ivnurse

I am thinking of buying a 2001 CLK55 AMG.
First question
1. What are your thoughts on the CLK55 AMG?
2. What would be an average price for one with 45,000 miles?
3. Are they reliable? I have heard stories of many trips to the mechanics.
4. What kind of gas mileage do you get with the AMG.

I drive around 45, 000 miles a year and I have been driving a Nissan Murano for the last two years. I am looking for a car with great relaibility, quick and comfortable. I would like any info you can share.

Thank You in advance.
Randy
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ndabunka

The Engine and tannys in the 01's are great but if they ever do need repairs (like breaks), get ready to roll out the doe since they DO require specialized parts in many cases. If you put 45K/year on a car, then higher priced cars are probably not a good move as they also will tend to depreciate faster. Case in point is that a the 2001 CLK55 your interested in sold for $72K new and now (only 4 years later) is selling around $30K and is now out of warranty so anything that does go wrong is on your dollar. They are great cars however and as long as you don't need much backseat room (for customers), they can be a kick. Good luck.

mtimmy

I really would suggest you get a Honda of any kind if you drive 43k miles per year,.!


Honda can go up to 300k miles easily without any major investment in repairs.

WhyTry! CLK 55

I've got a 02 ... with almost 70,000 miles. Except for modifications ... euro-spec springs ... almost once a year tire purchase ... along with the brake pads ... I have never had my car warrantied (except for the MB campaign for items to be updated) ... and I drive it "hard."

Maybe I got the "one-in-a-million" to come out of MB and the AMG plant ... but I swear by the reliability of the car.

I've got all the toys on it ... command/xenons/the Designo (Armani) nappa black and white leather seats/voice recog/6 cd in the back/ and the car still looks like brand new ... only a very few paint chips in the front ...

and I've never had any electrical or other "quirks" I've heard that are notorious on the CLK series (W208).

I can give you the local (Tampa, FL) number of my MB mechanic (he drives a 55 also) and he can give you more feedback ... BTW ... he has almost 90,000 miles on his ... his is an 2001.

But ... as my peer recommends ... you can't go wrong with a Honda either.

AMGfan

I agree totally with this statement. That mileage on any car is tough, not that the CLK55 can't do it...but the expense might make you wished you didn't (esp. if it is out of warranty).

Good Luck.

Chappy

What is the Armani option?

M1M2M3

I've only had the car a few weeks, and I've spent a good amount of money on gas. I havent goten better than 20 mi. per gallon.(I have been having fun though I don't think german cars in general are cost effective for your purposes. I could never imagine buying this car for that purpose. It is simply not economical, especially when you add in the cost of gas, oil changes, and all the extras. Get this car to have fun, not to beat up. Toyotas are very good also. You can buy one w/ 100,000k and another 250k on it. I have a camry '94 w/ 200k. I use reg gas and reg oil. costs nothing. This is a better bet.

rroberts

Where are you located?

I can generally give better feedback based on that. The following is per my location in San Jose, CA area, daily commutes in moderate traffic, and long distance trips at "Western" interstate speeds (e.g., average traffic to LA on most of I5 averages 90-100mph these days; the Nevada-bahn is not quite what it used to be, but the highway patrol typically tickets for 80 in a 70 if they catch you doing only 110-140).

In reply to the comments about gas mileage: I have seen 27mph on long trips with the air con on. On a trip to Dallas, TX, local driving there for a week, and back I averaged 23.8mpg and 68mph. On long term average, however, I 19.8mpg at 40mph (the car electronics record three "trip odometer" type sets of data, with ~3k miles being the auto-reset point for the longest period).

This is not a car one buys for economy, not that I have had to pay for anything besides gas, tires (~20-25k miles per set typical), and brake pads and disks (~30K/50k miles in my experiance, not as bad as the ~25k/40k miles on my prior E420 but 150% the cost).

I was wait-listed on a new '01 CLK55 with ~8 months to go, when I found a dot.bust business type that had had to move back in with his parents. The car had the same options I wanted (silver/charcoal, sound pkg, etc.), the MBZ 100k miles / 7 year warrantee (transferable!), only 3k miles, and the right price. It is my daily ride and now has 58k miles on it. The CLK is my 7th MBZ and 1st AMG.

My car may be up for sale soon because I am #1 for an '06 SLK55 with Euro delivery, but I may also drop back and try to get an '07 SLK63. If you are interested lets take this off-forum.

Ray-R@pacbell.net

rev

What campaigns have you taken your car in for?

WhyTry! CLK 55

I've just returned to the states ... To answer Chappy's question above ... The designo program in the US is completely different from the European designo line and special customer requests in the US aren't available at all. I'm a military officer and I bought/brought the car over from Germany to the US. I was fortunate the buyer who is a German resident ... who was relocating to the United States at the time ... had special ordered the car in Germany .... to meet the US title guidelines ... and originally planned to send it to the US (which is why I had to get the Euro-spec springs added on) ... backed out on the deal and it was available for purchase. As you know you can buy cars in Germany ... but by the time you spend the money to "Americanize" it ... you've spent a small fortune ... overhere in Germany ... you can buy an AMG car with manual window levers ... quite spartan compared to the perception of what is considered "AMG" in America ... anyway ... long story short ... Armani is a Designo package option in Germany.

rev

How about you Chappy, are you aware of any campaigns for the 01-02 CLK55?

WhyTry! CLK 55

received notice by the dealership ... Campaign was for Oil leveling ... system activation ... was supposed to be corrected on 2002 models ... good thing I brought mine in ... turned out mine needed to be updated as well ... mine is 02 ...

Anyway ... you should have rec'd the TSB as a registered owner/purchaser ... I received mine thru the "over-the-air" advisory update ... I elected to pay the monthly fee for the activation of the MB's Mechanic/SOS function option ... when I bought the car from MB ... which sends messages over the air to your command/nav system ... when your phone is activated in the cradle ... when service advisories / campaigns /etc ... are sent out routinely by MB ...

I researched my auto file and found the paperwork on it ...
TSB 200104007 MAY 01 Campaign - Oil Level Checking System Activation

rev

Thanks CLK 55! Anyone else know of any other open campaigns on the 01-02 models?

BklynBenz

from what i remember there was a w208 giorgio armani clk convertible and i think i had saw pics of it in a saks catalog or something like that. i gotta look on my home computer and see if i have any pics.

in the meantime heres the w209 giorgio armani clk:








http://www.mercedes-benz.com/mbcom/i...obyarmani.html

BklynBenz

heres all the Automotive Recalls and Technical Service Bulletin Titles for 2001 Mercedes Benz CLK 55 AMG (208.374) V8-5.5L (113.984).

http://www.alldata.com/TSB/35/0135bcaa.html

rev

Thanks! any info for the '02 models?

BklynBenz

Automotive Recall and Technical Service Bulletin Titles for 2002 Mercedes Benz CLK 55 AMG (208.374) V8-5.5L (113.984).

http://www.alldata.com/TSB/35/0235bcaa.html

Chappy

As BklynBenz has noted, the TSB info is listed at the Alldata site. I have never received a "recall" notice and generally all of the applicable TSB items are taken care of invisibly at service visits.

rev

Thanks guys! I've never received any recall info either, but as my factory warranty is about to expire in the Fall, I was advised to inquire at the stealership regarding any open campaigns?

Chappy

Did you find a CLK to suit your needs?

proform

If you didnt find one...My 01 is still for sale.