Scott Simoncic

Hello Friends... I'm on the edge of purchasing a 2002 Black on Black CLK55 AMG Coupe, 86K and some change on the clock... Normal things, missing pixels, seat moves all the way forward, but only a certain ways amount back, bell curve of vibration starting at 50, peaking at 60, and going away at 70 mph. Dealer says he will address the seat and vibration, I can take care of the pixels, I work in IT / Electronics and am good with soldering / dis and re-assembly. I currently maintain my Volvo 850 Turbo, I've had a few other not so easy to maintain cars, like a Contour SVT, Taurus SHO, Mark VIII. My last newer car was an SC400, and, in contrary to what people say, it wasn't cheap to maintain. Cost per year of ownership was about $5100. So, My question is this, sounds like I'm looking at spark plugs coming up, all 16, and probably a CPS and Trans Service. Sounds like I should do the Trans, then CPS then Plugs. Carfax is clean, 2 owners, says rotors, pads and alternator was replaced at about 50K at the Dealership. Car is exceptionally clean, all lenses are clear, one newer chrome key (what is the cost for a second one?) What else should I be looking for? Seepage around valve covers? Any way to check for rear main seal leak? Anything else fail around 100K? Car looks to have been babied, and I will be driving it on the freeway 90% of the time 30 miles a day. I want to do the COMAND retrofit mainly for aux input... Is this car ok as a daily driver, reliability wise? I know it's mostly the same as the 430 barring brakes, and obvious larger engine, stronger trans.. What temp should it run at.. etc... Thoughts? They're asking 12.999.... Got it to about 11,200

Redw20855amg

sounds expensive! Mileage means nothing Its the cars history that counts

Scott Simoncic

The dealer is going to fix the seat and vibration... Only problem will be the dead pixels on the display, of which I have not been in a W208 CLK since 2003 that hasn't had dead pixels... So really there isn't going to be anything at all wrong with the car... Is $11ish still off for one that just has dead pixels? How much should I offer?

Redw20855amg

11 is fair I'd offer 11 because you can get into a w209 for 13

Scott Simoncic

Good to know... I will give 11K a shot and see what they say.... The nice thing is that I don't NEED the car, so if they say no, it's really not the end of the world. Thanks!

elijah

Go lower

boxeswithknobs

As long as basic maint is up to-date, these should be flawless daily drivers - except for speeding tickets.

CPS, Valve cover gaskets are expected around 60-80k, once done, pretty faultless. I got mine at 66k, it's at 77k now. I stopped DD it because I felt so bad driving such a sweet car everyday, so I got a Lexus IS300 Sportcross for DD duty and the 55 gets a weekend, holiday, and car show time.

Cluster fix should just be the ribbon/pressure issue (it's a contact problem over time due to thermal shift from what I read).

If you get it to 10-11k, good deal! Budget for an ECU chip if not already done so you can get more linear feel than the stock drive-by-wire.

All in all, an excellent, sleeper, daily, and GREAT road trip/highway car, great performance and safety, and style.

da_guitarist

I have an 01 black on black for sale with mods. It's in great condition - has the clock pixelations, but I'm looking to fix it before selling (by the end of the month). Also upgraded radio in dash, 19" wheels, vredestein tires, lowered with Kleemann springs and bilstein shocks. Tuned and exhaust. I can get to a similar price for you. PM me. Maintenance is good

Scott Simoncic

Very tempting, but my bank will only go back 10 years on financing before it turns into a signature loan (personal loan with outrageous interest).... Plus you're quite far from me, I'm in CA. Sounds like a beautiful car... Good Luck with your sale.