I have found an 01 CLK55 I'm seriously considering to replace my 430. It is located a few hours from me and I would like to have a PPI done prior to looking at it, but I have never had this done before.

Can anyone give any insight as the best way to approach this. The owners of the car have offered to set one up for me, which I thought was a good sign, but then thought, maybe they know the guy. I just want to make sure it is objective and impartial. Any help is appreciated.

Thank you!

 

Contact a shop (reputable) around where the car is located and tell them that you want to get a "PPI" on a vehicle that you want to buy. If it is a "reputable" shop, they will have to give you an honest report whether or not they know this dude 'cause if you were to find out their judgment was wrong, you could sue them so bad...

 

Thank you King, I will begin a search of the area and see what I can come up with.

Anyone with any knowledge of the Fishers, Indiana area?

 

I think Gid E Up is from Indianapolis...I have no idea where that is in relation to Fishers, Indiana, though...good luck.

 

Got ahold of Euro Motorworks and they are doing it Monday morning. They are, oddly enough, located .7 miles form the car and they do not know the owners. Their website shows a very nice facility, so I am going with them after a good conversation over the phone. It is costing $225 for the inspection, but should be worth every penny. They said if they had the car by 10am, they would have it back by the end of the day...that's one hell of an inspection! The gentleman will email me a copy of what they found, or fax, and will then call me to discuss each item, line by line, on the report. They sounded very competent and thorough...at least over the phone!

Their website is www.euromotorworks.com if anyone ever has the need as I did. I have no affiliation with them in any way.

Tuesday morning, it will travel to the dealer for warranty work. Will the dealer simply "fix/repair" items from the PPI list, or will they fight me on some of the items? I have never had warranty work done in this exact situation and am wondering what I might be in for.

Fishers, Indiana is a northeast suburb of Indianapolis.

Thanks for everyone's help!

 

First, do a carfax or similar...look for the obvious (salvage title, odometer rollback, etc.), and the not-so-obvious (titled several times, especially across state lines several times)...

Second, make sure that the shop in question does a bodywork and frame inspection. If not, you might consider taking it to a few body shops specializing in Mercedes. Look for both body/frame and flood damage.

Make sure they check remaining brake pads (front pads alone, with no labor, cost over $300), tire tread, etc..also check your tranny for leaks; there's a little o-ring where the transmission control module is located which is prone to leaking...also, alignment, etc...

If the car is out of factory warranty, be advised that it's extremely difficult to purchase an extended service contract...

Here are some useful tips:

http://www.freevehiclehistoryreport....inspection.htm

http://www.smartcarguide.com/inspection/Page4.htm

http://www.omegamotors.com/buylikeap...buy_step5.html

the bottom of this page has some tips for spotting flood damage:

http://www.diynet.com/diy/ab_buying/...271205,00.html

http://www.naaa.com/html/news/index.cfm?story=1002

http://www.nada.org/Content/Navigati...c_08_09_01.htm

 

One of the reasons I sold my 01 CLK55 last year was that the mfg warranty was due to expire in September of 04. Many of these cars were early model '01's that were in fact built in '00 (as was mine). You need to DESPARATELY locate the "in service" date before you go any further. Since we are now in March, nearly 50% of the '01's are already out of warranty. Even if it does have some warranty, you will probably not have much time left.

 

Yup....a carfax will show this too, or for that matter the local Mercedes dealership should be able to look it up, or for that matter it should be in the owners' manual....important if you want to purchase an extended service contract (which are often erroneously referred to as an extended warranty, which they're not...).

 

Improviz and ndabunka, all great information, thank you!

One of the first things I asked was the vehicle inception date/in service date, I asked for both, and they indicated the date to be 04/04/2001, so yes I have only about 3 weeks left.

I am going to talk to the shop that is doing the inspection, Euro Motorworks, on Monday morning as they will call to confirm the delivery of the vehicle. At that time I will ask if they do bodywork/framework inspections too. That is a very good point, and it is well taken.

The car comes with a carfax, as they have already ran it, and it only has one titled owner. For whatever that is worth...some peace of mind. But it is an off-lease car.

Now, you have raised a question for me...why are extended warranties often difficult to obtain and why? Is it simply due to maintenance costs? Where would you recommend procuring an extended warranty? I have searched the forums here and have come up with some suggested warranty companies, but I know nothing about them...yet. I certainly will prior to buying an AMG.

ndabunka, was the only reason you sold your 55 because of maintenance costs? Or were there other issues? I have looked back at all my service records for my 430 and they are not too bad. The car has been relatively trouble free. Today I had front ball joints put in and that really tightened up my steering, but the costs was $167.00 including a stop lamp switch for the BAS/ESP/ABS light and two burnt out bulbs. I realize the 55 will be more expensive to maintain, but do they also last longer? Meaning more time for these parts to "wear out?"

