So...I am noticing that some parts are becoming pretty scarce at dealers for these cars, especially interior parts. A lot of colors have been discontinued altogether. This has me a little worried for the future. How many more years do you guys think that we are we going to be able to get OEM parts for these cars?

 

I literally ran into this problem this week. I have to replace my engine air inlet hoses (they've develop holes and cracks over time from the heat). I called a couple of my local dealers and they said these have to be special ordered and one even said the computer shows that they will be discontinued and wasn't sure if a replacement will be offered. The ones for the CLK550 only apply to these vehicles. I was able to find the drivers side from a MB dealer on eBay (273-090-22-82), but the passenger side (273-090-21-82) I'm having difficulty. There are a bunch of web sites but with no real contact info, which makes me hesitant. ECS Tuning has it, but it won't ship out for about 2 weeks they state. So I have also begun to wonder if this is a sign of some sort.

 

Yes, I think they are going through stock that is left in Germany at this point... A lot of parts are not stocked anywhere in the US from what I am seeing which is very weird because you can get parts for much older models.

 

I ran into this issue having the radiator replaced (blew a hole large enough to empty the coolant in about the time it takes to go from 0-60). They got radiator quickly but had to wait several days to get the lower radiator hose.... from Germany. I believe they actually got it from a US distributor due to me raising so much hell about delaying the repair because of a $50 hose that was available from Parts.com and others. (But they are not "MB" and they were concerned about the "warranty" on the repair.

I would think that businesses like Parts.com and ECS will be able to stock the parts. They will just charge more.... As I told the repair folks, "MB doesn't make hoses". There are probably enough CLKs still on the road to make it still profitable for most of the suppliers and the distributors. We shall see....

At worst, I'll have to rent storage for the CLK and drive it on occassion, and buy a C63 S to drive daily.... Dang!!!!!!

 

Note that parts.com stocks and sells no parts - they are a "broker" that connects customers to a network of dealers that sell parts at a discount. instead of using them, go directly to the discount dealers they use:

https://www.genuinemercedesparts.com/
https://www.mbdirectparts.com/
https://www.mercedespartsdelivered.com/
https://www.oembenzparts.com/
https://www.benzpartshq.com/
https://www.genuinenewparts.com/
https://www.mbpartspros.com/
https://www.mboemparts.com/

Manufacturers who sell cars int he USA are only required to make parts available for 7 years (or is it 10 now?) regardless, the W209 is approaching the 10 year mark, so there is no requirement for parts to be available. In practice, MBZ is one of the best manufacturers when it comes to keeping parts available. I know there are some interior trim parts being discontinued, but overall, most key parts are still in production.

I will say that when i was working on my 722.9 transmission and found a cracked bearing, it was on back-order "worldwide" and they told me not to expect it for at least 8 weeks. Since the 722.9 was still in production, I can only assume that it's such a rare thing to fail, they just didn't make a lot of extra service parts. I went used. And that is the nice thing about living in today's modern connected world - I can buy anything sitting in my recliner with a computer in my lap.

 

In Canada, MB OE parts can only be sought from the dealerships. I noticed that if it is a w209 parts, chances are they have to order from Germany. If it is a w203 parts, they will probably have it in stock.

 

Yeah ordering from Germany is one thing, completely discontinuing parts is another. Here's what I have noticed so far:

- Anthracite interior parts...gone
- Seat adjustment button trim...gone altogether.
- Glove box handle only available in black leather.
- CLK63 bumpers don't show up on dealer part sites anymore

I guess it was bound to happen sooner or later.

 

Yes, my car is almost 14 years old and while I got my money worth, it is probably time to move on.

BTW. I have been looking for a new car for a few weeks now.

 

Yes, my car is almost 14 years old and while I got my money worth, it is probably time to move on.

BTW. I have been looking for a new car for a few weeks now. I have no choice, this is my daily commute.

 

Yes, of course. However, others, like me, who use the AMG as a project car are probably hoping for longer part availability

BTW I checked the other day and there were like 9 CLK 55's (w209) for sale in USA on Autotrader.

 

We had an 02 CL500 and about 3 years ago the drivers side interior door handle broke (just was all lose) and the part had to be changed. Dealers only had it in black even though the interior was stone as MB discontinued the other colors