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I'm a happy camper with my 2007 SLK 280; 98K miles, Smarttop, Wind Restrictor; new Michelin Pilots; just changed the motor and trans mounts. Babied and garaged since I got it in 2008. But today I was tempted with a 2007 SL550 for well under 20K. Black on black, clean Carfax; needs a new Comand unit and adjustment to the trunk latch (both of which the dealer will fix). I need advice. What should I look for and look out for? What's gonna cost me the most or irritate me the most? Lotta switches and gadgets but a clean and gorgeous car.
I've been a forum member since my first 200 SLK 230 and I trust the opinions here? Please guide me. should I buy it? Thanks.
That vehicle has M273 engine #273965 30 042213, which is in the range for potential failure of the timing chain idler sprocket (a.k.a. "balance shaft" failure on the V6). Also, it has an early 722.9 transmission which is more prone to problems. Unless you can verify that the timing chain idler sprocket has already been repaired and the transmission conductor plate was replaced, i'd pass on it. Otherwise, you could be looking at a $4K++ repair of the sprocket, and $1500 for the conductor plate. Also, if you aren't going to DIY, then any ABC issues will cost you many thousands for a shop to repair.
These cars have terrible reliability. I bought a 2007 SL550 in January 2007. West Palm Beach car. Lightly driven. Only 27k miles. Garaged. Supposedly clean CarFax. Body was beautiful. Looked like a steal. Car is in the shop now. Top won’t go down. Problem is tied into the small quarter panel window on the driver’s side. This is the second time this problem has emerged. First repair was $147 to normalize window. Cheapest repair I’ve had. Just got a call that it will take $1700 to make the window and top go down. I am more or less hostage to that repair. Let me sharpen the point. In the last 15 months I have spent $11,300 on the car’s maintenance - NOT INCLUDING TODAY’s $1700. Apparently people who buy $104k cars don’t care about repair costs. But the real issue to me is that Mercedes has apparently missed the entire process improvement, Six Sigma, — whatever your favorite improvement program is. stay way.
That sucks to hear Jallison, the repair you paid in the last year costs almost as much as what i spent on my 2005 SL600. These cars are great cars but to own one you must have a lot of money, or must know how to work on cars. If i didn't know how to work on cars, i'd have to spend 10 grand to fix the ABC issue, and another 2 grand or so to fix the roof, which i traced down to having air in the pump. Dealer would likely made me replace the pump.
Not very encouraging so far. And I was unaware of the same engine problems as my V6. Lotsa moving parts so I'd rather pass it up if I have to. But...
I'm a tech, in northern VA (Dulles to be exact) Bring it by my shop and i'll do a pre purchase inspection for ya. I have an 05 SL600, they're basically the same minus the engine.
Rudeney, how might one know if timing chain idler sprocket has been repaired and the transmission conductor plate replaced? Would those be campaigns listed in VMI? If so, how might it be indicated? Or would this be something that would only be proven by having a service receipt which showed it being accomplished? Sorry for all the questions. Bill
If they were repaired at a dealership (and they probably would be, especially the transmission conductor plate) then they would be in the VMI. The comments are typed in by the techs, so they may not be perfectly clear, but I think you could decipher them. Just don't confuse replacement of the camshaft solenoids with the "balance shaft" or idler sprocket repair.
It takes less than 1 minute to normalize a window. You simply lower the window with the control switch and continue to hold it for a few seconds once the window is completely lowered.
I suppose a lot of shops would have done this "repair" for free as a courtesy or charged a fraction of an hour for the time they spent. Find another shop.
Matter settled. Dealer delayed and then decided -- apparently -- that they didn't want to fix anything. But rather than tell me that, they just notified me the car had been moved to another location. Kinda funny, actually. But there are still plenty of them within 25 miles of here. So the questions linger: Rudeney, when did they fix the M273 engine? Should I avoid all 550's in perpetuity? Really a beautiful car.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to my (well-counseled) hesitation.
There's another post where the engine numbers within that range were detailed. I think Rodney posted it (thanks bud!!) because it was news to me; fortunately my 08 has a higher engine serial number.
Matter settled. Dealer delayed and then decided -- apparently -- that they didn't want to fix anything. But rather than tell me that, they just notified me the car had been moved to another location. Kinda funny, actually.
Very few "used car lots" will invest any money into repairing problems with their inventory. There are some that actually have their own service departments and they will do some work, but nothing major. My guess is this lot said they would address the issues, but then when they discovered how much the repairs would cost them, they retracted. The "car has been moved" may not be a lie, but I'll bet they moved it so they would not have to deal with you.
