davezaristo

As paranoid as i am and my lack of confidence in terms of reliability for MB based on what i heard (reason is I came from a family that drives nothing but lexus/toyota and as a former lexus owner that has never encountered any issue or expensive repair), i was wondering how reliable those slk tops are. Are there any pro-active method to prevent any major trouble with the top? Also, have any of you experience trouble with the top and how much was the repair cost? In addtion, for those who has extended warranty (not starmark), does your contract cover the top and does it specifically exclude the top? Thanks for the info and i am betting my slk to be reliable for at least 3 or 4 more yrs since it's only got 10500 miles on it right now. By then, i should be able to lease my new mb and won't have to worry about this...

Driller

My '99 has 55,000 km and has never had a problems with the vario roof....with the exception of rub marks (fixed) on the c-pillars.

LAMAY123

The innovative retractable "hard-top" was the ONLY problem that my 99 SLK had. The second day after I got the car, the top won't go down into the truck. So I went back immediately and it was fixed under warranty. Then I enjoyed the car very much for a while until one raining day...both passenger and driver's sides have water leakage coming from the top... ....To make the story short, I went in for the same water leakage problem in 8 different occasions and the dealer still couldn't find the cause. During those 8 attempts, the dealer technician replaced the rubber lining 3 times, 2 sets of window strips, the whole top pillar (2 sides and front), and then MBUSA technical personnels came to take down the top and replace all components with new 2001 parts. The repair costs were not printed on my work order receipts, but I am sure it's a huge bill that my warranty is covering.

I don't want to scare you off and I am sure that most SLK owners don't have the problem that I had. Maybe mine was one the the few that had unfixable problems. I love MB especially their service and will continue to be a proud mercedes owner, but I sure will avoid all convertibles.....

BTW, MBUSA bought back the SLK and when I handed them the keys, the car was only 1 1/2 yrs old w/ almost 11000 miles on it

Keng1

My 99 SLK has 64,000 miles and I havent had a problem since.

Brian_R170

SLKs built in the first half of the '99 model year had alot of problems with microswitches that sense the roof and trunk positions. There are 10 or 11 of them, I think. Supposedly, M-B got a batch from the supplier with a high rate of failure. My former '99 SLK had the problem, the dealer fixed it under warranty, and it never happened again. There is a TSB on this issue.

I have heard of 3 or 4 instances of water leak problems, usually comming from the seal between the roof panel and the rear window panel.

The C-pillar rub is a problem with all model years. A small spot on the paint will appear on either C-pillar caused by the C-piller touching the trunk lining when the top is down. There is also a TSB on this issue.

The other common problem is wind noise from around the door windows.

davezaristo

If the car is no longer under warranty, will mb fix these issues if it is under TSB? I am starting to worry about the top now (well, not that i haven't already discover my window problem with the seal and still awaiting to be fixed hopefully for free at the dealer on monday) since my car is out of warranty...now that i think about it, i am sort of regretting buying the slk...

Nektopoli

Driller, did you have the rub marks on both C-Pillers, or just the drivers side?
LAMAY123, did this massive replacement finaly fix the leaks?

The problem I'm having with my 99 is the top stalls and will not remove it's self from where it meets the windsheild headliner, I have to give it a little push where it folds.

NP

LAMAY123

Nope, that's why MBUSA bought back the SLK at the end of their last attempt. I find small spots of water leaks on my seats everytime it rains...

And for your problem, if you still have warranty left, ask the dealer to replace the window trim's rubber lining, that might solve the problem

Tai230K

Had about 8,000 miles on the SLK at the time.... THe roof started to leak... When i brought it to the dealer, they said nothing was wrong and mysteriously the problem went away..... weird huh?....

Driller

Nektopoli,

I had rub marks on both sides on the c-piller.

Brian_R170

They are not required to fix it for free, but they might if you are insistant and polite. If there's a TSB on it, then that's an indication M-B knows about a defect, and sometimes they will fix these defects after the warranty expires as a measure of goodwill. Knowledge is power.

Top seals around the door seem to be one issue that most dealers can't fix in just one visit. If the problem is wind noise, then I would insist that the service advisor take a ride with you to prove that it's fixed before you pay.

Nektopoli

And they fixed it and repainted the c-pillers under warranty ?

NP

Driller

Yep, they offered to fix & re-paint under warranty. I actually just had the paint shop buff out the marks as they were quite faint.

xyzpl

99 SLK230, went back to dealer for roof problems...too many times to remember.... no leaks....