Have spent the last week looking at a bunch of relatively low mileage SL models. And had a few questions:

1. Why are most of the cars for sale the 2007 model? It dwarfs the other years and was curious why.

2. I have a 2004 S430 and went through full Airmatic replacement two years ago. Just curious if this was
improved any in the SL.

3. Lastly, wanted to get thoughts on buying a car that has hardly been driven for two years. The total
mileage is only 60,000 miles but has been garaged.

Thanks.

 

I have a 2007 SL550 and I think it's awesome. It has 55,000 miles on it and it drives like it's new.

 

The reason you find more MY2007's than other year SL550s is because that was the first year for the SL550 (prior years were the SL500, 5.0L V8 M113 engine) and it was the largest production run for the SL550. There were about 10,000 built for MY2007. After that, for MY2008 there were about 6,000, then from MY2009-MY2012, only 10,000 total.

My advice would be to look at a later model year. Some MY2007 M273 engines can experience premature wear of the timing chain idler sprocket (the V8's equivalent to "balance shaft failure" for the V6.M272 engine). Its a major job to replace it and the cost is over $4K. Also, the earlier (prior to MY2009) 7-speed transmissions have problems with internal speed sensors which is a dealer-only job to replace the conductor plate, costing about $1500. If you want the round headlights, then look at a MY2008, or at least check the engine to verify that it is beyond serial number 2739..30 088611 (go to datamb.com and plug in the VIN to get the engine serial number). If look at the the MY2009-2012, you get the revised front end and hood which you may or may not like. You also get a slightly more modern COMAND radio head unit with built-in Bluetooth hands-free, plus the option for Airscarf heated headrests and the power trunk open/close feature.

As for the suspension, I think you mean "Active Body Control" (ABC) and not Airmatic. The system in the SL is pretty much what you had in the S430. There were some changed for MY2007 and again fro MY2009 that might make it more reliable, but that remains to be seen. It's still a hig-pressure hydraulic system subjected to the harsh environment of a road-going automobile, so it will need maintenance over time as parts wear. if you DIY, then it's not a bad experience. If you rely on a shop, it can costs you many thousands of dollars to have a failure repaired.

 

One thing about the 2007 stereo, you can talk on your phone thru bluetooth, but cannot play music. 2008 and beyond you can do both.

Brian A.

 

No R230 has the ability to play music via Bluetooth from the factory. The MY2009 faelift with COMAND NTG 2.5 still does not have that capability, though it does have an iPod interface where you could install a CoolStream CarPro dongle on its 30-pin connector that will do it, but that's aftermarket.