City Rat

Hi all. Not sure where the new guys check in with picks of their new AMGs but this seemed like the right place to start. As some of you know from my newb posts I picked this 2002 CLK 55 AMG Cab up a couple of weeks ago. Thanks to advice from you guys I had an MBZ dealership check out each of my final three candidate vehicles for purchase and this was by far the cleanest and just happened to be an AMG. I have to confess until a couple of weeks ago I really didn't know what an AMG was. Luckily the dealership that was doing the pre-purchase inspections for me [different from the [place that sold me the car}, had a very experienced older master service tech from Stuttgart who actually sat me down and explained not just what AMG was but also the history and meaning behind one man, one engine. I was sold.

This car will be my daily driver and in terms of plans for it I have really thought this through and lurked about here. Most of the mods that people are doing to the W208 series are engine mods, suspension mods, body kit, etc. The one theme that kept sneaking out as you step back is that they are all more or less trying to mod their cars to end up like an AMG, that is to say the car that I already have. So the engine, suspension and body I'm leaving alone. I love how it looks, drives and handles just as it is.

On the other hand the brakes felt a touch squishy so I will be giving the braking system some love. I love the AMG OEM rivet wheels that I have on there now and am not changing them. That said they are 17 inches and so BBKs are out as you need 18 inch wheels to clear the larger calipers. Therefore I will have the calipers powder coated, move to Stoptech drilled and slotted rotors, low dust performance pads and SS lines all around.

Beyond that I have replaced the OEM COMMAND head unit with an Alpine which I love and which really woke up the Bose system. That made me want a cleaner bottom end to balance out the system and I grabbed a powered flat piston sub in a box which helps greatly but needs a more permanent home than the rear passenger foot well. I am pretty sure that I will remove the factory sub and move the box into the position of the factory sub and see how I like it. If I don't then I will swap the box out and put it a JBL flat piston sub with an amp in place of the OEM Bose sub. Nice summer project

At any rate that is it. Very light mods, light touch on this one. I will be bugging you guys from here on out with inane questions lol, so please bear with. Here are a few pics taken on the few days of nice weather so far.

Jeru55

Congrats on your selection! Enjoy.

xxGenericSNxx

Very nice car, and it looks like you got a nice example! The brakes are certainly quite powerful for this car so I don't find a BBK necessary at all. I daily drive the CLK55 (2001 coupe) here in Seattle and I find it great in rain or shine (but not snow). Enjoy in good health!

Is there really a sub on this car? I was always under the impression that it just had midrange and tweeters since I've never really felt any base at all.

City Rat

Yes, once I figure out how to remove the rear seat I will post pics of the factory sub, which I agree felt more like a midrange, its size, position etc. Most likely I will pull it and, if there is space put the powered sub that I have now back there and try it for a few months.

bobbyjo9

Space is very tight back there. I dont know what size box you have but I doubt it will fit. IIRC the largest opening from the back seat is around 10" circular. The rest of the space is webbed much smaller. The area is filled with the pump and hardware, top controller, amp, and the sub. There is some room but i think your powered sub will be more like a square peg in a round hole!

xxGenericSNxx

Something you might look into is installing a 6" JL sub or equivalent under the dashboard, either on the passenger side or driver side. If there's some paneling that can be shaved, you can tuck it into the dash and it'll be inconspicuous and still provide a good amount of bass.

City Rat

Thanks for the under the dash suggestion. Sounds like it could be an option to consider. If anyone has pics of a sub install in that position I'd love to see them.

xxGenericSNxx

I had a sub installed on the R at a good local audio shop and wanted to keep it concealed and stock looking, especially since the trunk space is already at such a premium. They built a box that fits under the tray that opens up for the spare tire, since I've got a little dead space there. They told me that they're used to more creative sorts of solutions and that another option would be to do an under dash mount which they've done on several Ferraris before. I know the newest R231 SL has the sub mounted under the dash in the factory location now as well. With a little creativity, certainly anything's possible.

GatorMB

It is a mirror image of my CLK55. Hope you enjoy yours as much as I enjoy mine.
Dejavue

Cheers, Gator