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Requesting feedback, thoughts on this SL55. The owner has relisted the ad and the maintenance is pretty extensive per Carfax. Maybe the seller is a member here as well?
Porsche guy who drives SL63 w/ perf pkg AND perf suspension
can you show the carfax?
he says excellent, but from across the parking lot its hard to see much of anything. I would require alot of better pictures. The seat looks very worn, who knows about the rest of the car.
First you need to go to a dealer and have the service guy look up the star master sheet. See what MB history shows about the car. Then if you find out from the guy what dealer he used or what dealer is on the carfax, call them and ask what they have done to it
Last thing will be to have him take it to a dealer and do a complete cpo inspection, its about $250. and then see what it needs and then make a offer
can you show the carfax?
he says excellent, but from across the parking lot its hard to see much of anything. I would require alot of better pictures. The seat looks very worn, who knows about the rest of the car.
First you need to go to a dealer and have the service guy look up the star master sheet. See what MB history shows about the car. Then if you find out from the guy what dealer he used or what dealer is on the carfax, call them and ask what they have done to it
Last thing will be to have him take it to a dealer and do a complete cpo inspection, its about $250. and then see what it needs and then make a offer
The car is in Portland and I'm in Seattle. The current owner has had the car since 2007.
Attachment added to original post.
Last edited by BradleyBeck; Mar 22, 2017 at 09:49 PM.
I should add that I've never driven an SL before. Plan to drive one locally this weekend, but curious about this particular car given the apparent maintenance history at the MB dealer, asking price and why it hasn't sold.
"First you need to go to a dealer and have the service guy look up the star master sheet. See what MB history shows about the car."
Unless you know someone at a Merc dealer, they wont do it.
Take the car to an independent Mercedes shop, or directly to the Mercedes dealer, whichever is most convenient. Dont spend the money unless you are sure the car is in good shape and what you expect. Why have regrets? This way you wont come back on here and tell everyone what a POS the SL is.
Dont spend the money unless you are sure the car is in good shape and what you expect. Why have regrets? This way you wont come back on here and tell everyone what a POS the SL is.
These can't be any worse than a 911 996 model and the infamous IMS failure. I'm not a whiner, but I understand the concern and appreciate the comment.
The owner has been taking the car for service at the local MB since the purchase back in 2007.
Given the age and that I want to keep the ABC, what sources have you used for replacement parts?
Do a search on this and the other MB site for ABC maintenance. The ABC system is great when everything is operating as designed. It does require some maintenance, and don't believe 'lifetime' fluids in any lubricating/hydraulic system.
Check the color of the ABC fluid. IF black run, if it is dark, consider trotting. IF it hasn't been purged, replaced and you buy the car, put in new fluid, and prepare to install new dampeners and accumulators.
I have an '03 SL55 I've now owned for 3+ years. LOVE the car. Purely for preventive maintenance, I've flushed the ABC fluid and replaced the two dampeners and accumulators. I'm a DIY and take care of preventive maintenance guy when it comes to sophisticated cars.
Do a search on this and the other MB site for ABC maintenance. The ABC system is great when everything is operating as designed. It does require some maintenance, and don't believe 'lifetime' fluids in any lubricating/hydraulic system.
Check the color of the ABC fluid. IF black run, if it is dark, consider trotting. IF it hasn't been purged, replaced and you buy the car, put in new fluid, and prepare to install new dampeners and accumulators.
I have an '03 SL55 I've now owned for 3+ years. LOVE the car. Purely for preventive maintenance, I've flushed the ABC fluid and replaced the two dampeners and accumulators. I'm a DIY and take care of preventive maintenance guy when it comes to sophisticated cars.
I'm now confused then. Did certain years have ABC and others Airmatic? Is it two separate systems on these cars? I'm going to have to research this more. Pardon my naivety.
