Gents, as you well know a vehicle has hundreds of components that are vital for the functions of such vehicle. Every one of these parts has a life and a reliability index. Just like we are, we may die at 40 or at 90, all depends on circumstances. Plastics have been replacing metal parts in vehicles at a very high rate. They are cheap and versatile for manufacturing of components. But, the problem with then is that they age, and the aging is accelerated by heat, UV light, stress and use. Same as electronic components which are layered over plastic substrates as in circuit boards. So, when we purchase a new car, all is good for a while till age starts becoming an issue.

I frequently read the posts in this forum to educate myself about potential issues and how are they being resolved. Also have noticed many posts on vehicles with low mileage having all kind of issues. Well my friends, these cars are between 12 and 20 years old…many plastic components have lost the plasticity, circuit boards are somewhat losing the copper layers due to corrosion, seals are wearing out, mechanical parts are wearing, etc, etc… So, in comparison with many other vehicles owned by members of this forum, mine is at the top of the group of high mileage…fortunately the vital parts are still functioning OK at this point in time, but every time I used the car, I keep my fingers crossed wishing none of these vital components quit their useful life on me…!

So, basically, when you buy one of these cars, no matter the mileage and previous care, the age will dictate what will fail, and it is basically like a Russian roulette.!

 

To be honest, German plastics from this era just suck. I have a '72 Z-28 and I guarantee you that none of the plastic parts on that car are as bad as a typical '03 SL (or BMW from the same era).

 

These cars are like the 50 year old divorced super model who drinks too much.

 

50? Now you make ME feel old.

Our very moderate climate, about which we complain incessantly, probably has helped the plastics etc in my car. None of the defects and deteriorating here described - yet.

 

The plastic and rubber parts of these German cars are the downfall of the car. From failing rubber bushings to failing seals to failing hoses and valve seals. The machine work with aluminum and other metal parts are impeccable, but most of the failures are due to plastic and rubber components failing.

Shifter failures die to bad engineering with a poor plastic component, accelerator pedal overextending due to worn plastic components, top failures due to bad plastic components, ( flaps, switches etc) worn bushings in the front due to rubber component failures, top seals due to rubber/ plastic component failure, motor mount failure due to component failure, and hydraulic suspension rubber hose failure due to a bad design. Then there is the 722,6 transmission plug leak and the list goes on

The list of failures due to plastic or rubber materials in these and lots of German cars are endless, just look ast the biodegradable wiring harnesses of the mid 90s r129 . The machine woks of the engine were great, not so much for the harness insulation.

the plastic parts of the interior are awful and with a car that has not spent most of its time in a garage, non serviceable. Touching these parts will make you understand.

Many of the issues I have to deal with on these and many German cars can be led back to bad plastic and bad rubber parts, the rest is good old Rube Goldberg electrical issues and engineering,


take an evaluation of the repairs, and I would bet most of them are related to plastic or rubber parts that have failed, most requiring full component replacement.


Ever had your sl500 engine rebuilt due to engine failure? Probably not, but the valve cover sealant and possibly the oil pan sealant or the rear main seal has given up. Maybe the rubber o rings in the front cover have degraded and leaked coolant into the oil pan. Or the rubber o ring on the pickup tube has hardened and it’s not doing its job? Maybe it’s the plastic gear on the steering column that has broken , or possibly the plastic cable part in the window regulator that has deteriorated, but the rest of the part is still good?

Or maybe the plastic gas tank on your W211 is cracked and leaking fuel onto the exhaust?

The door hinges on all my Mercedes are always in impeccably great condition, and even the 45 year old cars are great!

 

Great posts on this thread. Some of you should share your experience in the V167 section of the site, if you aren’t over there already. The people there can use some perspective.

Regarding the OP, nothing is worse for a car than disuse.

 

Yes, low mileage is not a great virtue with these cars. Sellers with cars under 40k miles ask a fortune and buyers think they've found a unicorn. I bought mine (05 SL500) with 93k miles. The top hard already been fixed by the dealer. The motor and trans are very solid on these cars, it's all the goodies that go bad. I have a real problem with people thinking it's normal for ABC hoses to blow out due to age. How many Chevys , Fords , etc are 40 years old with the same power steering hoses and rubber brake lines ?Those are high pressure lines but seem to last forever.

