douginky

and getting out of bmw land. After getting rearended in her 540, I just got her a 2006 E350 and we love it.
I'm now looking hard at a CLK for me and would like to know, is the AMG 55 enough better than the non AMG 430 to warrant the risk/expense.

TIA

CurYousGee

go for the amg, prices shouldnt be too far off these days since they are get are getting up there in age. if you find the right deal, its defintely worth a hand built amg engine

dlbehrns

if money is no object, as in lower miles per gallon, higher insurance cost and maintenance cost, then by all means, get the 55AMG.

gregory13lil

I would definitey get the 55 AMG instead of the 430. I had this choice and decided for the 430 and it was a BAD decision. I wish I would have opted for the 55 instead. I was worried about the higher parts and maintenance costs and opted for the 430 instead.

Now, don't get me wrong the 430 has been an awesome car through the years and I just hit 139,000 miles and still running strong. But, I still have the love for the 55 hand built engine and the extra horses that come along!!!

The external engine parts are the same cost as the 430 so as long as you keep up on the maintenance you should not have any extravagant expenses with the extra cost of internal AMG parts.

55 all the way if you can do it...YOU WILL NOT REGRET IT!!

Greg

Chappy

Go and drive examples of both. Then you can concentrate on your search.

Insurance is inexpensive assuming you've got a good record (mine is less than $400/6mo.).

Have fun shopping!!

douginky

Thanks, that was I was hoping to hear ...I think. I've done most of the work on my bimmers over the years and have concerns. I'm weighing out the cost of trying to mod a 430 vs maintenance costs of the 55. I don't think I'll be content with a 430 after having 350 whp in my E24. I'm an old fart looking for a more civilized car and think I've found it. I just love the lines of the CLK
I'll drive a few and start the search

Chappy

Doug,

The biggest difference (for maintenance vs. a 430) is going to be the brakes. No lie, they're pricey - good news is they last a long time. I got 43,000+ out of the original pads and rotors and my tech said I still had 25% left.

onlinealias

Coming from owning several BMW's, I can say there are a couple of things that you need to be aware of. One is the information documented on the internet about BMW's is far more extensive. Having an MB can make it tough to get an answer about something simple by just searching the forums. (Although I am singlehandedly trying to change that ) Also, drive a 208 before buying. The recirculating ball steering is very numb. If you liked the steering in a BMW, and obviously you have an MB with a rack, you may find that you are disappointed in a W208. I just take it as a quirk and get on with it.

On the plus side, however, is that MB's are far simpler cars. The engineering uses old methods and materials, and working on a W208 is almost a joke compared to say an E60 or even an E39. W208 MB's also tend to be more reliable in my experience, at least from my survey of pain points and my ownership of E53's and 46's, although my 36's and 30's were pretty good.

One thing, a CLK55 is going to be much tougher to find...you will likely have to travel quite a ways to get one. I don't know if that is a problem or not. I'd find the nicest, lowest mileage one that comes up and buy it, regardless of whether it is a 55 or 430. Getting a very good used one is far more important in my opinion than which one you get.

clk430convert01

I traded my 430 for a 55 b/c I could no longer live with the throttle response of the 430. 55 feels like a different car, given the HP/Torque increase and AMG throttle. If you can get the 430 with the 55 throttle, lets open a new thread ; -)

dlbehrns

Hey, keep in mind, you can improve throttle response by taking up a bit of the slack in the throttle cable linkage, resetting the ADP, and...buy a SprintBooster and, have you ECU tuned by INMotionusa, Powerchip, Speedtuning and other chip tuners and you can improve the cars performance. Just ask Williams007 how he likes his SprintBooster. You can spend well under a grand and make your car run a lot better. If the ashman still had his ultra-groovy intakes available that would be another performance mod. Why not blow your wad on a performance exhaust. What the hell? Or just buy a 55AMG.