Hi guys. Just wanted to say last night I became a proud new owner of an '05 50K mile C55! I'm very happy and proud to be able to post here as an AMG owner. Owning a Benz is a dream come true - owning an AMG is more so. I don't have any pics. except for the ones from the dealer. The car is stock with no navi or xenons, but a C55 is hard to find, so I decided to go with this. 1 owner, clean title. Car looks in great shape.

First impressions are that the motor is obviously amazing! Its very easy to approach highly illegal speeds. And of course the V8 sound makes me not want to use the HK system. Being used to mid-size sedans, the car is small, and I was surprised at the flimsy turn stalk, and door handle. The door itself is MB solid which was a nice surprise for a small car. AMG brakes and suspension are amazing. I really like the fact that the car is an all-motor no gizmo rocket. No SBC, no airmatic. Plain, simple, performance.

Is it normal for the temp. gauge to read slightly above the mid-way point? (Just above 80)?

In comparison, the E500 is no slouch. 302 hp and 339ft.lbs of torque starting at 2,700 rpms. The V8 hauls but, it doesnt' sound anything like the AMG V8. Is that the sound of the C55 exhaust or the motor itself?

Thank you all for helping me in my questions I had prior to buying the AMG.

 

Congrats! Sharp looking car

 

to answer some of your q's right above 80 is normal, these V8's run a little hotter than their american counterparts. and that noise you hear is compliment of the AMG mufflers makes a very unique sound for our girls.congrats though.... we are slowly building a C55 empire in the NY area i hope to see you around at our meets and cruises come spring and summer time

 

Congrats! I was starting to think I was the only C55 owner without navi and xenons. Beautiful car, enjoy!

 

i dont have those options either, oh well

 

I don't have navi but replaced my halogens with HIDs. And who needs navy anyways these days it comes on the common smartphone

 

im from the addadge of using an atlas or my man skills to find said locations ahha. that being said once i get a car with navigation ill probably use it to find my own house cause why not

 

Congrats.

I've had mine as a DD since July, these are fun cars.

 

That made me laugh!

Yeah the navi sucks any who. Sad to think that these systems date so much faster then the cars themselves.

Just wait until someone breaks into the market with upgradable OEM systems (with new features, etc... not just the disks). They already do this in Japan.... but i'd like to see a big OEM back it.

 

congrats! black & beautiful...

have you thought about what you want to do to it first yet?

some suggestions:
- upgrading headlights, as mentioned above. Beyond the looks, I find the xenons to be incredibly helpful (and I have HID fogs too) since I live in a dark, wooded area with tons of curvy roads, so being able to see clearly and far ahead is essential
- carbon fiber front lip would look great given your color, but depending on how much city driving you do, may not be a great option lol
- lastly, ENJOY!! I just hit 79k on mine and it drives like a dream, unbelievably smooth and trigger-quick... just take care of the baby and she'll keep taking care of you!

All the best!

 

Thanks guys for the responses! Good to know that xenons can be added. And yep the carbon fibre lip is on my wish list.

Took her out tonight and I can't get over the power, sound and handling. Nice features include auto dimming mirrors, and memory settings for ext mirrors.

I realize we have low profile 18 inch tires and a stiffer suspension but I'd like to ask if it's normal for the car to have a VERY stiff ride? I feel every bump and want to make sure my suspension is not failing. Despite tHat the car is incredibly tight so I suspect this is normal but I would like to verify.

Are there any brochures online? I once printed the car and driver tech specs for the car just to keep it.

Also is there any tech specs out there to read such as if the car has an external oil cooler? How about LSD? I noticed on what looks like a diff. The AMG letters. What is that?

Finally, does anyone race at etown? I take my supra there occasionally and now I have another reason to go!

Tks

 

I recall when I first drove mine I felt it was heavy and stiff compared with other cars (used to have a G35 coupe), but once I took it for a couple cruises on the highway and on some curvy roads, I quickly found out why it's so stiff (and thanked God for it)!

However, since you just got it from the dealer, there's no harm in getting it checked out by a certified tech, if only for your peace of mind!

Also, are you familiar with the gas pedal "throttle reset"? While unrelated to the suspension, it's a great way to give the car a blank slate and let it adjust to your driving / accelerating... Makes a huge difference for me after someone else has driven the car, so just generally speaking that's something you can do too! Hope this helps.

 

congrats on the purchase! if you feel the urge to get rid of your 500 as well and buy an e55, do not worry, it's perfectly normal.

 

Car was maint by an mb dealer, so I guess the stiff ride is normal.

Id buy an e55in a heartbeat, but I'm wary of the sbc system which the e500also uses.

 

The engine oil is cooled with engine coolant. The heat exchanger for it is bolted next to the oil filter assembly, it's the rectangular block with some shallow fins on it and two heater hoses leading to the timing cover / water pump. There are a few seals in there that can leak once the seals get old and harden. And they can be bloody expensive too, so best to shop around for the parts if they need to be replaced.

The car doesn't have an LSD stock, but Quaife makes a bolt in diff. Wish I had that possibility on my C43. Anyway, the thing with fins on it and labelled AMG on the diff is a heat sink to help cool the diff. So probably not a good idea to use the diff as a jacking point!

 

Tks for the tech specs! Any online brochures avail?

On a side note, this weekend I got to spend daylight time with the car and noticed there are michelin pilots up front but alpin snows in the back. According to tirerack, that's a no no. I emailed the service rep but got no response. Kicking myself right now for not having checked that during the test drive, but one would think a MB dealer wouldn't mix snows with performance....