If they are hard to find in the US, take a look north or the border. I bought my 2007 SL for $35,000 Canadian with 72,000 km's. I guess that is around 45,000 miles? When oil was down last year, Alberta was hurting. Alberta is still having a rough go and there are some nice 2007 SL's up there. You could probably get one for $25,000 to $30,000 Canadian and with the exchange, do well and get a newer model. I would consider a 2004 if I was going to mod the hell out of it. I have a 2007 030 and I am doing minimal add-ons to it because it is a great machine as-is. I looked recently that there is a nice 2007 with 94,000 km's in Calgary that you could get for $30,000 (maybe less). The one issue is getting it across the border...
Good luck and listen to the guys on this board. So much knowledge!
Porsche guy who drives SL63 w/ perf pkg AND perf suspension
I dont have any problem with the carfax history, dont know who the rip dealer is but still had alot of work done at the dealer. Very uncommon for a car that old.
I would take the car to that dealer and have them do a cpo inspection, and look at the master sheet. If they dont find much wrong, And if the visual condition is acceptable I would consider buying it
I have old 03 sl55 and newer 11 sl63 and newer 13sl63 and Ive never touched the abc. Some cars may have trouble, some may not. If they dont see anything wrong with it now, I would have them change the fluid and drive it off.
I'm now confused then. Did certain years have ABC and others Airmatic? Is it two separate systems on these cars? I'm going to have to research this more. Pardon my naivety.
Love the color of your car!
all US spec r230 SLs included ABC suspension (active hydraulic) as standard equipment. This includes all 2003-2012 model year sl500, sl550, sl55, sl63, Sl65
None have air matic
The sl350 (a European-only model) did not have ABC and instead a standard coil suspension.
Some r230 owners have converted to aftermarket coil overs or retrofitted the European model sl350 coil over suspension
The SL55 you are looking at appears nice for its age and mileage. The drivers seat does show a little wear on the bolster which unfortunately is normal for these cars with use/age. The headlamps are a little cloudy but a good polishing should bring them back to their original luster. A pre-purchase inspection is strongly recommended, you don't want to get into an SL that needs a bunch of work done right off the bat. But even with a clean bill of health repairs down the line should be expected and budgeted for. These are not your typical car and are very complex. Preventive maintenance can go a long way.
According to your carfax report the Power steering pump, which is also the ABC pump, has already been replaced a few years ago. A very annoying problem these cars eventually experience is a broken shift lock lever which locks the vehicle in park. This car had its shifter assembly replaced a couple years ago, likely for this issue, you should be fine there.
Under the 60,000 service it says the shocks/struts were replaced, that would be awesome for you if true! If they were leaking they may have been replaced under an extended warranty. There are still the accumulators which should be changed soon, and the abc pressure hoses which can fail unexpectedly. If you run the abc pump dry it will likely be ruined. I've replaced a couple of my abc hoses now as preventive maintenance. If you see seepage, replace it. The lines run through some tight areas so an inspection might not catch problems here.
Are you going to work on the car yourself, or use a dealer or independent for repairs? There is a lot of how-to info on the site to deal with the variety of smaller problems that arise (vario roof flaps, engine mounts, fuel tank noise, pse, etc)
I plan to work on the car myself as much as possible, but also know my limits. I had a mechanics course during high school a long time ago, but I'm still able to do most maintenance items.
If they are hard to find in the US, take a look north or the border. I bought my 2007 SL for $35,000 Canadian with 72,000 km's. I guess that is around 45,000 miles? When oil was down last year, Alberta was hurting. Alberta is still having a rough go and there are some nice 2007 SL's up there. You could probably get one for $25,000 to $30,000 Canadian and with the exchange, do well and get a newer model. I would consider a 2004 if I was going to mod the hell out of it. I have a 2007 030 and I am doing minimal add-ons to it because it is a great machine as-is. I looked recently that there is a nice 2007 with 94,000 km's in Calgary that you could get for $30,000 (maybe less). The one issue is getting it across the border...
Good luck and listen to the guys on this board. So much knowledge!
Shaun
Thank you for the suggestion. I looked at Craigslist Vancouver and didn't see anything.
