Hey all, new to the w163 club but not the amg performance. I joined some time ago because I knew I was going to be in an amg one way or another. I have had great luck keeping my c32 running beautifully. It's been reliable as hell and it makes me want to get my ml55 running asap. When getting parts for my c32, there were lots of interchangeable parts with other platforms like the w209 w210 etc.. This helped me reduce the costs of keeping it running with quality oem parts if if not genuine. It seems like the w163 might share parts with the s class and e class but I'm not too sure. I'll do more research for sure but maybe some of you have used unknown methods or parts with great success. Can anyone share their knowledge of keeping their 55 running for relatively cheap?

does the ml55 share auxiliary fans, radiatiors, power steering parts, or other major if not important parts with other models or is it platform specific ?

what about upgrading the headlights to the 2002+ bixenons, I assume they're not plug and play. Any suggestions on which headlights I should go with?

By no means am I trying to put crappy parts in it, if I need to spend I will but that isn't always the case. I know my c32 shared coils with the e320 and that saved me a bunch of money when buying them. Just curious if anyone has their own workaround. Hope to get this truck on the road soon and keep it till the wheels fall off.

It's a Bordeaux Designo ml55 and it's got under 116k miles. Got it for berry berry cheap and even if I have to spend over 2000 to get it sorted, it's totally worth it as I was planning on spending 4500+ on a cleaner one with higher miles and probably more owners. (Mines had 2 owners)