PJmak

How rare are the w208 clk55s and what are the prices like on these things nowadays? I am becoming really interested in one...

What are the common issues? Id assume its a very solid car since its from the w202 and w210 era

Are there any differences(upgrades) between different year models?

Educate me please

MagmaRed55

I'm not 100% sure on how rare they are I think it's around 3000 per year of production in the US. I went from a 98 w210 320 to the 01 w208 55. The difference is incomparable.

As far as common issues, it's pretty much the same as the average 208. Most of what "could" go wrong has a lot to do with maintenance throughout each individual car's life. I would suggest not owning one if looking at a set of wrenches makes you sick as most maintenance can be done without seeing a dealer or Indy shop.

If it still sounds interesting after reading this, I suggest start looking for one now. You will not regret it at all. Hope this helps you.

beefstallionAMG

There were more like 3000 coupes total shipped to the US in the W208 AMG's 2001-2002 production run.

CLK 55 AMG Coupe

2001 1343
2002 1467

CLK 55 AMG Cabriolet

2002 1340


Link to AMG production numbers
http://www.6speedonline.com/forums/m...model-usa.html

MagmaRed55

Interesting. Makes me wonder about colors.

GatorMB

There are 3 of them on the local Orlando craigs list plus many fake c, e amg imposters. I was surprised to see CLK 320 AMG cab for 15k and a few CLK 430 AMG.
prices are 12k n up. The higher the mileage the lower the price.
There is a rare 2003 W208 cab with buy here pay here options.


Cheers, Gator

MouTine

One thing that realy bugs me is that you guys in US got whole color lineup when talking AMG models. I don't know why but here in EU we got only dark blue and that lame silver.

MarcusF

There were 1,343 US spec CLK55 coupes produced for the 2001 model year. There were 1,467 US spec CLK55 coupes produced in 2002, and another 1,340 Cabs. Differences between the 2001 and 2002 CLK55 coupe? None that matter now. In 2002, the V60 Motorola phone was made available. Yep, that’s it. Unless you mean colors. In that case, Pewter Gray was added in 2002. In 2001, the CLK55 coupe had a list price of $67,400 while in 2002 the price increased to $69,115. Options? The K2 which included an integrated analog portable cell phone and 6-disc CD changer. The K3 which included an upgraded analog cell phone that was voice-activated and a 6-disc CD changer. None of those phones will work in today's digital network and the CD changer is also obsolete. The K3 and K4 were allegedly options, but I’ve never seen a US spec W208 55 without them. Does everyone here have the rear sunshade? Rain sensing wipers? Xenons? If not, then I'm wrong and there are "strippers". The big option was a designo package. The designo Espresso was $5K, while the ultra-rare designo Cashmere was $5,766.

I’d love to say, “There are no issues, only normal wear parts”, but that’s not true. The items that catch many are the dash pixels ($35 DIY fix if I remember correctly), the diff side seals (the dealer did mine, I have no idea what it costs out of warrantee), a $5 o-ring for the transmission electronics, and some have experienced cat failure. The cat failure is the most expensive failure IF factory parts are used. Nobody does that, so it’s the second most expensive item – but still less than a good set of tires. The cat failure occurs when the weld that holds the ceramic substrate in place - fails. Wear and tear stuff includes the oil cooler seals, valve cover gaskets, O2 sensors, MAF, steering stabilizer, the voltage regulator, brake switch, and some people have replaced their crankshaft position sensor. I’m sure there are other parts but the biggest two expenses will be tires and front rotors. And when you need front rotors, that is an expense that will not go unnoticed.

The CLK55 is solid. If you can't do your own work and don't have a good indy, service prices may be a painful reminder that it is an AMG. If something big goes bang, unless you can pull an engine, it can be "sell the car" expensive. The transmission is bulletproof, but they occasionally fail. However, rebuilt transmissions are only $2500.

PJmak

Thanks a bunch guys.

W208s mostly went unnoticed by me....i guess its because its a 2 door.... but lately ive become really interested in one and to be honest i think the mb silver color is a must on it.

From what you guys are telling me the 208 is very similar to my c43 in reliability so it doesnt sound too bad since I do most maintenance my self. Just wanna make sure there are no occasional major issues.