I didn't find any in Vancouver when I was looking but one did come up. A 2007 030 with only 43,000 km's. The dealer was asking $62,500 and it sold for $58,000. Too much I think but it was mint and loaded. This is why I looked in Alberta. Depressed economy at the time and my car was originally stickered at $49,900. I paid $35,000 and had it shipped to Vancouver sight unseen. I knew I wanted a performance package car so I kept $10,000 aside for repairs. All it needed was a detail, my brother fixed the soft close trunk issue, and I put the nice chrome door sills top and bottom (in hind sight I just recommend the bottom with AMG on it. Paranoid about scuffing the top one Oh, I put on tires just because I wanted new tires. The car is awesome and it was sold here in Vancouver so I brought it home. Took it out tonight and scared the wife. I love it! Here is one in Calgary. Bet you could scoop it for $27,000 to $28,000 Canadian. The one you are looking at is nice too..
I didn't find any in Vancouver when I was looking but one did come up. A 2007 030 with only 43,000 km's. The dealer was asking $62,500 and it sold for $58,000. Too much I think but it was mint and loaded. This is why I looked in Alberta. Depressed economy at the time and my car was originally stickered at $49,900. I paid $35,000 and had it shipped to Vancouver sight unseen. I knew I wanted a performance package car so I kept $10,000 aside for repairs. All it needed was a detail, my brother fixed the soft close trunk issue, and I put the nice chrome door sills top and bottom (in hind sight I just recommend the bottom with AMG on it. Paranoid about scuffing the top one Oh, I put on tires just because I wanted new tires. The car is awesome and it was sold here in Vancouver so I brought it home. Took it out tonight and scared the wife. I love it! Here is one in Calgary. Bet you could scoop it for $27,000 to $28,000 Canadian. The one you are looking at is nice too..
Here is a local one. Been at this dealer for awhile now. Paint doesn't appear to be in the best shape, fog light must have a leaked seal, etc. It will give me an idea of the SL55.
And this one is about 150 miles north from Seattle. I exchanged emails with the seller. Appears he has only had it since December and pulling the Carfax, had an accident in Canada $8,xxx damage noted. Comparing the paint, body to the one above, this one appears much better, but also spotty history.
I've found as difficult as it is, especially as prime driving season approaches, patience pays huge dividends. I began my search roughly 6 months ago, looking nationally. I found this really helped in getting a feel for inventory, price, and options available. While I had color and option preference condition trumped everything. In the end after traveling multiple times to look at cars I got home from one trip and one had been posted 2 miles away in near flawless condition for less than I thought I was going to pay. This same scenario played out when I searched for our XKR.
Go see the vehicles and like CJohnson says take your time. Put the effort it. All of the cars look great. I like the 2007 over the 2005 for the slight improvements in the motor and suspension (I think?). It looks like the one in Ferndale has the 030 rims (if they are 19") but I also like the rims on the 2007 as well. Aren't they CLS rims? If you plan to mod and many stock parts are going into the recycle bin, get the car that is cosmetically good. Like less wear on the seat (mine has it) or good paint etc. The 2007 looks identical to the one in Calgary and I bet you can get it for $28,000 Canadian, but it's easier to buy in your own Country for sure. I like the 2007 with 79,000 miles but you have to see them. I am finding the longer I own my vehicle, the more and more the past disappears because the car has my attention for the last year. I'm sure many people on this forum feel they treat their car the best. I love my 2007 SL. Shardul's BWK and billet pulleys, it is an amazing car. It loves this Pacific Coast air and goes like poop. Keep looking Bradely! Maybe when you get your ride I can swing down and we can have lunch in Belltown. My wife and I go to Seattle all the time It's our American home away from home.
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2004 SL55 for sale - opinions requested
Oh, I put on tires just because I wanted new tires. The car is awesome and it was sold here in Vancouver so I brought it home. Took it out tonight and scared the wife. I love it! Here is one in Calgary. Bet you could scoop it for $27,000 to $28,000 Canadian. The one you are looking at is nice too..
It's our American home away from home. 