 

It is not just German cars, for example this Ferrari have a couple of dollars part (seal that failed) that required the entire engine removed (if I recalled correctly from the video):

 

Ferrari is a whole new ballgame of nonsense in that regard. Shifter lock failures due to real crappy design and material choice is not something a car like this should get.

 

So, should I reconsider the SL?
I’m looking at a 2011 with 82,000KM

 

12 year old car with all of the problems stated above. It’s much newer than the oldest cars, which are exhibiting the most issues, but will have most of the same issues stated eventually, Age will be a benefit in your car, and possibly cooler climate storage.

 

It’s been a BC car all it’s life, so 6-8 week summers and garage kept.
I also have a 2008 Jaguar XK coupe that is BC born as well, and has none of the issues I regularly read about in cars all over the world.

 

The nagging ageing issues I read about in the forums sofar haven't hit my 2005. The car has been reliable and nothing has faded (with the clear coat on the plastic C pillar trim pieces as an exception), broken, chipped or bubbled. Attributing factors would be garaging, the moderate Dutch climate and OEM coil overs (SL350). And me, of course.

 

Frederick, that is just the "freezing" effect. Even plastics and rubber last longer in the freezer. The shadow inside your garage also helps.
The problem with plastics is that manufacturer's do not have time to test the materials longevity nor ways on how to accelerate the plastic aging process. This works for all manufacturer's and not limited to Mercedes. I am sure that a piece of plastic left in the Arizona sun for 10 years, won't make it!
After gluing, polishing and repairing the damage left unattended by previous owners on mine, I keep it in the garage and go out when the weather is cold or after sunset since I like to cruise topless!

 

If you are still holding onto an R230, then that means you've determined you are willing to keep playing Russian roulette. It's not a bad thing, it's about continuing to put money into the vehicle so you can continue to enjoy the classic R230.

There are many ways to play this roulette. If something breaks, you ask yourself is it worth fixing. If not, you just keep on enjoying the car. If yes, you take it to the nearest competent MB indie shop to get it fixed. My lumber support hasn't worked for over a decade, does it bother me? Absolutely not, no need to fix, keep driving. My front lock cylinder rubber o ring failed and squirt oil in the top with the all too familiar oil leak on the passenger side seat. Again, multiple ways to play this. Some have had good success replacing it DIY style with a $5 part, and then keep on driving. I seriously contemplated this route, but ended up going to my local MB indie and had them replace all 8 roof related cylinders with rebuilds so I didn't have to fix them one by one as the next one fails. The convertible hard top is the most important part of the R230 for me so that was how I played it. Then, keep on driving and enjoying!

 

Not really, the German r230 plastics ar far more prone to breaking than other brands, I have a mid 80s 500sec that lived outside in the Arizona sun for most of its life with less brittle plastics than the r230 cars I have with much less UV exposure. Even the Porsche 996 cars I have don’t exhibit the plastic failure rate of the r230 of worse yet the r129 cars I own.

I will say, the r230 is a very tightly engineered car, but all of the issues I have encounter are related to plastic and rubber part failures. The oil pumps are wonderfully engineered parts, but the pickup tube oring seems not to be. The plastic radiator in the e55 and c32 which leaked coolant into the transmission, or maybe leaked transmission fluid from the radiator.

The Germans make great metal parts, but when it comes to the plastic or rubber variants , they have not been the best.

 

It is a double edge sword, an alluring complex engineered car that can be bought for pennies on the dollar. The flip side is the dollars and time needed to make it run, drive, and reliable enough for someone to enjoy.

When they work, they work very well, but when they break they also break to render the car un driveable for very simple problems like shifter locks to broken top flaps, and ABC hoses.

 

Has anyone thought about jumping ship into something else? I'm not even sure what I would go to that is comparable. I'm talking about something more reliable of course, there are plenty that break just as often (or more) that are a blast.

 

Junior, to me the newer generation of vehicles (Post 1990) have been flooded with a lot of plastic components, some very delicate electronics imbedded in plastics, electronic fuel injection, distributor-less ignition, transducers, etc, which could leave you stranded at anytime. I am an ol' school mechanic and love these four barrel carburetors, or the Webers, manual 4 or 5 speed transmissions, simple electronic ignition with a distributor, which are very reliable. I believe in simplicity.... the more complexity is added to vehicles, the chance for failure increases proportionally. So, want something very reliable...get you a pre-1980 cruiser! A plastic part may break, but you can keep on going since is not part of the critical motion devices.

