I was cleaning my 1999 SLK230 and I noticed some broken glass under the seat and in the driver's air vent. Closer examination revealed signs of overspray on the front fender, driver's door and rear fender. I bought this car less than 30 days ago and am wondering if I have any recourse against the dealer. The CarFax was clean, but now I understand the source of the slight wind noise from the driver's window. Can a Starmark Certified car have had any repair work to qualify for the program (MB website doesn't go into much detail)? How will this change the resale value? I was not told that this car had been partially repainted. Any ideas or help would be appreciated.

 

The slight wind noise is aparently common with a lot of the SLKs. I think you can go back to the dealership if he misrepresented the car as being accident free.

As far as affecting the price of the car, I doubt that it will affect it much. Especially since the price you purchased the car at would have already taken most of the depreciation as a result of the accident (if any). Most cars that present itself as accident free only command a slight premium over the non-accident free. You just have to be careful with extensively damaged cars (which should be reflected in the CarFax report).

I am sending my car into the body shop to have the hood replaced next week. Although the only damage was minor and only to the hood of the car, the sides and bumper will need to be resprayed to make sure it matches.

Personally I would get someone to have a look at it to make sure that there is no major structural damage to the car. If there isnt, then I would just forget about it and enjoy the car.

 

When I bought my '99 SLK230 from the dealer in Seattle; it is Starmarked. I asked what that meant and among other things, I was told that it meant that it had been in no accidents. You might call the dealer where you got the car and ask.

 

NP

 

I see that a lot of folks have been reading this thread and I appreciate the replies. Misery loves an audience? I contacted MB and they said a clean CarFax was a must. This car has one and they told me to follow-up with the dealer first. The dealer did not return my first call, so I tried again and learned the following:

1. The car was "keyed" in a parking lot when the sales manager was using it between customers. They sent me a copy of both their work order and the receipt from the bodyshop dated 3/29/00. Neither receipt outlines the nature of the damage, but the repair did not include replacement of any parts, just removal, refinishing, and replacing of original parts. I wish there was more detail, but this seems to make sense and both documents support that claim.

2. The broken glass came later (10/22/01) when a subsequent customer experienced trouble with the window on that side not closing. The work order indicates that the window shattered and was replaced as part of that repair. This seems to have been part of several problems reported that day including an inoperative left mirror and broken left seatbelt latch that required removal of the seat.

The bodyshop owner told me that "He couldn't have done the work, because I wouldn't be able to tell if he did." Apparently, the dealer was able to show him the invoice and he now remembers the job. He wants to see it presumably to clean any rough edges and overspray. The invoice to the dealer was for $327, so it can't have been too much of a repair.

All of the receipts have the VIN and seem legitimate. I'm still bothered by the fact that this damage wasn't disclosed before I bought the car, and since a police report was not filed by the dealer concerning the damage, it doesn't appear on CarFax and is still elligible for the StarMark program. I haven't decided what to do about all this yet...I like the car (Firemist, 5-speed manual, sport package with 12500 miles), but would have kept looking for an undamaged one or negotiated a lower price on this one.

Thanks for looking.

 

Luke

I am glad that the damage was only cosmetic. You have to understand that the chances of getting a car without any cosmetic repairs will be small. I know even the new cars sold on the lot do have some paintwork done occasionally as a result from damage in transit.

As far as I know the dealership does not have to disclose if the car has been in an accident if you do not ask them. And you dont really have to file a report with CarFax/DMV if the car is not totalled or experienced severe damage (thats what I was told anyway).

I know it must be horrible to find that out yourself but most cars that go through a dealership, especially if it gets Starmark certified, will likely have some body work done to the car. Note that all the cars dont have door dings, hardly any scratches or paint chips. Even being sooooo careful with mine, I have my own share of little bits and pieces all over the car which drive me crazy.

I once had the whole door resprayed on my last car because there were a couple of door dings and minor paint damage when the car was only a couple of months old.