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Nice! In my opinion, the '07 and '08 are the best years. I like the classic look of the pre-facelift cars and these two years have ABC2 and the extra HP. Not always a fan of black wheels, but that is a nice combination.
To be fully honest I'm not a fan of the black wheels myself nor the 19-inch. But if I wanted to go back to an 18-inch OEM wheel, it would have been another 2200 dollars out of my pocket that would have been much better spent on repairs I need to do on the car.
Car looks very nice, I'm probably going to lower my 07 55 with links at some point. only 1/4 of an inch and I think that's a perfect setting. ABC 2 is lovely.
I just acquired a 2007 R230 Silver on Black with AMG package. 37k miles. My first Mercedes. Drives like a dream. I am learning lots about its quirks and upkeep demands. Kind of like a needy girl friend!
I just acquired a 2007 R230 Silver on Black with AMG package. 37k miles. My first Mercedes. Drives like a dream. I am learning lots about its quirks and upkeep demands. Kind of like a needy girl friend!
Oh yeah, these cars are worth it though. Treat these cars well and they will treat you well. They have character, they may not be like an Italian super model but a German supermodel for sure.
Ah yes! I just came back from my local Mercedes guru. I have a minor vibration and noise that feels/sounds like an old power steering pump noise (if you ever had a 1960s thru 1990s American car). He says it is a broken motor mount. $125 for parts (includes both motor mounts and trans mount), $450 labor. My guy let's me buy the parts and bring them to him. FYI, I am in Orange County, CA. He works on all brands of high line cars but specializes in German. Has always been reasonable and available.
There seem so to be some confusion on the part numbers for the engine mounts for the 2007 SL550. FCP Euro doesn't show availability. Parts Geek shows Anchor Kit 18983-06174088 (I ordered this one). Amazon and others show the Lemfoerder kit (below) but the description next to the part does not match my car. Pelican shows the same one. Mechanic says the Parts Geek looks right. He also recommended Lemfoerder. So, confused!! Thoughts?? Thanks for all input. Parts Geek
Ah yes! I just came back from my local Mercedes guru. I have a minor vibration and noise that feels/sounds like an old power steering pump noise (if you ever had a 1960s thru 1990s American car). He says it is a broken motor mount. $125 for parts (includes both motor mounts and trans mount), $450 labor. My guy let's me buy the parts and bring them to him. FYI, I am in Orange County, CA. He works on all brands of high line cars but specializes in German. Has always been reasonable and available.
Yep, I just had to replace both motor mounts plus the transmission mount, and with parts and labor, it came out to be 1860.00, and the week before that, I had my brakes and rotors replaced which came out to be 1650.00, and I STILL have other issues that need to be fixed. Welcome to the world of MBZ. Although I just came from a BMW so I'm not to shocked by the prices. Hell, I'm thinking about getting a personal loan to fix the rest of my car. Go figure, right?
Just a side note Larry, do not purchase your parts from Amazon or any other place that do not sell OEM parts. Believe me, I learned that lesson the very hard way.
If you're looking to not have to constantly replace your OEM engine mounts, we manufacture polyurethane engine and transmission mounts for this platform. Our engine mounts will mimic OEM vibration levels, but have a much longer lifespan. In addition to engine and trans mounts we also offer polyurethane subframe bushings that will stiffen and improve the handling quality of the R230. The link below will take you directly to the 07-11 SL550 product page:
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Originally Posted by Yankee_LT
Yep, I just had to replace both motor mounts plus the transmission mount, and with parts and labor, it came out to be 1860.00, and the week before that, I had my brakes and rotors replaced which came out to be 1650.00, and I STILL have other issues that need to be fixed. Welcome to the world of MBZ. Although I just came from a BMW so I'm not to shocked by the prices. Hell, I'm thinking about getting a personal loan to fix the rest of my car. Go figure, right?
Yikes! So glad I can do my own maintenance/repairs. I had the engine mounts replaced on my 2004 SL500 by a shop and labor was only a couple hundred dollars; the mounts I had gotten from FCP Euro. The tranny mount I did myself.
Now, when it comes to other work on these R230 cars, you definitely MUST invest in a scan tool that lets you operate the maintenance functions for the brakes and suspension. The SBC, while incredibly advanced for its time, is beyond most DIYers unless they invest in a tool, which can be pricey. I used my Autel MaxiDAS scanner for both disabling the SBC to work on the brakes and when bi-annually replacing the brake fluid. There is a step by step procedure that the scan tool walks you through, and it's not the traditional "start with the wheel furthest from the brake fluid reservoir" procedure. And the ABC suspension? Well, that's another story.
