moviejimmy

Should I get a 01 CLK55 or a 02 C32 for the same money?
Which one is more fun to drive?
Which has a better resale value 2 years down the road?
Many thanks!

FrankW

jimmy:

you will not likely to get a 01 CLK55 or a C32 for the same money. my friend has bought a used 01 CLK55 with less than 7k miles on the odo. the selling price of that car was still $69k just a few thousand below the original window. that was only last december. of course the price might change since the new CLK is coming out in September.

as for the price of the new C32. i got my C32 for $62 out of door including the $2k extended warranty. the only option i didn't get was the Command system. Most likely you won't be able to order a 02 model now. if you order a 03 C32 the price will be slightly different, maybe by few hundred dollar. the 03 model will have an additional option which is the parktronic, but i'm not sure how much it would cost. the xenon option for 03 will also be upgraded to become the bi-xenon option. the price of the bi-xenon i believe it will be the same as the current xenon.

as for the resale value, the CLK55 will likely to drop like a stone once the new CLK55 hits the market in another 15 months. the C32 will have a better resale value because the next C-class is not due till 05 or 06.

i have driven both my own C32 and my friend's CLK55. i feel that the CLK55 is a little heavy which causes the car to be more tail happy. the C32 although have slight understeer, it is very well balanced. CLK55 does have more torque and the g-force upon accelerating feels much stronger than the C32. i would say that the C32 is the car i would perfer as daily driver and CLK55 to be a weekend fun car. the C32 have less bodyroll than the CLK55.

note: the C32 is slightly faster than the current CLK55.


best of luck on making your choice

Frank W

vinmanc32

Do you want two doors or four?
Do you want sexy or conservative?
Speed isnt the issue because both are blazing fast. As mentioned above the C32 is a bit more nimble, but it is a newer technolgy auto than the CLK. The new one should be much better in the handling department. I think the CLK looks great but I am a fan of four doors for practicality. I cant see you getting them for the same price unless the CLK is used and they are giving you a discount because of it. Otherwise you will be paying at least 10k to 15k more for the CLK. Whichever you decide, best of luck and enjoy.

Accord

The C32 will, without a doubt, have a better resale value two years down the road, due to the fact that you are purchasing an 02 rather than an 01... and the CLK55 is an 01, which will be the old body style, that will KILL it's value once the new W209 CLK's are out in North America.

Either way, you cannot go wrong with either one, although, I would go with the C32 .

Boo2

If it's the same price, take the CLK55. Can't really tell the difference between a 01 & 02 CLK55 anyway.

FrankW

actually i think the rims are different for 01 and 02...not sure...i might have to check again.

Boo2

Oh yeah rims, doesn't matter since you'd want them bigger anyway. 17" just doesn't cut it as far as looks (proportionally) - although dropping the car makes a difference.

Goldeni245

The front looks fine, but the car overall just looks plain dumb. The interior is very nice in my opinion and i like the 500 engine series but other then that, i would much rather prefer the old style CLK's. Unless MB overhauls the new CLK's in the future like maybe...W210?

Dang, I thought CLK's would have a great resale value even in the next 10-20 years. Considering very few people own CLK's compared to other mercedes models. I thought it would turn into a classic...like those flipped wing SL's back in the 50's. I heard Mercedes Coupes with the star on top are in high demand and are worth alot in the future That's one of the reasons why i convinced my folks to get a CLK320 instead of a C320.

Goldeni245

I would pick the CLK55 over the C32 because of just the looks of the car. I mean...there's a certain look to the CLK that the C just doesn't have. I can't describe it...it's just...something profound that hits someone when they see a AMG CLK 55. it's something like..."HOLY SHIAT!!! That's a hella nice car!!!!" or..."Dayn...That's some wicked and sick shiat"

But performance wise...i'd choose the C32 AMG just because I think it would handle and the supercharged V-6 sounds very cool, better then a CLK55.

I think there's a CLK32 coming out in the future, i guess you could wait for that if you have the patience.

vinmanc32

Now where did you hear about a CLK32? that must have been at hooters after a few brews. I would love it if AMG offered its array of engines in all the cars so you could pick your poison but, not happening. They are going to continue what they are doing just for the exclusivity factor. You may see more since they've hired more people, but that would be asking for a bit much. I hope its true, but I dont think so. Let me know the source of that one..

Goldeni245

i really heard about the CLK32, somewhere...i don't know if it was true or not, but i know i read something in the magazine about it.

vinmanc32

That would be more than interesting if MB actually produced a car like that. This actually seems more in line with their marketing strategy. A heavier, older technology V8 doesnt seem to follow. Dont get me wrong... I just love a spunky V8 which this is, but the smaller just as powerful V6 would really be nice. Nicer still would be the V8Kompressor..... but when I woke up I realized that was not an option.

c32aus

In last Nov, I had the option of buying '01 CLK55 with 1.6K miles for $59.5K or a new C32 for $57K. Went with C32. Why? I just liked the comfort and the 4 doors.

Accord

The W210 is the current E-Class, and the W211 is the new E-Class.