 

Do NOT shoot the messenger: Mazda MX5. Those guys count their Smiles per Gallon. Reliable, cheap maintenance, fun.

I'll hang to the Merc, though. Rational doesn't live here.

 

A Miata is what I was going to recommend as well. And no, rationale doesn't belong here, it goes right out the roof when I open the convertible hard top. (See what I did there?)

 

Guys, today I learned that not only Germans are screwing up with plastic parts. Toyota/Lexus recalled 3 million vehicles due to a small plastic impeller inside the fuel pump, and as you know this is inside the fuel tank! Big job..! They said the plastic material absorbs the fuel with time, swells and gets jammed into the housing..! Hope the Mercedes guys used a metallic impeller for the pump..>!

 

Yea try to get Mercedes to recall anything.

 

Good question! Here's my perspective.

I bought my first MBZ about 15 years ago: a 98 SL500. Shortly after that, a 99 SL500.
Then, in 2014... I got a 2011 Jaguar XK convertible. Got in an accident, and replaced it with a 2011 XKR 'vert.
And that XKR convertible is the most satisfying car I have ever owned. Not even close. Remains so to this day.
Yes, the Jags have their own host of problems, but most (not all) of the electrical issues were resolved during the ford ownership years. They're really great cars, and more reliable than you'd expect.
I now have a 2009 SL550 for the simple reason that I could not find a good XKR convertible in my price range.
Speaking of: they stopped making the XK series in 2015 in the US. If you want to look, please confine your search to 2012-2015. Those are the cars you want.
Thoughts:
- both the XKR and SL550 are "performance grand touring" convertibles. A narrow segment, to be sure.
- critically (for me), they both have space behind the front seats to stow stuff. Jaguar actually designates that space "rear seats," which is laughable. But this is my daily driver, so cars like the corvette and the Cadillac XLR which don't even try to have stowage space behind the front seats are off my list.
- the interior compartment of the Jaguar is larger. For long trips, I think it makes a difference.
- as I said, I think the Jag might be more reliable than the SL550. Crazy, but I think so.
- power/speed wise, the 2010+ XKR (with the supercharged 5.0) is a BEAST. Seriously, it's an animal. The SL550 does not come close.
- having said that, the 5.5 in the SL550 is a f***ing TANK ENGINE. That thing is unkillable. WHICH IS IMPORTANT, because....
- ... production numbers. THIS IS CRITICAL. Why? Because Jaguar no longer parts-supports the XK series. They simply didn't make enough of the cars. One of the last things I had done was to have one of the headlights (sealed assembly, naturally) replaced on the XKR. I had the planet's best warranty, which somehow covered this - thank GOD, since the headlight assemblies are $3200 per light - but even my rockstar folks at Rusnak Jaguar had to search far and wide and sourced a new one at a dealership in Milwaukee. Which was apparently the last OEM drivers-side light for sale in the US. Why? Because Jaguar no longer even makes that part. More and more, XK owners are going to be sourcing their parts off of Ebay.
Because of sales numbers alone, you will always be able to source parts for an SL. Pricey, maybe, (ASK ME ABOUT MY FULL TRUNK SOFT-CLOSE REBUILD!), but they're out there.
Not to mention that there are indy MBZ shops all over the place. Not so with Jaguar.
For that alone, I think I 10+ year old MBZ may be the wiser investment.

But I sure do miss my XKR.

 

Also, a few folks here have mentioned Miatas.
My stepdad (also a car guy, sold Lexus and Saturns for years) is a HUGE Miata guy.
But it's really not a comparison since they're such different cars.
Yes, they both have four wheels, front engine, convertible tops. But the similarities end there.
The Miata is a well-designed, super-fun, TINY Matchbox car to drive up and down the coast and throw around a track now and then.
Take it on a cross-America drive, 10 hours a day for days on end, and you'll be miserable. By comparison, that's a lovely drive in either the XKR (better) or the SL550.
Miata owners love their cars, and for good reason: if you want a now-and-then, sunny day, little top-down car, Miatas are reliable and fun.
But both the XK series and the SL series are a whole different level of car. Luxury four-season daily-dirver cars that have confidence and power.