many folks ask what to look for when purchasing one of those cars.

so i thought it would be a good idea to write a few pointers- based on my personal experience with those cars so... your mileage might vary.

so here it is. this is a skeleton post so i will be adding as time permits.

what to look for? in no particular order

1. mileage. those cars are not afraid of miles. i have seen many with well over 100k miles and they are holding together pretty well. there is no magical mileage after which their health falls apart. those cars are solidly built and there are no rattles.

2. engine. the engines in those cars when stock are very stout.

2.1 the v8s are very vocal clickety-clacky especially at cold idle. what you want to listen for is blunt sounding knock coming from the top end when cold. that is an indication of carbon buildup and all v8 motors are prone to it if not driven hard. this is usually resolved with few cans of chevron techron which is the only approved by mb fuel additive. failure to fix the carbon buildup will result in expensive lifter repair. the v8s should not use oil.

2.2 the v12s are very quiet. hot or cold there should be no funny sounds except the injectors clicking and some faint diesel-sounding clack at idle. most of the v12s tt drink oil. a quart every 3000 miles sounds about right. acceptable is quart per 1000 miles, but to me that is clear indication something is wrong. the v12s have two coil packs - one for each bank of cylinders. the old style coil packs will burn up and when they do- should be replaced with the updated parts. tuned motors with higher compression (due to more boost) will require more power to fire the plugs thus making a quick work of the older style coils.

3. transmission. the 5-speed in the 55 and 65 cars are strong and do not require maintenance. some people flush them at 100k miles, but they are filled for life according to mb. the 7-speed tranny requires a single flush at 38-40k miles. this one is important.

4. suspension. the abc suspension is problematic. pre my 07 cars have the old style valve blocks and (front) hoses. those will fail and should be replaced with the updated parts. alternatively the valve blocks can be diy rebuild very cheaply. if the car you are looking at has aftermarket arnott shocks- those are with lifetime warranty. suspension bushings are stout and generally the only ones that give up are around the front control and radius arms.

5. vacuum/air pump - mirrors/ doors, trunk soft close, seats - there is single air pump for pressure/vacuum controlling all those. the trunk air circuit has been known to fail and become disabled. resetting the air pump will enable the circuit again until it becomes disabled due to not holding pressure/ vacuum.

6. intercooler pump. there are two versions - an old version (pre 07 i think) and newer pump. the older pump will die/ is dead already on any pre 07 that has not had the pump replaced. the new pumps generally dont die. if the car falls flat at longer wot applications- the pump is dead or there is an air pocket and coolant is not circulated.

7. engine/ transmission mounts. those are problematic and there are updated parts, but they are not much better than the originals. there are two engine mounts and one transmission mount. the engine mounts on the v8 are easier to replace than the v12 which requires the engine to be lifted a good bit. the transmission mount is a one hour job on both platforms. there is also the driveshaft damper/ cake bushing which is fairly easy to be replaced. worn bushings will result in shudder on acceleration. you can tell bad engine mounts as the engine will move around a bit when gassed at idle.

8. regular maintenance. the cars will generally require oil changes every 10k miles or one year with mobil 1 0w40. every 20k miles the air and cabin filters should be replaced also. the 7g requires a flush at 38-40k miles. all amg cars require brake flush every 3 years (or so) and a diff oil change at 50k miles/ 5 years. coolant is filled for life, but people do change it as they see fit. abc fluid and filter are filled for life, but flushing them every couple years is a good idea.

9. parts. oem parts are expensive. there are mostly no no-oem parts.

10. insurance. one of the most expensive cars to insure. get a quote before you purchase your new cl car so you know where you stand.

11. service record- it is important for one thing- to know what has been replaced with upgraded parts. generally any service at the dealer done after 06 will be with updated parts. what has not been updated from the problematic parts listed in the above paragraphs- will fail.

12. warranty. not sure about that one where it stands. i know the aftermarket warranty companies do not insure the v12tt cars any more.

so.. thats it. i am sure i missed a few things, but.. other owners feel free to add here...

good luck. those are nice cars. but character comes at a price.

 

Great Post.

R.K.

 

Excellent post!

The only thing I would add/highlight is that brake pad and rotor changes are VERY expensive on a CL65, especially when done at the dealership. I was surprised at how often I went through the rear brakes....especially when thinking about how much weight sits on the front axel. However, the rear brakes get utilized quite a bit when traction control was constantly being tested by the stock 738lbs-fit of torque (and even more with the ECU tune). So knowing how much life are left on the brakes is very important in negotiating the price of the car... as you may come out of pocket for a decent chunk of change.

