hoathenfold

Hi!

My first post but I've been lurking for a while!!

I'm in the UK and am planning on getting a new car for the summer. I've just sold my Lotus Elise and have short-listed the SLK 55 AMG along with a used Porsche Carrera 4S.

The SLK AMG is top of my list thanks to that fantastic folding hard-top, but before I go ahead and make a purchase, has anyone got any horror stories in terms of unexpected servicing or maintainance costs that they would be kind enough to share with me, or is everything about this car as good as I've been led to believe?

Im pushing my budget for each of these cars, and have also driven a 350 SLK, but want that bit extra - I dont however want to end up buying something that is going to cripple me with hideous running costs.

I'd welcome all your comments!!
Many thanks,
Andy

alroumi

Get the 55 you wont regret it, fast comfortable and has a folding hardtop!

Shinigami

The car has a warrantee, so if something goes wrong, it'll be dealt with at no cost for you (warranty is 3-5 years depending on the market... I believe that's more then a Lotus would give you). Also, depending on the market, you may have up to 10 years (100,000km's) free service.

The AMG is a very sturdy machine, and as with anything, if something does go wrong it does it usually in the first few weeks of ownership (and will thus be repaired under warranty).

The only problem you may have is that the AMG comes with some parts that are more expensive if you must purchase them again. For example, if you trash the front bumper, an AMG one will cost quite a bit more then a non-AMG one. Same for the AMG rims, they are more expensive to replace if you crack them (quite unlikely tho'... they're very sturdy).

You'll have less problems with the SLK then with an Elise I would think. The Elise is a cool car, but I do hear quite a lot of small niggling problems that my friends have/had that require constant little patching up here and there (leaking rubber joints, squeaks, etc). But then again, this could happen on the SLK as well, so it's really a double edged sword.

Apart from the higher gas consumption and more expensive insurance, you will have no problem living with the AMG. Just don't have an accident where you're at fault and have to end up paying for the repairs... that will kill you (although not as much as repairing the glass fiber body of an Elise/Exige).

I think he car is truly wonderful, and I've now got almost 30,000km's of experience after 18 months of ownership. I absolutely do NOT regret a single minute of it!

Shinigami

Service costs (if they come from your own pocket) are relatively even with that of a Lotus. You do need to place in 8-9 liters of oil (and oil is not cheap), but only once every 10,000miles or so.

A lot of the servicing can be done on your own (it's easy) if you want to save up some money

hoathenfold

Thanks all for your positive input. Amazingly the SL55 AMG will only cost as much to insure as the 2000 Elise that it will be replacing!!! And as for damage repair, hopefully my insurance would cover anything of that nature.

My main concern was cost of things such as brake pads / discs / dampers etc that will have to come out of my own pocket when they need replacing. If they are in the region of £700 a set (as for some Lotus Sport models) I'd think twice about purchasing the AMG SLK.

A friend of mine managed to get through a set of front brake discs and pads on his Audi RS6 in just 6000 miles and that cost him over £1000!!!

Shinigami

Depending on your country, some bits and pieces during servicing are free of charge.

e.g. in Switzerland, front pads are part of the free 10 year/100k service.

The pads are not that expensive, you can even buy them on your own from sites such as http://www.formymercedes.com/mb.asp if you want the lower brakedust porterfields (about $368 for all 4 brakes).

I haven't changed mine, and I still have a generous amount left. Others who also track their cars, still mention having their original brake pads as well (the rotors themselves last a very, very long time). The SLK brakes in general, last a very long time, just do a quick search and you'll see for your self

It's a misconception that a Mercedes, or a German car in general is a very expensive car to maintain.

In some cases, this is true, but often the pieces last a very long time, leveraging off the cost somewhat, since they're made out of higher quality materials, or are simply larger, thicker, or whatever...

Other things that can set you back a little, include the wheels (225 and 245 18") which at that size do come with a pricetag. But mine have almost 30,000km's on them (I do some heavy footed driving, but not tracking) and the Rosso's still have some tread left. PS2's will last a longer time (apparently).

hoathenfold

Hi guys,

Thanks for all your advise!!

I've just paid my deposit on an Iridium Silver 2005 SLK 55 AMG so will be joining your ranks in the next few days once the dealer has it ready for me to collect!



Im at work and the smile I have on my face will have to be surgically removed!

alroumi

Good to hear your getting the SLK55; Drive safe and please post pictures of it!
I know how you feel waiting for your SLK!

LETO

congrats, .....cant wait to hear your first impressions