valle20

Hey there!

I'm new to the forum and new to the amazing world of MB's.

Im about to buy myself my first CLK, and i'm thinking about either the 320 or the 430. Can anyone give me some quick pro's and con's? Is the slightly higher performance and the V8 in 430 worth the increase in ownership, insurance and tax costs?

Today I testdrove a 320 and really loved the car, except that this particular one wasn't in a good condition really. While testing it i came up with some questions i'd reckon it'd be best to ask the pros about.

- When i put in "D", is the car supposed to "drag/move" forward with no gas added? My testcar didn't which worried me a bit since every other automatic car i've driven does. What's normal for the CLK transmission?

- When's the transmission oil supposed to be changed?

- What's the difference between the "A" and "B" service which's stamped in the servicebook?

Got some more questions i forgot for the moment but i'll come up with them as soon as i figure out what it was.

Thanks in advance.

MarcusF

There is no downside to either model. Some prefer the 320, some the 430, others the 55. Personally, I prefer the 2001/2002 models. The ME 2.8 upgrades, transmission upgrades, gauge cluster, windows, dark body trim, and mirror mounted turn signals are all selling points.

Here is some information about the W208. Here is the service schedule and what is included in an A and B. If the transmission has never been serviced, do it ASAP. Mine is done every 50K or so.

CJackson13

Welcome to the forum! Anyway, here are some answers to your questions...

Pros 320: Cheaper to maintain, cheaper to drive, cheaper to insure, all around cheaper than the 430.

Cons 320: Slow(er), styling, little appeal, basic

Pros 430: V8, not as slow as the 320, faaaaaast at high rpms/freeway speed/overtaking speed styling, options depending on what comes on the car

Cons 430: Gas mileage (although not bad, I average 22.5 or so driving exuberantly half the time) , insurance, maintenance

1.Is the slightly higher performance and the V8 in 430 worth the increase in ownership, insurance and tax costs?
If you can afford it, it's worth it. Being an owner of a 430, I think the performance is well worth it because if you wish to get similar performance out of a 320, you will be spending big $$$. Don't test drive a 430 if you want the 320.

2. Is the car supposed to move forward? When it's flat and your foot isnt on the break, then yes. I'm not sure what transmission is in that 320 though so I cant really answer your question. But what I've experience with the stock touchshift transmission is that it's indestructible. (mine has 200,000 miles on it).

3. When is the transmission oil supposed to be changed? Generally you should change your transmission fluid every ~30,000 miles or so.

4. What's the difference between the "A" and "B" service which's stamped in the servicebook? Service A and service B are just intermittent suggestions of when your car should be serviced. You don't really need to follow these however as long as you change oils/fluids/filters regularly and general wear parts (rubbery ones that degrade) when they need to be changed. Just keep an eye on everything, it helps to be aware.

jazzmammal

The A and B services are mostly inspections but inspections are a good thing. When I had my guy do my last oil change and replace the throttle position sensor, he said it was time for the B service. He put the car up on the hoist and he took out his flashlight and a probe and went over the entire car bumper to bumper, poking, prodding and looking at everything with the light. Then he took it back down popped the hood and followed the B procedures. To me those are not merely suggestions, it's part of the factory service program. It's just like you going to your doctor when he says you should. Catch something early and it's much better than catching it later. One thing that comes to mind is the brake fluid should be changed every 25k miles. Why? Because even though the car will still stop ok even with old fluid, moisture and other contaminents can build up and corrode your entire brake system. Then you get to spend a couple grand replacing things that would not have needed replacing if you had just changed the fluid every 25K as "suggested". That's why you always want to see the service records on any used Benz. A properly maintained one is a good car, a poorly maintained one is a money pit even if it initially looks and drives good.

Bob

Scott Simoncic

Same basic design of transmission in the 320, 430, and 55, though the higher the model, the more fortified the internals. The 320 and 430 are similar in maintenance to be honest. 4 More spark plugs really don't cost that much more every 100K miles. The other services are going to run the same, trans is going to be the same, oil is going to be the same, air filters, brakes, tires, diff fluid, brake fluid, etc etc etc.... Gas, well, you're going to be driving the 320 a ton harder to get the same performance that the 430 does with ease, you can easily get horrible mileage with the 320, or decent mileage with the 430, but you can't get the highway power the 430 has out of the 320, and believe me, the 430 is a blast on the highway! Plus it sounds amazing, the M113 is fantastic. If you want a tire spinner though, go for the 55AMG.... That will cost you quite a bit more in brakes, but honestly, my biggest regret is not getting a 55AMG as I could have gotten one for the same price.. Granted, my car is great, I love it, and the maintenance was kept meticulous. If i stress anything, make sure whatever MB you get, that it was MAINTAINED!!!!

rorf

Changing brake fluid is not mileage dependent - it should be replaced every 2 years without fail as it absorbs water/moisture.

Agree that the ultimate is the CLK55 AMG but there is nothing wrong with the 320 which definitely has great fuel consumption even if driven actively. I constantly achieve 28 mpg with spirited driving.

Agree with Marcus that the last of the 208s, 2000 t0 2001 are the better vehicles; also believe the M112, M113 engines are the best Merc has manufactured - indestructible and simple to maintan.

LGSONE

+1 on the brake fluid, I was amazed at how "dirty" the old fluid was. Pedal seemed a bit firmer as well. I also did the trans fluid and I could not believe they considered this a non serviceable item. Maintaining cars has gotten me 100K out of vehicles over the years, true believer and what the heck its good piece of mind and something constructive to do on a Sat/Sun.

Love the M112 engine, has some noisy valvetrain but I've grown used to it and for a 320 it runs great for around town and the mileage blows my built up truck motor to death. 11 vs 25... I'll take the convertible to work today.

LGSONE

jazzmammal

Correct 25K miles or two years for brake fluid, I didn't want to post the entire maintence schedule. The point for the OP is that cars are not like toasters or TV's. They are complex pieces of rolling high tech and must be maintained regularly. Don't do that or buy a used one that doesn't have that and it will sneak up and bite you big time.

When you're budgeting for a used car you must, repeat must have an extra thousand set aside for immediate repairs. Don't spend your last dollar on a used car because very few sell a car just after they've gone over everything and done what it needs. People will do the minimum in order to sell it. If you can appraise a car properly you'll know these things and just work it into your budget. Just because a used car isn't perfectly up to date with it's maintenance doesn't mean it still isn't a good car as long as you know that up front.

Bob

Davidg8319

Hi new to the group owned my 1999 clk320 for about two months now and the first thing I noticed was that it didn't creep forward in D as all the other autos I've owned have,I didn't think to much of it at the time. Then one day I was reading the manual and see that the gearbox switch 'S' stands for standard not sports as it has been in all my other autos
So I went and checked and sure enough it was in Winter mode which start in 2nd gear switched it to 'S' and it creeps as an auto should.
I class myself as a very good DIY mechanic and I did feel a little silly I over looked something so obvious that could of lead me to think I had auto box problems