 

yes. excellent point.

the rotors for the 63 and 65 cars are pretty much right at $1000 per rotor. slightly less at parts.com at the moment of writing. brake pads are around $300 for the front.

rears are slightly cheaper

the 55 rotors are half the money of the 63 and 65 rotors

btw, i am not in any way or shape associated with parts.com. it is just my experience that they have been consistently the cheapest oem vendor.

 

Maybe prices have come down in the past 4 years...but I paid close to double those prices at the stealership...

 

Is it normal for the v8 to be clikety-clacky? (even without carbon buildup)

Regarding the intercooler pump...."falling flat at wot..." does this mean that the car stops pushing/accelerating as hard? Is the pump located on the driver's side behind the inner fender well?

Thanks!

 

If your in the States then your pump is located on the passenger side, just to the right of the radiator.

You will have to remove the metal undertray and the plastic cover just in front of that to gain access to the pump.

 

The vocal, clickety-clacky you mention in a V8...would you also describe it as "noisy/rattle-like" sounds?

The blunt sounding knock you mention...how does a newbie identify it or distinguish it from other engine sounds?

In point 6, you mention the car falling flat at WOT...does this mean the car stops accelerating as hard/fast?

Thanks!

 

Basically, Yes.

The car will not only fail to accelerate as hard/fast as before but would be noticeably slower. Even a newbie would not fail to recognise this as it may feel like it has gone into limp mode.

It happened to me on the first ever S55 i drove and i just did not know what happened. The seller just laughed it off by saying that i must not have pressed the pedal the right way. I thought "well how many ways are there of pressing a gas pedal???", so i left it.

WOT is Wide Open Throttle.

 

Additionally, the supercharger has to be heat soaked for the coolant temp to rise enough for the ECM to shut off the cluth going to the supercharger. So for the first 30 minutes or so under normal driving conditions you do have access to all of the available power.

 

not necessary. if intake air temp is detected to be high timing is pulled and a/f is enriched to protect from detonations... which results in significant reduction of power

 

Agreed, great information!

As a newbie '05 CL65 owner, I'm thirsty for any/all knowledge about the 65's. I'm also a previous E55 owner, so know that service costs on these cars will get your attention.

Have you ever found a viable alternative to the dealership for replacing brake pads, for example? Not sure how one would even assess the capabilities of another repair facility. I don't mind saving a buck, but don't want to be left wondering if it was done correctly, either. The eternal "do I sleep better having parted with less money, or knowing the job was done right the first time" conflict.

Advice?

 

I befriended a MB Master tech. He started doing some of the maintenance stuff on the side with an arrangement with his boss. I would bring the car in for higher $ stuff covered under the warranty and the cheaper maintenance stuff he would do at a discount.

 

That's a great approach!

My dealership has a tech that they point to as their AMG guru. They specifically requested that I bring the car in for maintenance only when he's working. I brought it in to have him look at a couple things. He loves the 65s, so we started talking. Another client had just driven a McLaren up from Florida (I'm in MN), so we were admiring that, as well. When I left, he gave me his card, and told me to ask for him when I bring the car in for the next oil change, or whatever. He suggested I wait for the car, instead of dropping it off. Then I could come back in the service bay with him, and we could take a good look around the car. I thought that was great because of the opportunity to learn about it. I haven't needed any service since then, but plan to take him up on the offer.

 

Thanks for the clarification.

Any input on the noisy nature of the engine? The last Cl55 I test drove had some light clanging going on...as best as I can describe it, it sounded like a rattle or some kind of light metal tapping...almost like a metal pipe tapping on the edge of a pot/pan.

I drove the car for 30-45 minutes....I don't recall when the noise stopped. However, after the extended test drive, the engine sounds at idle were much less and the engine sounded quieter.

I am mainly trying to figure out if this is normal.
Thanks!

 

Great thread hope this will help me when i check out this CL tomorrow

 

So far we only have replaced the abc pump on the 2003 cl55 and At 120.000 miles the car feels new. I do push it but will try the chevron treatment. I'm glad you wrote this because I like to know the car well and know what to listen for.
I absolutely LOVE the cl55. Like driving a limo yet I can overtake anything in my way. It's the best car I've ever driven.

 

Great tips for buying a CL

Also don't forget the common problems of cps and shifter stuck in park. And the leaky transmission plug