zejj

i currently drive a 06 clk350 92k miles, i fear the balance shaft is near failure. the kbb on the car is like 8k so i figured its not worth the 4k balance shaft fix.. HOWEVER i still love the design of the car, the pillarless windows give it amazing visibility and a great green house and the mpg is decent as well

so i was thinking on selling the car and getting either the CLK500/CLK550 or spend a couple grand more and get the E350 coupe (does the e350 coupe have the same balance shaft issue that the m272 get? because if so then i wont get the e class coupe) how reliable are the CLK500s and CLK550? i know there is quite the power difference and the transmisson is the 5 speed vs the 7 speed how do they compare to the CLK350 in terms of maintence, repairs, things that go wrong, mpg differences, years to avoid, etc etc things like that

I cant wait to hear the community's thoughts on this!
(or if you have any suggestions on any other cars id love to hear it! the 2010 e350 sedan and c250 coupe also options are there any problems with these cars also?)

abqhudson

09 clk 550 would be a great upgrade.

Yidney

Either an '08 or '09 550 will be good. As far as reliability, I'd have to say that so far it's as reliable as any car I have ever owned. In the 4.5 years since my warranty expired, if you exclude oil changes, wiper blades, rear tires that these cars eat, one set of spark plugs, air filters, and one tranny fluid change, then my total expense is one wheel alignment, front control arms and end links (two weeks ago) and rear end links and sway bar bushings. I do the work myself, but still - my total outlay in 4.5 years for stuff that is not regular maintenance is around $800 - or about $175 a year. Nothing that I would call an unplanned failure or problem - suspension parts are wear items, after all. The car has never had a check engine light. Still runs on its factory battery.

Yidney

BTW, if you are at 92k and your balance shaft is still good, odds are it will always be good. As a "potential" issue it was widespread, but as an actual issue, not so much.

Rudeney

Your MY2006 C350 has the same 722.9 7-speed transmission as the CLK550 and MY2005-2006 CLK500. The MY2003-2004 CLK500 still had the 722.6 5-speed.

As long as you get a MY2008 or later (any model) thhere will be no balance shaft worries. The W207 E-lLass never had this issue since it did not come out until MY2010.

I hear the W207 is a great car - very solid, and a step up from the W209 CLK in terms of amenities.

As for the balance shaft failure risk, higher mileage is not necessarily lower risk. There have been reports of failure that did not occur until over 100K miles. I recently spoke to a mechanic who is repairing one that failed at 156K. Regardless, failure is rare - not even common enough to appear as a blip on any consumer review sites (Edmunds, Consumer Reports, etc.)

CDM Motorsports

we have both a clk550 and an e350 coupe, really 2 completely different cars in looks, feel and how they drive. Depending on what you want from the car would determine which one fits you best.