Thanks again for all the info, I will certainly read through it to better educate myself. Are all boards this good! lol

 

No, it's not due to the maintenance...they don't cover that. Probably because they're leery of someone trying to purchase an extended service contract *after* they've discovered a problem, companies don't seem to like writing contracts on vehicles which are out of factory warranty.

I would check with your local Mercedes dealer(s), particularly the one at which the vehicle has been serviced; they might cost a bit more, but are typically hassle-free, and reputable dealers typically won't do business with fly-by-night companies. The best are those offered through the manufacturer, but afaik Mercedes doesn't offer one after the first year of ownership, although I'd double-check this...

Speaking of the dealer: one other thing you'd like to see if possible is the vehicle's service history...

Good luck!!

 

$225 for a PPI? Ouch. Mine cost $75. What are they doing, a frame-off restoration?

What options does one have for an extended warranty if it's past the 1st year and therefore Mercedes won't offer you one? (I've got 13 months left on mine, exactly)

 

It is a bit higher than I've seen, but then again I've seen them higher than this...depends upon what they check, and how thorough they are.

Unless Mercedes has changed their policy of not selling them after the first year (and again, I'd check with both the dealer--and Mercedes USA directly, for that matter--on this to be sure), the only option you've got is a third party contract.

Here are a few articles from Edmunds:

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/warran...1/article.html

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/warran...0/article.html

http://www.edmunds.com/advice/cpo/ar...8/article.html

 

Brian430 - I actually had no maintenance cost for the 55 while I owned it. I primarily sold it at that time so that I could get the most $'s out of it. I had originally acquired it from a pilot that had run into financial issues (they cut back his flights) and he needed to dump it pretty quickly. He put it in the paper one day at a reasonable price ($45K at the time I think) in the winter and I showed up on his doorstep the next day. There were 6 inches of snow on the ground so we couldn't even get the car out of his inclined driveway. I asked him if he would take $41,000 for the car and he said his payoff was $42,000. I agreed to buy it for the payoff and did have to go through a little hassle with paperwork from his lender (CitiBank) but since it was a major company had no problems once I wrote the appropriate legal stuff. I bought it with 17K miles and sold it with 29K miles. Had it about a year and a half. Sold it for $40,500. Only thing I ever had to do was to put tires on the front. If you do a search on my name, you will find more details. I learned not to own a Benz or BMW past 100K miles with my 740iL. Seems like everytime they touched it after 100K, it was $600. If airconditioner went out, that was $2,500, etc. Benz's may be better and these AMG's are pretty darn solid so you may not have any issues with this one. Make CERTAIN you get the service records. I threw out three cars prior to buying my AMG because they had experienced the "coke syndrome" effect. These 55's have a poor cup holder and liquid (coffe or soda) can 100% dissable the tranny on these cars if it spills into the shiftgate. Benz will replace this once if it happens under warranty but not twice. Most extended service contracts do not cover it. I personally never had a problem and drank drinks in mine all the time but if you have kids, don't let them have a drink in the front seat EVER!

 

ndabunka,

Thank you for the write up, very useful indeed! The inspection will also include the vehicles service history. I have only purchased all 7 of my MB's with complete service records. That is extrememly important to know MB will replace the "coke syndrome" tranny failure once, but not twice. I had no idea. I do need to find an extended warranty provider also.

Again, thank you for taking the time to share your insight!

 

dayum...feel like I'm late to the party

I hope the 55 you're looking at checks out okay. We need some more W208 55 members!

Do a search on "AMG extended warranty"....you might find more info.

Good luck!

 

Thank you Chappy...do mean search here for the warranty? I did a search and came up with a few sources, but nothing solid yet. There is one source that was quoted as being hard to contact and am still waiting on getting in touch with them. Always open for more sources though!

I do hope to be a "real" memeber here sometime!

 

Try this one....

http://www.acewarranty.com/makes/mercedes_benz/

They don't write in my state, so I didn't try for a quote. I ended up getting an MB extended warranty before my 12 months was up.

 

I'll check into that Chappy...thank you!

