I have owned, driven, and had access to over a 100 cars in my lifetime. From Porsche 993 C4S, Bentley mulsanne S, Rolls Royce Seraph, BMW 850i and a S55AMG to the not so brilliant but still had its place in life Acura CL 97, Porsche 944, and an old 1985 500sec(miss this thing). I considered myself qualified to write a review on this car and wish to share everyone's thoughts about it.




Just how good is this car. BTW, this review has zero to do with reliability, maintence cost, & blah blah blah. Go buy a lexus and don't have those conversations with me. Anyways, back to my thoughts.


My current car is a S500 02 that I pretty much use daily. Its pretty much my beater, work car, etc. And, I have grown quite accustomed to it. When I go test drive new cars. My ol W220 sets the standard for everything. Including any car released today that I ride in, own, or test out. And, for the most part it beats almost everything. In the last 5 years the only cars that I have enjoyed more was the Maserati quatroportte, A G500 Mercedes, and a supercharged XF Jaguar L. I was most impressed with the jag. For any of those three I said I would get rid of my w220 when it was time.


I had a Mercedes ML that was bought new back in 01. Been in the family for years. Lot of people thought My S500 was my baby but nope. It was a range rover till it got totaled by a dodge ram at 40mph to the side. (walked out without a scratch) and I acquired that ML. I had three of them over time including that one and none of them ever gave me a single problem, minus that crankshaft sensor.....


Fast forward to 4 weeks ago. I decided to sale the ML. It was just time to let go. Got a great price for it and the new owner got a great SUV. Thus my search began.


I do not buy new cars anymore, I bought one in my life time, that was the first ML. 40k down and I drove off the showroom floor, 20k in options added inlcuding sound, rims, kit, all within three years have to sale it for 15k . that was a 45 thousand dollar lost and a 45k lesson....


So, I buy used. I don't care about new or old, I just like to be comfortable and not take a depreciation hit. I usually buy a car, drive it for 2-3 years, and sell it for same or more than what I paid. I have owned 34 cars in the last 15 years and honestly, minus maintenance, I have not lost a dollar on any car I ever owned since that first ML


I drive a lot, Work alone is 60 miles of driving a day 5 days a week and I don't mind, I like to drive. I wanted something to get me the same comfort as my ol S class but with a little more modern feel. This lead me to look at 2003-2005 CLK and E classes. They are super cheap on the market now. You could buy one, put 10-20k miles on it and sale it for what you bought it for. So, that's what I was looking for.


c3*&#%list is a great place. Even when im not looking for anything I'll just cruise the place to see what people are selling. When I was a little boy I use to read the classifieds in the newspapers, good times. While searching, low and behold, a CL500, same year as mine. You would faint if I told you the price.


I originally thought that the pictures were a lie. I learned about buying cars over the internet early in life and that a picture can make a 5k car look like a 20k. So when I went to see it my expectations were so pretty low. Honestly I thought for the price I would buy it, tow it home, and for the first time I would just part out a car. I never done that but I know people that have made serious money doing so.


The car,,,,, WAS PERFECT. I couldn't believe it, ABC, every button, every option, paint, interior, engine, everything was flawless. It looked and felt and drove like a brand new car. I know this cause I had a under warranty S55 that I got from my father and this CL feels and handles and drives exactly the same minus the brut force torque of power. I drove this thing looking for a reason not to buy it. There has got to be a leak somewhere, valve covers, nope perfect clean, ABC issue, nope, suspension noise, quiet as a cat walking on carpet. There was nothing wrong. Always maintained, serviced perfectly at the dealer its entire life. There was nothing wrong with it.


So, one cash transaction later The car was mine tax, title and licensed. I love new used car dealers. Ones that are more interested in customer satisfaction than making a but load of money. There's a story on how he acquired this car, I'll save that for another day. But literally, the heavens and stars aligned for me to have that car that day. He had 30 messages on his phone from people saying they had cash or a loan already to buy the car and I was just the first one to show up with cash in my pocket (had just sold the ML)


I have never felt more comfortable in any car I have ever drove in all of my life. I am comparing this to everything, even a rolls and the Maserati. The seats, the wheel, the suspension, the amenties, the smell, the touch, the style, It is quite possible the most perfect car for a single individual. No, its not the fastest, quickest, most luxurious, or even the most head turning, but ....... It does everything all at once very well. I have never felt so ...serene , not sure if that's how its spelled, being behind the wheel of a car before. Im 5'7 and about 138 pounds and it fits me perfectly. I like large cars. A also like fast ,luxurious , special vehicles. before this my all time favorite car was the 850i bmw. I had one of those from 02-09, but this, this w215 CL kills it.

My father had the old coupe from the 90's and I had the one from the 80's and ive been in the new ones. None of them are a w215. I never felt inspired to go for a drive except for in the 850i. I really think this is a perfect car (minus maintence and upkeep and repairs, remember where ignoring all of that).


In two weeks, I had to replace one ABC hose and one radiator hose. Ive spent maybe 200-400 so far but it is great. BTW the radio wasn't working when i bought it, forgot to mention that, but I have become an expert at fixing fiber optic radios thanks to the W220 and when I bought the car the guy couldn't believe it when I fixed it in 2 minutes in front of his face.


Look, My CL500 might not be everyone's cup of tea. And, I wasn't expecting to fall in love with a car. Especially not this one. I kinda just fell into it. I am a proud CL owner though. I would have bought one years ago had I known it felt like this and damned the depreciation. But, I have it now. And, with the help of this board, I plan on keeping it forever. I feel bad for buying this car just to make a profit or to part it. But, the second I saw it, the second I drove , Been in a trance ever since. I wonder if you all feel the same. If anyone would like to chime in on this thread I would be most interested in why some of you have this car and how everyone feels about It. To everyone, happy

 

I have an '04 same color as yours. I've owned it 5+ years and it's still a pleasure to drive every time I get behind the wheel. It's an amazing car.