When I first got my car, the first thing I did was flush out the ABC system and put in a new filter. I wanted that to be brand new and up to speed because we all know that once that goes, we're looking to purchase another car for the price of replacing the system. You know, I'll be honest here; maybe it has to do with my age. But I hate having so many systems on a car that can go wrong at the drop of a dime that will clear out your savings just to fix the issue. Don't get me wrong, I'm beginning to love driving my new 07 SL, but I think I might sell it to get something without ALL the internal computer management systems that can keep me up all night thinking about what can or will eventually go south.
Larry, Congrats on the fabulous new car. It looks just terrific. (Make sure to always park away from places where other cars can park near yours!) I wondered if that one is the one I traded in last November. Although, different wheels. Probably not as that one had new motor mounts with about 2500 miles on them. That car's new owner will be hard pressed to find anything on the car that needs any servicing. Yankee, $1860 for two motor mounts and a trans mount? That is crazy. Parts should cost less than about $250 and labor should be Less than $500. You need to stay away from a dealership first of all, they are terrible robbers. Get a good indy shop that won't overcharge you. I replaced motor and trans mounts on almost every used Benz I acquire, and don't have to think about them ever again since I only put about 3000 miles on each car, a year.
If you ever need a new alternator, water pump, starter, etc., parts like those, make sure to get original Mercedes/Bosch parts, not something from a local auto parts store. A previous owner installed a "duralast" alternator from Autozone on my SL55! Of course that caused problems... $$$$ Real genuine parts don't cost that much. Alternator? About $300, maybe a little less, same for water pump. New is better than rebuilt. Quite a few places online to get good quality parts from when you need them. Amazon is famous for counterfeit parts, even headlight bulbs, that is a huge racket.
I only go with OEM parts on this car and all the other cars I have owned. Because as you, myself, and the rest of us know, going with anything else would be a waste of money, not to mention that said non-OEM part could destroy the car.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Originally Posted by Yankee_LT
...I'm beginning to love driving my new 07 SL, but I think I might sell it to get something without ALL the internal computer management systems that can keep me up all night thinking about what can or will eventually go south.
Kinda why I went with my current 2015 SL400 (R231).
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Originally Posted by Yankee_LT
It was an indie shop.
Find another shop.
@tonylinc is absolutely correct. $1860 us outrageous for engine and tranny mounts on that car. Do they not know what they are doing? Or do they think you don't? I did get Lemforder parts from FCP Euro ($130) and paid less than $300 in labor.
For your car, the mounts are more expensive, about $620 for genuine Mercedes parts. Still, over $1200 for labor is crazy.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Originally Posted by Yankee_LT
I only go with OEM parts on this car and all the other cars I have owned. Because as you, myself, and the rest of us know, going with anything else would be a waste of money, not to mention that said non-OEM part could destroy the car.
You will pay a premium for genuine parts. That's why FCP Euro also offers OEM and OE parts, meaning that the manufacturer (e.g., Lemforder, Corteco, etc.) often produces the parts for Mercedes. For example, Stabilis makes the trunk struts for Mercedes. You can get them for about $20 each and install yourself in 2 minutes or pay the dealer $300.
I'm pretty sure my motor mounts are lemforder and my ABC accumulators are Corteco, my trunk lid struts are the $25 ones. No biggie. But alternator, especially since my cheap one went nuts and burnt up the BCM and a few other parts, I said ONLY get a brand new Bosch, and once the belt was off they indy guys said the water pump was just about ready to blow up, i said Only get brand new Bosch whatever the car was born with. The dual pulley that costs $710 from Mercedes also was bad, but the shop guys pulled a favor owed and got a brand new Mercedes original one for $300. Then the harmonic balancer (crank pulley) retails over $700 from Mercedes but I spent an hour looking everywhere online and got one for under $500 from an actual Mercedes dealer somewhere. Those have a molded rubber piece that wears out over a bunch a years. LoL
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
I definitely agree with name brand/original parts like alternators. Remanufactured ones sound like a deal with lifetime warranty, etc. But the effort to replace them ain't fun.
10-12-2023, 08:20 AM
