JHouse

You know how you dream and surf and think about your next car? I've been doing some of that on the SL and some other Mercs and it turns out the CLK appears to be a lot simpler and has fewer of those horrendously complex gizmos than some of those models I keep seeing lusting references to around here. There seems to be a consensus that you better be ready to spend $4K to $6K per year just to keep an SL running. Geez. I'm glad I love this car!

dragon_27

my clk has had too many problems even though its been regularly serviced.

heater, a/c, srs seatbelt, catalyc converter, front control arm, sway bar and transmission leak.

now the license plate bulb error lights up even though it works, and the keyless door handle doesn't work and also the parking sensors are going haywire as well...

JHouse

But it's PRETTY! Seriously, is it possible that 03's are a unique case of the first model year glitches?

lazlion99

I say w209 is a very reliable. This is my 2nd.

ahmadk

I think you had all these problems coz you have an 03 which was the first year of the w209, meaning a lot of defaults that were fixed on the following years....just an idea

Kevwood

I've heard that CLK's are know for their electrical gremlins, I have had a few so far. The most expensive was when the TCU failed about a week after I bought the car...

2MCHCAR

Compared to other late model Mercs it has good reliability; but it has a few common issues.

dragon_27

damn i guess i am the unfortunate one with the 03 lol.

my clk would have been more modded if it wasn't for all the damn things i need fixing...

dynomite05

That's a shame.

clkwork

No problems with the black series, but on my last 2004 CLK500 the center brake light fell off a half-dozen times. It was almost comical how often that thing broke.

Kevwood

I will never, ever tire of looking at sig pics of CLK Blacks

mt amg

Could be, but I think it just depends on the car honestly. like I have an '03 and It's been rock solid for me. I bought it year and a half ago, I daily drive it (and 30k mi later) haven't had any problems whatsoever. no glitches, nothing. I maintain it meticulously though.

supacrazykev

Had my car for almost 5 years with 58k miles. 1st owner. Daily-ed it for a few years. After getting into motorcycles, it's been weekend/passenger-taking car.

Had coolant leakage, oil leakage, power steering failure (after donutting a few years ago), some kind of stalling problems, cd player glitches, sun roof glitches. But other than that, I would say it's pretty darn reliable. All covered in warranty and still on warranty. I'm scared for after warranty expires, but yeah I baby the carrr. Hopefully it'll last forever.

JHouse

I queered the deal. Transmission crapped out - some electronic BS I described in another thread - and got the lighter fixed so I could charge my phone. $1,400 on a couple of parts that other cars probably don't even have! I mean really, how does a lighter quit? It's never been used except maybe for the phone the prior owner charged (just guessing it was ever used - certainly no smoking ever occurred.)