 

Care to share what you paid? I just purchased an 03 CL600 and my jaw dropped when I first saw it in person. I paid 13k for a well maintained 51k V12TT. It almost seemed too good to be true. I fell completely in love at first site and all I can think about is upgrading the stock 18' amg rims to 20' vertini monaco's. Checked the abc fluid and it's slightly dark so I'll flush it as soon as possible. My dad owns an SL55 and he waited until his ABC dash light came on (first time merc owner). Went to flush the fluid and they said his pump was on it's last legs. Thankfully for me CL6 there's not a single warning on the dash so far, and I want to maintain it before there's even a chance for a light to come on. That 0 to 60 in 4.2 is truly stunning and the luxury is top notch. As Jeremy Clarkson said, "the CL600 is the bargain of the century". I couldn't agree more. I wasn't expecting so much car for so little money, but man was I wrong.

 

Sure, why not. 02 CL500 120k miles on the clock. only thing broken was the radio when I bought it. Fixed that in a second. I paid 5k cash and was out the door, zoom zoom zoom. I sold my ML320 2001
with 126k miles for 7k so I still have 2000 extra to throw away. actually im saving it for any repair bills I may have. I was going to use it to buy the coil over suspension but for now the ABC is maintainable. As long as it works I wont castrate it.


I know your loving that CL600. The 600 series also scared the heck out of me. my perfect balance was a 500 with airmatic. the coil packs and abc always kept me away. im learning the abc system and it doesn't seem to bad. and , with the coil over available now im more inclined to take the risk now. I did already change my ABC fluid, don't let that stuff sit in there to long if its brown already. I would be scared to drive it if my abc was that color. Enjoy that v12tt, I know I would.

 

$5000 is an awesome price

Beat up old Honda civics cost more with twice the miles

 

Amazing deal on an amazing car, get the ECU and TCU tunes and you will leave your dads SL55 behind.

.

 

Wow, 5k is a fantastic deal!!

Well, since posting my first reply, my abc tandem pump "went out". I was driving a little vigorously and the abc warning light came on (the drive carefully warning) and I immediately drove it home. Fluid was leaking out of the pump everywhere. Called a local indy shop and scheduled an appointment for the following morning. The red abc light was on when I drove it to the shop. They said the pump was shot and recommend replacing it with an oem 2k pump with a 5 year warranty. I said I wanted to talk with my dad first, as he already dealt with this exact issue. My dad told me about the o ring replacement remedy and I asked the indy shop if they'd give it a shot. They said it's all up to me, so I ordered the o rings and they will be here tomorrow. Also picked up 11 quarts of chf11s at my local nappa for 18 bucks per quart. I brought the fluid to the indy shop and they recommended not using it.. and suggested using the official Mercedes fluid instead. I've heard pentosin and mercedes fluid are basically identical. Not sure what to do about the fluid, but it looked like the owner who had it before me used pentosin, because the fluid is green. The indy shop said they could have put the wrong fluid type in and that's what ruined the pump. They said they are willing to use the fluid I provided if I tell them to. Should I use pentosin or official Mercedes fluid? Also, do you think I still could have issues with my pump after the o ring replacement? My dads pump has worked like new since he changed his o rings.

 

Thank you sir! I'm definitely planning on getting an ecu tune soon. Do you think I should tune the tcu if I tune the ecu? I don't want to hurt my transmission if I do the ecu first.

 

The CHF11s works fine, it is what I used. 2000 grand for a pump?? screw that. If I ever get to that point ill just toss the system. you can switch to coils for 1600 and never worry about any of this ever again.

 

Thanks for the quick reply! Awesome, glad to hear the CHF11S will work fine. It makes me a little nervous that my indy shop didn't know that though.. I hope they don't screw up the o ring replacement and just say the pump was already ruined. Yeah I over exaggerated the 2k pump price. The exact figure was $1875 if purchased from mb, which is what they originally proposed. If you replaced the entire abc system with mb oem parts at a certified mb dealership it would be like 15k. Their fluid alone is like $500. Absolute insanity!! If this doesn't go well, I may go the abc delete route. I love the abc system, it's just so damn unreliable and sensitive. A true love hate relationship.

 

No offense, but if your indy shop doesn't know that, how the hell are they even qualified to test the pump, I would be gone instantly from there and find a new place. Im not a even mechanic and I know this stuff.. I hope everything turns out ok.

 

Here is another reason to find another mechanic: ..".because the fluid is green." .. The Mercedes fluid is green - so the previous owner did not get the wrong fluid.

 

oh wow, get far away from that place now, how did I miss that one.

 

Sold my 2002 CL with 44k miles a few weeks ago.

Like breaking up with a supermodel that has herpes. Had fun while it lasted. No un-expected issues. Escaped with no surprises.But the next guy better watch his ***.

 

It is like leaving a hot girlfriend with issues lol. For now, ill accept her mental disorder. Sucks looking at here waiting for her to have a anxiety attack ,lol. No problem though, first sign of trouble im lobotomizing her. I just need here to walk and run. None of that extra stripper ish ,lol.

 

Taking mine to Carmel/pebble beach this week for the car week. Hopefully the abc holds up during a road rally with the exotics

 

That was a cool read OP, enjoyed it.

 

The car is beautiful. How is it doing?