The 55 did not check out ok in the service department. Overall the car was not bad, but the shop that did the inspection gave some critical insight to the overall service of the car. The tires were bald to the point of the treads showing through. He even said when they drove it, "the car shook all over the road." All filters and fluids need replacing; brake, coolant, oil, air and fuel. The instrument cluster and window were being repaired through the dealer. The inspector noted the inside of the hood had an unusual amount of "dirt" collected in various places.

Any one of these items probably not terminal for the health of the car, but certainly insight on how the car had been neglected. Here's the kicker, the service has been recorded on line as being completed! How can this happen? Could the prior owner not have serviced the car but had the service light reset? Makes no sense, isn't that all figured into the price of the vehicle and warranty? It appears as though the fluids/filters were never refreshed but the service records through the computer show everything being done! They said the brake fluid appears to be original!

They also said the tranny o-ring did have a leak, but would be fixed through the dealer. I passed on the vehicle and told them everything the inspection showed. I also said I was surprised that none of these issues were brought to my attention when I asked about the "overall" effective age of the car. When I called them back, with inspection in hand, the first thing I asked again was their impression of the overall condition of the vehicle, and again none of this was mentioned. I said that does not leave me with confidence that you know what to look for in cars, and therefore does not leave me any alternative but to buy a car from someone who does. He would not answer when I said they, the inspectors, drove the car and it shook all over the road.

It is all in the name of the almight dollar, I realize, and I am from Iowa so maybe naive as well, but when I spend that kind of money on a car, I take care of it. I know exactly what was done, and if a car has been neglected to that degree I can tell very easily. I guess I need to stick to vehicles that I can drive and inspect myself!

Next 55!

I also want to let everyone know the service and attention I received at Euor Motorworks was excellent. If anyone ever needs a PPI in the Indianapolis metro area, I highly recommend them. Their website is www.euromotorworks.com and ask for Walter. Very professional!

 

There are a lot of W208 CLK55s out there for sale, at excellent prices. Keep shopping...you might do better with an '02 that will have additional warranty remaining (or possibly a factory extended warranty - StarMark or original extended warranty - I think they call it the MB Premium Extended Limited Warranty), if purchased via an MB dealer or private party.

Good luck!

 

Brian430 - Sounds like you made a wise decision and this group now has you moving in the right direction. Now that chappy has made it in here I feel as though I can leave you in very capable hands. I've met Chappy and a few other 55er's at an event he put together a few years back. Classy guy you can trust. Good luck with your search. I'm going back to looking for my next "toy" (Either a restored 64-65 vette or one of those new cobra 427's)....Bye for now all!

 

brianw430:
If there is one thing I learned is-
Never buy on impulse.

You are indeed doing your homework and like Chappy says, there are good
clk55s out there, you just have to continue to search.

You'll find one, if not sooner, later.

Keep on keepin on

 

Wait, don't go! I feel like we're losing your experience, enthusiasm and wit for a second time

I recommend your next toy to be an SLK55...then meet us at the Photo Shoot / AMG Presentation / Dyno Runs / Drag Strip event April 30 - May 1st

 

I'll be glad to check it out if you e-mail me exact address where it can be seen and the owner's tel. #.

I live on M Beach, and will give you a full report.
But, if it is out of warranty, you might be looking for a major repair bill.

My 2002 AMG CLK just had the last 50 service under the the original warranty:
Replaced motor mounts, steering leak, catalytic converter, airconditioning components - blower motor regulator, AC hose repl., lower axle bushings, additional front end mounts, front end alignment, modify transmission valve body... got a six(6) page invoice, but -- all free!!

 

Hey, thank you everyone! And ndabunka, don't forget us, your helpfulness, insight and knowledge can be used by others in my position and I greatly appreciate all you and the others here have helped me with on my search for a 55.

I will indeed take my time and I have been looking for about 8 months so far, so I am in now hurry. Besides I still love my 430 and enjoy driving it as much today, as I did when I first got it. So I will wait and try and find the right one. It really has been almost trouble free..simply minor things and it has 100,000 miles.

And Karl K, thank yo for the offer and the gentleman is supposed to call me back yet this morning as we have been playing phone tag, so I will let you know if I need to recruit your services! With compensation of course!

Back to the search and thanks again everyone. What a great place!

 

OK, Ok, you've convinced me to stay. I can't bring one myself but I'll see what I can do to send one your way... A business associate of mine has one of those new SLK55's coming (He may already have it by now). He's out of Tennessee. I'll forward this link to him to see if he can join you guys. He sold his M5 about 6 months ago.