But there are still plenty of them within 25 miles of here. So the questions linger: Rudeney, when did they fix the M273 engine? Should I avoid all 550's in perpetuity? Really a beautiful car.
Here's the TSB on the issue that outlines all the ranges of engines affected. Note that only "Scenario #1" is the big problem - the other are simple fixes with $100 in parts and an hour or two of labor:
You will see that the affected M273 V8's are through serial number "30 088611" Basically, this is engine #88611 as the M273 started at "30 000001" and eventually rolled over into the "31 xxxxxx" series before it ended production. The potential for the failure existed from day 1, and was discovered about halfway through the MY2007 build. So, any M272 or M273 engine prior to MY2007 will definitely be int he range, and MY2008+ is fine, but MY2007 is "maybe" so you have to check the engine serial number to know.
Having said all that, if you are a skilled DIYer and have SDS, these are fantastic cars to own and won;t break the bank. If you are going to rely on a shop to do the work, then it will be significantly more expensive.
There is an interesting article in this month's Car & Driver magazine about a "$30K Bentley". They explain how demand for high-end cars means they often have fairly flat depreciation curves early in life, but then they take a steep nose-dive due to two factors - one being high maintenance costs, and the other being the "fashion factor". While the SL is no exotic, it is still a low-production high-end car and there is a reason why a 10-year-old specimen has lost nearly $100K in value.
Thank you much for your help and guidance. I agree that the dealer just didn't want to deal with a buyer who actually wanted something done. Noticed on eBay that the COMAND unit alone was usually $1100. So the quest continues.
As I keep looking it's obvious I'll need to refer to any candidae's datacard for engine numbers. Is there a convenient or (cheap) affordable source for datacards? I guess I could keep bugging people here but that's not something I really like to do. There seems to be no real problem finding the cars but I'd like to know more about them. Or MB service records? Are they available?
These cars have terrible reliability. I bought a 2007 SL550 in January 2007. West Palm Beach car. Lightly driven. Only 27k miles. Garaged. Supposedly clean CarFax. Body was beautiful. Looked like a steal. Car is in the shop now. Top won’t go down. Problem is tied into the small quarter panel window on the driver’s side. This is the second time this problem has emerged. First repair was $147 to normalize window. Cheapest repair I’ve had. Just got a call that it will take $1700 to make the window and top go down. I am more or less hostage to that repair. Let me sharpen the point. In the last 15 months I have spent $11,300 on the car’s maintenance - NOT INCLUDING TODAY’s $1700. Apparently people who buy $104k cars don’t care about repair costs. But the real issue to me is that Mercedes has apparently missed the entire process improvement, Six Sigma, — whatever your favorite improvement program is. stay way.
Jallison 1 buying a 2007 car in Jan 2007 that already has 27k miles on it is not a "Lightly driven" car. Yes if serviced as recommended it should have been a nice car, but I would be concerned buying a high miles luxury car. Just my opinion.
My concern with that one is an early 722.9 transmission. It will be more problematic and if it hasn't had it, it will need a new conductor plate (dealer-only job, about $1500)
Probably older than I should want anyway. Went into service in June 04. On the other hand, that's why it's affordable. No hurry but I'd like to hear experiences. Thanks for the guidance.
If you are going to spend money on an SL, you should get one that is quick. Stick to the 55/600/65. Otherwise, owning an SL is not worth the money or aggravation. I would look for a 55 and do the VVK shock and strut conversion. You would have a quick car that you could upgrade the power on and not have the maintenance and repair hassles of the ABC suspension.
If you are going to spend money on an SL, you should get one that is quick. Stick to the 55/600/65. Otherwise, owning an SL is not worth the money or aggravation. I would look for a 55 and do the VVK shock and strut conversion. You would have a quick car that you could upgrade the power on and not have the maintenance and repair hassles of the ABC suspension.
Agreed with this 100 percent. There's a local 600 for sale i sent you the link for it VASLK, price dropped to 14,500. Might worth taking a look at.
FxFormat: Thanks for the link. '05 is older than I wanna trust.
Latest candidate is a 2012 550 with 61K miles at $34,000? Any guidance? This is getting closer to a replacement for the SLK rather than a less trustworthy addition but a serious upshift from the price point that drew me into the interest.
04-16-2018, 11:54 PM
Run,don’t walk away
