you will need to keep the girl friend as long as you do the car if you want the uncle to keep helping on it. He is your main key to these cars, I think they are one of the better looking cars on the road, and the power train in them is very robust, I think the biggest problem with Mercedes anything is the electrics, and having access to the proper diagnostic programs and other service information. I like a lot of the things that were done for build quality on the Mercedes cars, even the simple things like jack points, that was at least something that was thought out well, unlike cars like Lexus that brag about the pursuit of perfection yet have one of the dumbest deals for jack points, right on the flimsy fold over pinch weld under the rocker panel. So keep everyone here posted on how it all goes, and what you end up with.

MarcusF

The CL is a two door S-Class. They're gorgeous (I like the 216) but they can cost a fortune. The suspension bits are a good example. The shocks are $1K per corner.

If you're considering a W208, I recommend limiting your search to 2001 and 2002 models. This article explains why. If you're considering a W203, you may want to pay close attention to the radiator. Those early W209 Valeo radiators are known to fail. Although they're old enough now to have all been replaced. The CLK is bulletproof when maintained. That's part of the problem. Some people simply ignore the maintenance because the car appears to run well. Spark plugs are the biggest regular maintenance item, and they should be done every 5 years or 100K miles - whichever comes first. Here's the maintenance schedule. If you like power, you may want to restrict your search to V8s. Most of the problem areas are well known by long term owners, so rather than reinventing the wheel, you may want to search or start a thread. I hope that endless rambling helps.