I have to say that I am growing more and more concerned with the "exclusiveness" of all the new AMG 55 vehicles.

When I first bought my car, it was great to rarely see a 55 on the road and considered a real treat when I came across one.

Now, its just ridiculous. I see 2 a day. ???? What happened?
I remember a couple years ago, when I saw an older generation 55, it was quite the rarity.

Ok, I feel better.

Your right. AMG is pumping out 55's now like they are going out of style !

Hence why I modified mine a little so I could pick it out of a crowd of 55's in the parking lot.


LOL

awiner you, like myself live in southern cali and all there is in southern cali are nice cars(okay fine, most are nice cars) But tere are so many cl55's, sl55's, s55's that i am so used to it. My draw will only drop if i like the color combo and if its fixed up. Otherwise its a dime a dozen. They are still rare in the sence that they are limited production but what you are seeing mroe and more of is people being able to afford/finance/lease/go bankrupt for these cars and in LA, people have nicer cars then homes so its completely normal, for me at least, to see more 55's then 500's

yah its alot less likely to see a 600 on the road then a 55.

That is why I don't see any sense in spending $180k+ on SL/CL65.
To 99% of people they will look the same like $50k '00 CL500.
At that price I expect more exclusivity.

AMG builds 25,000 engines a year now and 60% of them come to the US, probably 80% to California, New York, Florida and Texas, so if you live in one of those places, AMG is everywhere.

I am disappointed that there isn't more opportunity for AMG to offer truly individualized product here in the US like they do in Europe. I guess they think we have more money than taste.

In the Boston area I see a few CL and SL 55's, but not many. I see about as many 996 Twin Turbos. My dealer recently told me that they get only about 6 CL55's a year and they are one of the biggest in the area. Aftermarket availability and prices suggest excess supply of CL55's nationally. The demand for such high performance cars, that one cannot really drive 12 months a year here is just not as great here as it is in warmer climates. Despite the lack of exclusivity, the car delivers very close to supercar performance as a daily driver. For those who purchase now in the aftermarket, the 03 CL55 is a terrific performance value.

Here's the count for cars I've seen in Seattle, other than mine:

Supercharged CL55s: 0
BiTurbo CL600s: 0
Ferarri Enzos: 1
Subaru Outbacks: 745,323

I think I've only seen 4 CLs in the area over the last few years, counting the CL500 that prompted me to buy my own CL.

Tons of S class cars, but no CLs. No idea why!

- Dave

ITA! I'm surprised at how many CL55's I see! But to be quite honest, the car of choice in California, or the most popular benz is the S500.

I think some of you are being a bit extreme. So you see a few day, is that so bad? Compared to the hordes of hondas, toyotas and bmws, even the non AMG Benzes. Come on! id kill for one of these!

I agree with You, but ...
You live in USA and see 2 a day.
I don't live in USA and see 2 monthly/or sometimes weekly[all amg models like E55,S55,CL55,C32,C30CDI - i know only one '03 CL55 in my city - population 900k]

Few years ago each AMG car was build as a special order, now (i think so) almost every dealer has at least one AMG waiting for a potential buyer. So it can't be exclusive.
USA is for AMG the biggest and most powerful market.
I don't remember exactly but i've read somewhere that alost 80% of amg production is being sold in USA. And every year AMG increases its production... because of US needs, of course... so, WHO's guilty?? You're buying too much AMG cars!
But since it doesn't concern me [and AMGs popularity in my region], there's no offence in my words

Yes its bad when I spent close to 140K on mine with the extended warranty/options. You know how many honda civics I can put on the road for that much???

There is no doubt that I don't take this car for granted in any way. Its just that when I dropped the fat check, I was hoping it would buy a little exclusivity (is that even a word?) as well. Here in southern california, all I've done is "fit in."

You need an enzo, carrera gt, slr, and the like to really stick out nowadays. Or have it modified til you throw up.

I now only turn my head for those cars listed above and lambo's muricalagos. I see a good amount of ferrari 360 modena/spyders, AMG's, gallardo's that its nothing special unless its fixed up, and not just rims, the whole nine yards.

In other words.....time to start saving up.

What you might be seeing is people putting on the CL55 AMG badges on their vehicles...AMG only makes 400 CL55s per model year for the US market

If MB produces 400 a year for the US, perhaps most of them are sold in Southern California. My dealer, Mercedes of Westwood (Boston not LA), is large and gets only about 6 CL55's a year. Aside from the true exotics like the Enzo, Carrera GT or SLR, there are more near-exotic performance cars available now than at any other time. The aftermarket for most of them is soft, suggesting that supply is greater than demand. The manufacturers obviously track demand and produce more of the models that are popular, i.e. the 996 Turbo Cab. If Autoweek's report six months ago is correct on the Bentley GT, there will be quite a few more of them here in a year or so than the CL or SL 55.

Bam I think you got it right. I see tons of 500's and 600's but less then 10 total unique 55's of the 215 style.

Good point Adam! I mean almost all those CL55 out there are silver and it can be hand finding you car without those beautiful HRE wheels and that slight drop!

Here was the count from my drive around LA last Friday:
SL55 = 4
CL55 = 3
C32 = 2
E55 = 6
S600 = 2

Granted I did a lot of driving that day but areas such and Beverly Hills, Westlake, and Malibu are such that AMG MB's are nothing out of the norm. At one intersection In Malibu there was a Black SL55 (mine), a Modded Silver SL55, and a Tectite Grey S55k on 19 inch wheels.

But the most often spotted AMG in southern california has become the W211 E55. I see about 5 a day and this is almost a slow day

Yeah, its seems the least expensive, the C32, is also the least popular out here. I must find this fountain of wealth FAST before it is all gone.

i think the rarest hi-end benz is the 2003 n up CL600. I've seen only 2 so far

I understand what you are saying. I would be pretty pissed as well. But you can always get some wheels, choose a different exterior paint, bodykits etc. Customize it to your needs. Im sure you dont have shortage of cash looking at the cars in yours sig.

Do that or buy a slightly used Bentley or Farrari. I guarantee you will be exclusive. Even a maserati or Aston would do the trick. MBs are everywhere and most people dont know the difference between a CL500 and a CL55. they are pretty much identical. No MB will give you exclusivity, but you are still in a elite club regardless.

It may not be exclusive, but I can recall many times how many people walk up to me in a parking lot, complimenting on my vehicle. It feels good.

I don't have much say on the 'exclusive' aspect as I've seen only 2 other E55's down here, but that's just me.

Oh, I saw a beautiful SL55 this afternoon.

OK, the CL 600 or 55 may not be exclusive in certain neighborhoods, but they perform very well and are very probably more solid in a durability and safety sense than almost all other cars on the road. Plus, they are daily drivers. IMO, modifying them except for suspension, engine and wheels, usually detracts from he design and often cheapens the look.

I have to agree that AMG's aren't as exclusive as their supposed to be. I live in Newport Beach, CA, a place with a lot of rich people and I'm bound to see many CLK 55's, but you'd be surprised at how many SL55's I see on a daily basis. Sometimes I think the SL55's are produced more than the SL500's! Then reality kicks back in...LOL!

I live right next to you, so I think thats my problem. I'll just to move to alaska.