cntlaw

I have done 7K km at 6th month of the C55.
Here , I could only have little occasions to drive fast, and max. I done was 185kmh. Here the roads are rough and bumpy, no matter how comfortable the C AMG is designed , the stiff suspensions do bother me on normal driving on rough roads.

I have two thoughs:-

1. Sell the C55 at its peak resell price and order a CLS500.
Reason:- CLS might be more comfortable and it is fashionable now, and I cannot afford CLS55 or else...

2. Sell the C55 and order a SLK55 only drive at weekends or when I feel like it. Then, get a 1.5 litre Toyota for day2day drive to work.
Reason:- While the C55 is already too sporty for day-to-day drive here on rough roads; why not I get a more pure sport car like SLK55 for max. fun.

Anyone can tell me if these ideas are stupid or wise.
:p

MercedeSChink

totally get the slk, but get something like a vitz or something small also, cuz you live in hk and i know its a pain drivin in hk with big *** cars...

Childish///AMG

Option " #2" sounds like a winner

rockintunes23

Buy a cheaper car, and give some of that money to charity! You should be ashamed of yourself for wasting all that money on a stupid ugly looking car! People like you make me sick.

rguy

Cntlaw,

Keep the faith brother. Stick with your C55 unless you bought it to be fashionable, in which case, excuse me while I vomit. Otherwise, the SLK55 is still kind of feminine, definitely more masculine than the previous generation, but not all the way manly. The C55 is a rockin' car and it handles better than many many other cars out there. If you can correct for its handling balance with car control and slip angle, you can even exceed the manufacturer's expectations of performance. The SLK isn't much smaller than the C and it has four doors with a rear seat and a real trunk that is useable all the time. My mom has an slk and she loves it, but then again....she's a senior citizen who doesn't go to the grocery store or drive long distances and doesn't ever go anywhere with anyone, so who needs the back seat? My point is, owning an AMG isn't about resale value. It isn't about a plush ride. It isn't about having everyone at the club want to know you or go home and sleep with you. It is about balanced performance and understanding that a car is more than a hunk of metal powered by gas. It is understanding that an AMG is more than something that takes you from A to B. Maybe an AMG isn't right for you and you made a mistake. But please, if you don't like your AMG now, don't buy another one. Get the CLS500. Otherwise you will never be happy, and you will lose your butt continuously going through cars like this. Hope this helps guide you.

BklynBenz

jealous are you? how do those sour grapes taste?

cntlaw

Thanks for a good analysis and all so true.

Same as many C AMG owners here , I went through a hell of analysis before a decision. The last 7000km driving proved it all - not one doubt matching what you said, the perfect choice for day2sday plus fun and sports.

The little frustration isn't the car but the damn roads here. I am hopefully getting over it by putting the the minimal tire pressure needed


cnt

rguy

Cntlaw,

Thanks for realizing I wasn't trying to be hard on you. I just felt a decent dose of reality might be just what you needed.

Crap roads are crap. (Stunning and profound, huh) They are the bane of the motorsports enthusiast's existence.

Anyway, as I reported on your other thread (and I know you pay crazy Hong Kong dollars to get stuff imported in), but you should be able to switch out your springs for about $500 US. That would certainly be cheaper than losing thousands of HK dollars by selling your car. Look into it. Report back what you think.

Take care.

cntlaw

Thanks. There have been mix feelings about our roads. HK is a tiny city surrounded by seas and over 80% of our lands are maintains. Hills roads are full of bumps damged by overloaded trunks. ( Only Tuen Mun highway and ToLoKong Highway are now in better road quality and is exciting for the C55 or any sports cars.)

Wonder if replacing the springs does it mean I need to change the suspensions too? Anyone done that to a C55 ?

Cheers

rguy

I know of more than one extremely respected aftermarket mercedes tuner that would say if the shocks are new, leave them alone.

cntlaw

Agreed
Anyone can tell me is it safe to use 33 psi at rear and do a 200km/h on straight raod and say 130 km/h cornering? Anyone tried that?
If I keep the rear to 33 psi , does it mean the tire will wear out quicker ?
Sound stupid but I need to know if anyone tried using low tire pressure to race a bit ? All I have been hearing are ppl here use very high psi such as 35 at F and 38 at R , these figures would make my car jumping a lot on bumpy roads and it seems it is dangerous to drive fast on bumping roads with these high psi settings.....
cnt

rguy

Drag racers will use twenty to twenty-four pounds of pressure for traction. Off-roaders will use twenty to twenty-four pounds of pressure for sand and rock crawling.