Kind of like the c43 transmission issue that quite a few people experienced. Apparantly some people ended up with problematic trannies in their cars while there were still many c43 owners that havent had any problems of this kind at all

City Rat

Wait, 320 AMG and 430 AMG, when did that happen? Hopefully these are drawn from imposter ads.

KJI3jflarryfe93

RUSTY bodies!

City Rat

Speak for yourself. There is no rust on my baby. 77k miles mostly highway. As others have said there the usual preventive maintenance items on my to do list but that's it.

MagmaRed55

Same here. 120k without a spot of rust on the body or underneath. Not bad for a New England car.

KJI3jflarryfe93

rust is one of major issues besides electric glitches on w208 and w210
threadstarter wanted input on these cars

MagmaRed55

Agreed, but in defense of all the non rusty 210s and 208s, every car (except Saturn haha) has a rust problem. My guess is in most cases someone with a w208 320 isn't going to care about winter storage as much as someone with a 55.

KJI3jflarryfe93

everything depends on how devoted you are to your car.
i don't drive my car in winter, i have no issues with rust

non winter driving = no rust issues
winter driving = big problems if you don't wash your w208/w210 often

City Rat

There you have it. Its not an issue with the car, more an issue of car care. I drive mine all winter long and wash.it often=no rust.p

KJI3jflarryfe93

mb factory skimped on several layers of rustcoating on these cars during manufactoring.
these cars are by far the worst cars reliesed from mercedes.
even The Fuhrer Herr Adolf would have been disapointed with these cars!
he would have loved the w100, w116, w123, w126, c126 and the w124 E500

MarcusF

Having not taken an official count, I'm going out on a limb and will suggest that here in southern California we may have more CLK55s than anywhere else in the US. There are definitely more new Mercedes-Benz vehicles sold in Cali than anywhere else in the US. That said, unless the car is parked in the Pacific, our cars don't have rust issues. Fly in and drive home.

MagmaRed55

Wow! Hahaha. I don't think poor rust protection makes it the worst car Mercedes has made. Every one of them has some issue. My 210 rusted out but not nearly as bad as ALL Subarus which is the most popular car sold in the state of Vermont. Ironically enough Vermont winters are horrible and the amount of road salt used is staggering. That being said just because a car can rust easily doesn't make it a bad car, they just need a little more attention. These cars are around 13 to 14 years old and most of the ones I have seen are in excellent condition.

PJmak

Im in CA so im sure rust wont be a problem.

I looked around on cl yesterday and i was suprised that the prices are pretty much the same as c43s :o

Will definetly be looking into one of these as soon as i sell my c280

KJI3jflarryfe93

buddy
i like the w210 it's a nice lookin car especially when it's an amg
if you compare w210 to all previous mercedes line, a w210 is by far the worst kind of non mb quality car.
maybe w210 can qualitywise be compared to early Opel cars from GM?
Opel liked to rust!!
Opel is the euro brand of GM cars for those who don't know, in UK they are named Vauxhall.

only good opel car was Lotus Omega, that was a brutal beast!!

MagmaRed55

Happy hunting, friend.

City Rat

Look, it is clear that you neither own a w208 nor think much of them. Thats fine, free country and all. Your view has been expressed, at the extremes of hyperbole and poorly grounded but expressed nonetheless. As long as the OP comes away with the clear understanding that the majority of owners here are not experiencing the severe, cataclysmic, Hitlerian rust issues that you see surrounding you like blades of grass.

To the OP, the very best of.luck in your search. Whichever vehicle you choose have a PPI done in addition to a thorough visual inspection, inside and out. We wouldn't want you to miss those yawning rust chasms, pink ponies in the exhaust or unicorns in the air intake.

beefstallionAMG

X2

Most of the W208 55's I find are garage queens that were run in the summer. I would recommend a lower mileage car. The W208 AMG was a $7xxxx.00 car new. I see more 320's and occasionally 430's that were neglected by the previous owner and allowed to rust.

If you don't want to wash the car or are worried about rust, have the car rustproofed.

KJI3jflarryfe93

i never said i don't like w208 or w210.
i like all benzes!

factory cut corners on build quality from mid 90's if i remember correct, if you buy these cars finding a garage queen is the best car
will probably cost more to buy from a seller who pampered the car
you get what you pay for

being Hitlarian or not, he was chaufered like royal higness in the best of cars
i bet he would have objected to build quality of todays cars