 

True. Or... perhaps it's a sign from above that you need to get crackin on shopping for rims!

 

Check out Marcus' site:

http://www.marcusfitzhugh.com/CLK/

Very good info there, some C55 specific, some M113 (the big motah) specific. Also, if you google a bit, you can find some online content for the Car and Driver and Road and Track group tests from 04/05 where they compare against the S4. For the life of me, I cannot find my old copies of Evo where they group tested the C55 vs. E46 M3 vs. RS4. My buddy's got a copy though, so I just need to grab it from him and snag it. My recollection from that test was that a) they liked the C55's chassis and b) loved the motor, especially its torque and c) they predictably picked the M3 as the pick of the bunch...

 

Tks. much! Nice site! I'm not much of a tech. but I have replaced turbos, fuel pumps/injectors on the Supra, so I do enjoy learning about the specs of a car - esp. an AMG. Good to know engine parts are forged, and a timing chain is used.

Interestingly enough, I had printed and saved the standard test charts from C&D on the C55 a few years ago, even before owning one...

 

Congrats on the new ride! You beat me by a few days. So what is the first thing you are going to do to it?

 

Wow I'm not sure. I love perfoRmance over aesthetics any day. I added over 100 hp on my supra and drove years before upgrading from ugly factory rims to roh drifts. BUT I will say there is a beauty in stock too esp with a c55.

Having said that, I love the black grille and xenons upgrade. We have a shop here in Long Island that does the Eurocharged tune. $500 for 25hp is not too bad. I have to research that more with owners on this forum. Not sure if any other upgrades are required with this tune, or if it causes any adverse affects on the car.

I would LOVE to have AMG calipers in the back and can't understand why they didn't come standard. From looking at the pics thread there aren't many cars there that have done anything to their rear caliper$.

How about you? (I congratulated you in your thread).

Ps isn't the car amazing?!

Pss I love the way the hood opens straight up!

 

I know we have been writing on each others threads but it is okay because I won't get sick of talking about these cars. I came from 3 BMWs in a row. Two 330ci's (e46) and then a 335 coupe (e92) and this is just on a different level. I did some aesthetic stuff to them, but bought them all under a CPO warranty so never really got into the performance stuff in fear of voiding my warranty. Which was a good thing, especially on the 335 which was nothing but problems.

That tune does sound like a pretty good deal! I would def research it with some of the other members. Kind of interesting from my poking around on the site the last few days it seems people either are keeping them close to stock or going all out. I am truly considering keeping mine close to stock. Its so beautiful the way it is, and maybe focusing on getting it as close to new (replacing the minor blemish items) as I can. Or atleast starting there, I say that now but I am sure the mod bug will hit soon.

Completely agree with the rear calipers comment. It would look SOO much better. I have the xenons, and they are great (aside from a minor issue which you can read in my post) and the black grill is nice, thinking about doing it too.

Oh and I bought mine with 48,600 miles. Almost the same exact miles purchased at the same exact time.

 

What issues did you have with the 335? I've driven a modified one before (380hp?), but only in the rain. It felt quite quick enough.

I believe that many guys have upgraded to CLK63 front and rear calipers, but I'm fairly certain that 18"s will be required for that (a concern for me as I run a set of 17s for winter).

 

I had two HPFPs go bad on me, coil pack, steering column at 60k miles and various little issues. I started to feel like I had a loaner car more than my own. I have seen the one Alabaster C32 with the CLK63 calipers, looks great! I am in Florida so no winter concerns here!

 

Congrats gnma, she's a beauty! Welcome to the family! I can only speak from my personal experience, but for me nobody beats Eurocharged when it comes to ECU tunes for the C55. When you factor in initial price, top-notch customer service and free retunes (unless you are doing live custom dyno tuning), what they offer is unbeatable IMO.

As for the brakes, it seems that unless you plan on tracking your car, the stock discs and calipers offer more than adequate street performance, so the high cost of upgrading to the 6/4 AMG combo or aftermarket BBKs is more than most are willing to pay for what will essentially be an asthetic upgrade. I do agree though that it is a disapointment that the rear calipers do not visually match the fronts.

While you haven't stated what your intentions may be as far as mods are, I would assume that the turbo upgrades you have performed on your Supra indicate you will eventually be looking to extract all that the M113 has to offer If this is the path you choose, the greatest gains I have made have been with derestricting the exhaust (Kleemann headers, 2.5" dual exhaust, stock AMG mufflers) in conjunction with a custom Eurocharged remote dyno tune (+70rwhp on a Dynojet, YMMV). One look at the restrictive stock headers will tell you all you need to know. Total cost for me was approx. $2K with me purchasing the headers used, new custom exhaust work and the free retune from Eurocharged. Intake mods are pretty much limited to the Renntech CF airbox or a 55K intake setup. If you search the forum, you will see that the Renntech airbox is a proven power gainer, albeit an expensive one, even used. I would suggest checking here for a good primer for mods, Hooley has pushed the platform further than most would dare... https://mbworld.org/forums/c32-amg-c...arts-list.html

Regardless of what direction you choose, you will hopefully find this forum full of passionate and helpfull enthusiats that share our love of these unique and thrilling vehicles. Their experience and willingness to share has helped me more than I can put into words. I definitely walk in the footsteps of giants.

Enjoy!!