I am trying to decide between the two 2005 models. The CL is more practical, and I would probably drive it daily. I tend to trade yearly, so I am concerned about resale. I haven't owned a MB since 1993, and am a little worried about reliability.

Which has better resale?
Is one model more reliable?
Are they ever discounted?


TIA

Both are great cars. Both are hard to compare as they are in two different categories.

Personally, I think the interior of the CL is much nicer than the SL, but the CL can't drop its top.

Resale.... Hmmmm... The SL may edge the CL out.

Reliability.... The CL is more reliable. Less to go wrong.

Discounted.... Not really.

I have both SL55 and CL55. Drive CL55 everyday to work and drive SL55 on the weekends. Both are great cars. SL55 is noisy and sporty. If you like luxury get CL55. For resale value, MBZ don't hold resale value anymore. They will probably depreciate the same. Don't buy mercedes, but lease it. Much cheaper. I had 2001 S55, got it for 110K, sold after 3 years and got only 58K. Should have leased it and was cheaper that way. My friend is a manager at MBZ dealer. He tells me to lease it all the time.

The CL55 I was ready to buy last weekend had a dead battery. It was on the showroom floor. After replacing the battery, the technicians discover that the instrument cluster is faulty, and is the cause of the drain. The cluster has to be replaced. Has anyone had this happen?

I think I am passing on this one....