Dr. No

Hey Gang!

I've got a SL55 on order and I've stumbled across this forum...what's with these problems of SC chirping, break squeaking, rattling gas tanks, etc.??? What other issues should I be aware of?? For you current owners, are your problems severe enough to make you wish you'd ordered a different model??

Thanks for all your help!

Dr. No

GDautosport

i ripped off the handle on the cover inside the trunk, its not very strong soo be careful.

rtingdds

I have got, 2 broken lumber adjustments, broken driver side pocket, malfunction anti-roll bar, Leaking tire valve stem, roof rattling, key malfunction, poor quarter window seal, easy trunk loading switch malfunction, uneven hard top opening & noise, defective suspension component, loosen GPS antenna (need to be replace), one wheel surface crack, steering speed shift button bracket came loose (need to replace the whole steering wheel), alignment problem, and the 3 other problems that you mentioned.
I bought the car in May 2003. It has been in the dealer for total around 2 1/2 months since I got the car. And I have another appt coming soon.
I wish MB is monitoring this forum. I am seriously considering calling the NBC investigator news program to tell them the story! I am sure they like to look into the dirty laundry of Mercedes Benz's super sports car.
Oh! don't forget to buy extended warrantee, you will need it!!

Kubazzz

OMG
what is going on with Mercedes-Benz?!

Schiznick

I had a 2004 Sl55 and never had a single problem other than the supercharger chirp. Drove it for 7000K incredible miles.

Enjoy your purchase! You will be able to live with the supercharger chirp.

Schiznick

jettie1767

Drove an '04 SL500 for 5 months and the only problem was the roof rattle. I wouldn't worry about that too much. The Lexus SC430 that I traded in also had the same roof rattle issue.

Now, I have an '05 SL55 and so far, I haven't heard the chirping but I do hear the brakes squealing intermittenly starting at around 400 miles. I'm now at almost 700 miles. Also, the new dvd-based nav and audio is somewhat slow. I have radio presets and if my screen is displaying the nav map and I press any of the radio presets, there's a definite lag and sometimes it doesn't go to the radio station in the preset. I have to press it multiple times or longer to get it to recognize the button.

On delivery, the glove compartment was stuck shut. It was a minor adjustment and now it works fine. Also, the center console/armrest pops open everytime I lock the car. The solution suggested was to slam it shut instead of pushing it in slowly...LOL! If I do that, it doesn't pop open. Never had these issues on the SL500 but, I'm not complaining...

The car is superb and I would definitely recommend!

BD1

I have a 2005 SL 55 with just over 1,500 miles and drive it daily. No problems to report. It's a wonderful car!

From reading this forum over the past few years it appears that the 2003 models had some initial problems - more than what you would expect from MB.

Mine is brilliant silver, charcoal, aluminum trim.

You will enjoy it.

rtingdds

I heard 2003 has more problem too. I had 15000 miles on it, let's post this thread again when any 2004 or 2005 models reach this mile, and we discuss again.

Walter.fr

Hello "rtingdds"

I had the same problems with my SL500 / 2003 - and was almost ready to burn this car in front of Daimler Chrysler building in Germany - but I did not give up - and after a few weeks at the dealer everything was fine. Unfortunately ;-) I changed my old SL500 this summer to a SL65 - and I am able to recognise the improvement in terms of quality in general.

Hope that you will get your car fixed soon by your dealer - I know it is possible - everything depends on the local dealer.

kind regards from France

Walter

SL55-ALD

I have an 04 SL55 with 2500 miles. The only issue I have is the glove box will not open. This also happened on the 03 SL500.

jettie1767

SL55-ALD.....

My dealer said they had to bend some metal wire in the glove box mechanism to 'loosen' it a bit. That did the trick. Now, my glove box opens everytime I push that tiny little silver button.

Dr. No

Thanks Gang for all the replys...please keep 'em coming as I await my '05 SL55!....At least now I know what to watch for!

Cheers!

D.

rtingdds

Dear Walter,

Thank you for the concern. My dealer is kind of good (not very good) on fixing the problems, but the new problems just keep on coming. I visited dealer at least once a month for new problems. I am very frustrated.

Twinturbo

You should find that a lot of the problems in the SL have been resolved for the 05 model, and are a lot more reliable. For some reason there are still lemons occasionally, just hope you get a good one.

blueSL

I had a misaligned bonnet/hood and the ABC dumped its hydraulic fluid over the road. The persistent problem now is a creaking roof where it meets the cant rail above the windshield. The brakes are ghastly and it's no surprise SBC will not feature in future Mercedes cars. It's been a nightmare for them, but nothing compared to the nightmare it will be for owners faced with maintaining it. The SL is definitely not a car to keep for the long term. Buy it, enjoy it, then dump it before the rot sets in.

