Deviant_Dante

Hello everyone.

Just checking in to the forum and learning a bit about MB in general. I've never owned a Euro car until my wife purchased a Volvo. Now I'm due for a new (used) ride, myself and have been checking out quite a few MBs that are within my price range. I'm looking at cars at/below the $25K price point. Prefer coupes, but have been checking out SL550's, SLK350's, and a few others that looked promising. Also found a 2004 CL55 AMG that looks pretty good online. I'm coming from a Mazda Miata, and am tired of the rag-top so I am interested in comfort but would like to stay with something sporty. Most of the MBs that I've been looking at are below 85K miles. My question to you guys/gals is: how is the reliability of an MB around that price point and mileage range? I look forward to joining the MB family and am super excited now that I'm finding that a good used MB is more of a reality that I'd ever imagined!

Dante

MJ50

welcome to the forum...
you'll be fine as long as you take care of the car (i.e. maintenance, repair, etc...)

Deviant_Dante

Thanks, MJ! I'm scanning through the boards and doing a bit of homework/research to figure out exactly what I'm getting into. I am leaning real hard towards an SL55 AMG that I recently found online. I'll have to go check it out to know for sure. Looks like it might be worth the trip out of state to go pick it up. It is an '07 with around 70K miles on it, so I'm guessing that doing the "rodeo" test on it would probably be a good idea, right? Other than that, I'm trying to make sure to find out anything else I should look for before purchase. Thanks for the welcome... seems to be a great forum you guys/gals have here!

AZN Optics

Welcome to MBWorld. My brother had an 07 SL55. Amazing car. Straight piped it and she was LOUD. As MJ said, as long as you (and more importantly, the previous owner) maintained her well, it'll be reasonably reliable

PelicanParts.com

Welcome to MBWorld, Dante! As MJ said, take care of the car and the car will take care of you. I'm sure you'll love your new-to-you MB once you pick one up.

dbldpr

Welcome and good luck in finding what you want. As they say the best or nothing

sailormkii

I just joined. My name is Gary Sailor. My story is in my welcome area. I had the SLK and loved it. I now have the SL55 and I love it also. I wouls say to buy the SLK as it is great. I probably should have as now my mpg is approx 13mpg. I got 18 in my c300. My SLK was a supercharged 4 and was fast and once on a trip got almost 40 mpg. To be fair to my new (used) SL55 it has not been on a trip. I had one ot the batteries go out this week and it was almost $400. I feel ths SLK is much more reasonable to maintain. Lots of low mileage cars in Florida. Good luck.

Deviant_Dante

Thanks for the replies, everyone. I'm in no rush, and will definitely be a bit picky on the car that I choose. I've learned my lesson over the years with used vehicles and am doing my research here to learn what to look for on these particular vehicles. I'm leaning more towards the AMG versions... because, why not! Either way, she'll get regular oil changes with full synthetic oil, nothing but premium fuel, and pampered on a regular basis.

Thanks for the input on the SLK, Gary. I've been looking at a few of those... SLK350 and SLK55, either way, I don't see me getting anywhere near 40mpg, LOL. Not really a big deal to me. I have a relatively short drive to work with very few stop lights, and I rarely take road trips anymore. Fortunately for me, gas mileage is at the bottom of my priority list!

Also, I'm pretty comfortable with turning a wrench, so I'm confident enough to attempt quite a few repairs and maintenance on my own. Provided that I can find a good manual for such things. I'm used to Haynes/Chilton's manuals for domestic and Japanese cars, but I am unfamiliar with MB. My wife just picked up a Volvo that I'm learning a bit about. Man, it is tight in that engine bay though... reminds me why I hate front wheel drive cars!

PelicanParts.com

The AMG is a good choice. Have any that you're currently looking at? This forum will provide you with a lot of great knowledge when it comes time to doing fixes/repairs.

Deviant_Dante

Currently looking at a 2007 SLK55, 2007 SL55, and a 2004 CL55. I completely agree with you about the forum having a lot of knowledge on repairs/fixes, and I just recently discovered Pelican... you guys even have everything I need for the wife's Volvo!

PelicanParts.com

Nice choices. Yes, Volvo is one of our brands that we supply parts for. Glad we are able to help you out with your wife's car and hopefully with your new MB when you get it. If you need anything just let me know! Good luck with the purchase.

Deviant_Dante

Hmmmm... found this one interesting. Anyone have thoughts/concerns/opinions on this SL600?

SL600 in Dallas, TX