The point is that to an extent every pound under the tire manufacturer's maximum PSI rating, more contact patch is with the ground and so more surface wear. At some point there isn't enough tire pressure to keep the car off the ground or to transmit impact to the suspension, so the wheel absorbs the impact and usually bends or cups. Lastly, if you use too low a tire pressure, the tire can come off of the wheel while driving.

For safety, I wouldn't go much more then twenty percent below the maximum recommended tire pressure, which you can find on the sidewall of the tire itself. That is cold pressure by the way. That means no driving it to a fuel station and checking there. If you do measure at a fuel station, subtract up to four PSI to calculate the cold tire pressure. Happy motoring. Hope this works as a guide, but not a gospel.

Exercise caution. Good luck.

cntlaw

Fine. tks. 20% less from 37 psi means 30 psi for the rear is ok. Well, I am actually very happy with present's 34-35 psi. The tires does not look pressing softly when parked still , so I guess it is 'ok'.
When I do measure psi at gas station I drive slowly from home to get to the nearest one , which is about 10 mins drive ; so I guess the tires air is still cold, right?

I also have a small tire pressure meter, the trouble is , its reading is 4 less than the one in the gas station I used to go.
I know I should buy another gas meter for regression testings. :p
I like the front tire to be 33 psi as the control feels more senitive and more reactive to ways I steer.

Lastly, I just don't believe anyone can use the C55 as a day to day car with 33/37 on roads in HK :p :p

rguy

If you drive slow and the station is very very close, then I would subtract 2 psi from your reading. However, your home gauge of reading pressure is reading 4 psi lower than the gas station. Perhaps you should consider that they are both right. The home gauge is reading cold pressure and the gas station meter is reading warm pressure.

Refer to my above post of the effect of tire warm up and the 4 psi difference. Do the math and I am sure you will understand what I am saying.

rguy

PS

Since I am in the habit of repeating things. Also remember that my 20% rule of thumb was for cold pressure, or if you prefer, home gauge pressure before you drive the car for the day.

cntlaw

I definitely will sort out this little puzzle in order to get precisely what psi I want to put in to test various conditions.
BTW, my 'home gauge' is a small portable device, actually I never guaged it in the parking lot. I guaged using this device when I reached the gas station; then compared the readings with the airpump in that gas station.
Next round, I will gauge it before I leave home and use the same device to gauge it again when I reach the gas station. So I can tell if that trip distance has affected the temperature of the tire pressure or not.
And, I will buy another portable gauge for sake of ease of verification.

BTW, have you heard your backseats rattling a little when the rear wheel roll over bumps. I found the rear left side back seats rattling more than the right side rear.


cnt

rguy

Your home gauge being used at the fuel station is a different story indeed. Usually gauges are extremely reliable because people's lives depend on their durability and accuracy. That discrepancy becomes more concerning with your new explanation.

As for the backseats, no rattle. Maybe a problem at the SA plant? I do have the driver's door panel rattle from the woofer placement and panel design though. Sometimes I can adjust things to where it stops, but it always comes back eventually.

cntlaw

rguy
I guaged with my friend's digital guage today. My device shows an error of 3 psi higher ; so the conclusion is the gas station 's reading was correct.
I discovered this morning, the actual tire pressure were F 30 , R 32.
Later on the day, I pumped them to 32, 34-35, which feels very stiff now but not as bad as 33/37
:p

neoprufrok

While the peak resell is right now by virtue of an always depreciating product, that doesn't mean its the best time to resell. You've lost a ton of money buy selling only 7k miles or one year into the car's life as depreciation has not yet stabilized.

You probably already know that though.

HollaBack

Hey what's so wrong about wanting everybody at the club to know you and having women come home to sleep with you? That's what I bought my car for (E500) ! But I think the CLS may steal some of my action !

rguy

You can buy an E500 for that. No problems. Just don't buy an AMG for that. If you search my post, you should be able to find I was commenting about AMG's and not regular mercedes. Ultimately though, you are going to figure out that you want women to come home with you and want to know you because of who you are and not what you drive. Good luck finding yourself and discovering you are more valuable than an E500.

cntlaw

Not all nice ladies like crazy drivers

HollaBack

That's OK. I'm not looking for Mrs. Right, I'm looking for Mrs. Right Now!