Dr. Benz

I did the same thing last month. Be careful.

rtingdds

I just got new problem. I steering developed knocking noise while making turns (e.g. when I try to park). Most of the time when the car is really hot. Now my alignment is completely off to the right.

This car ****ING SUCKS!!

ja1031

My honest opinion is that if you are looking for an automibile with few mechanical maladies then you should buy a Toyota.. I years past I was a factory trained Porsche, Mercedes and Rolls Royce mechanic and I can tell you for sure that different cultures build different cars and that the krauts will defend to the death their supremacy at building defective products. That being said... If you want 493 horsepower, you got it in spades.
jeff

JosanK

So what is the problem with the Germans? I read that in the 80's and early 90's Mercedes actually hired consultants from Toyota to help them with their manufacturing defects. I think this was detailed in a book called the "Machine that changed the world" published in the early 90's (about the history of Nissan, Ford and the car industry in general). When I think about all of the warranty work that I see done on Porsche's and MB's it makes me cringe as a businessman. Mercedes must be out over $11K this year in warranty work on my car alone. Nothing really for AMG stuff like the engine or tranny. Just squeaks, rattles, nosiy gas tank, etc. How can they stay in business? Have they never paid attention to Demming? Is there just a general attitude or denial issue with them? You would think they'd be embarrased by the JD Powers and Consumer Reports quality evaluations.

Building a car with 500 horsepower doesn't mean the trunk handle has to pull off in your hand.

Without the AMG's I wouldn't buy anything that Mercedes makes. I regard the non AMG's as overpriced and unreliable. If Lexus made a 500+ horsepower V10 fliptop convertible that had AMG like brakes, suspension, tranny etc. I would look at it long and hard.

I don't get it, why don't they fix their problems?

vraa

Because idiots like me and you keep praising their cars when the time actually does come to prove themselves.

BTW: Lexus is supposedly R&Ding a 500+ hp super-sedan. I'm number one, two and three in the waiting list at our local dealer.

blueSL

Keep in mind the AMG and non-AMG cars are built on the same line, they just use different parts (including of course engines which are in any case made elsewhere) and the the quality gripes will be common to all cars.

Truth is, the German economy is the sick man of Europe, with some of the highest unit labour costs in the world. Germans are used to a high level of social welfare, extensive holidays, short working weeks, union representation and so on. This makes employing people in Germany very expensive and engenders an attitude of "I'm secure, I don't care" which is reflected in the quality of what they do. The lack of a customer service ethos in Germany which you find in the US and UK is quite shocking.

Germany needs to reform its labour practices, not least because of the new low cost economies which have joined the EU. If you wanted to build a plant in Europe, which would you chose - expensive Germany or cheap Czech Republic next door with all sorts of development grants?

ja1031

A 500 horsepower Lexus? This could be cool but only if the engineers can duplicate the sound of my meager 493 horsepower at full chat... I did own an LS 400 that whitelined badly while making sounds like a sewing machine. I traded it in on an Pontiac Firebird just to have my senses properly assaulted again. What's to say about German carmaking? Years ago I repaired air cooled Volkswagens. It seems that way back in 1938 the engine was designed with an oil cooler mounted inside the fan housing. This effectively blocked the air flow to the #3 cylinder which resulted in such a high operating temperature that the #3 exhaust valve would break off and travel through the top of #3 piston and down into the crankcase where the spinning crankshaft would often fling the offending valve head cleanly through the top of the crankcase. At the time I was working in Sacramento California where summer temperatures approached 100 degrees which no doubt exacerbated the #3 exhaust valve problem. Some time around 1974 the VW engineers saw fit to reposition the oil cooler outside of the fan housing which of course cured the problem after 36 years of blown engines. The estimated life of a #3 exhaust valve in Sacramento was 50,000 miles and they never made it to 60,000 miles. Many other stories abound regarding German stubbornness related to engineering flaws like Audi valve stem seals, Mercedes auto trans rear pumps, 300 diesel injection pumps, 600 air suspension systems, Porsches famous sticky rocker arms, VW case studs and on and on. Nothing, however, drives like an AMG Mercedes so I have two because one of them is often in the shop. Crazy, no?

Alex_Spider

Best colours are---Diamond Silver with Charcol interior.. The birds eye maple wood is the nicest looking.