1998 230SLK

Im just about to buy one of these for my wife and was wondering if any one had any good buying advice ? Im sure I will get the usual Dont buy it, but Im giving you all the benefit of the doubt tonight. Could I also point out I belong to the anti smiley league.
Regards NY

Originally posted by honey lamb
What is it? [?]

It's a car HL (specifically a 2 seater merc with a retractable roof that folds into the boot).
Ny, be careful of the colour you buy (none of that vile green colour or the horrid flat yellow please)- silver,black or blue is the way to go, and also scrutinise the service history closely along with any "minor" imperfections that you think will be cheap to remedy (they won't).When Mercs go wrong (or get bashed) they can be costly to put right.Tyres won't come cheap either.Find a good local independent merc specialist (who's been trained by them)as the main dealer service (for sales and maintenance) is pretty shoddy per se.

[Scrooge]

Just to back up what GJ says, they are nice cars, till something goes wrong, then you will have to sell the kids, pets and maybe a kidney.

[Bazz]

HL, have a look here for a bit of history and some pics of the first model and the current model.

Why not buy your wife an SLR, FABULOUS OR WHAT[:w]

You could also try the Chrysler Crossfire which is based on the SLK running gear but with better handling. Engine is 3.2 litre though and is soft top rather than the folding metal of the SLK.

Thanks for the advice. My wife has always wanted one of these but I wanted a Maserati, but she got her way after discussions with our local mechanic(He bought a large boat on the strength of what I would spend on the Maserati). I know it will cost me but in reality you pay as much in depreciation as repair costs on a used car. By the way GJ I like your style.

Mercs have the name but are very very very troublesome - I had as SL500 and it spent more time in the garage - A good friend has taken delivery of a brand new CL500- It has already started to annoy him by the build quality - There is a rattle somewhere driving him nuts -

Originally posted by porsche911
Mercs have the name but are very very very troublesome - I had as SL500 and it spent more time in the garage - A good friend has taken delivery of a brand new CL500- It has already started to annoy him by the build quality - There is a rattle somewhere driving him nuts -

Yes, German marques are absolutely renown for their poor quality - VW, Audi, BMW, Merc and of course Porsche

By the way, I hope you don't mind me asking, and I hope it doesn't embarrass you, but are you the same Porsche911 who used to post lots of very similar topics on flyertalk?

Little(what)JOhn , All I have told you is what I and others have experienced and also if you look up recent surveys , Mercs have certainlt not performed well. Check it out before you decide to jump in with your smart comments -

Coming from a porsche owner some might think your initial comment resonate of pots calling kettles black, given the popular joke we have all heard. Nevertheless, I will play.....

A number of reliable surveys would be a better argument than 'my mate has a CL500 with a rattle so the whole of Merc build quality is poor". Point me to some of the aforementioned surveys that say Merc build quality is poor if you would be so kind.

PS the format you will need is {url=www.asite.com}Narrative{/url} replacing the {} with [] of course.

[honey lamb]

Just to drag this back on topic again (Boys, play nicely [V] )...

I am now the proud owner of my version of a 1998 230SLK. It's a 2007 Toyota Yaris

Little John , Maybe when you can get your facts right I will listen to you but and check out the actual positions on the last survey TopGear did, http://www.topgear.com/content/features ... /01/3.html
Maybe you dont have any friends with a new cL500, but the survey says it all for a so called top end / luxury manufacturer coming 32nd.

here is another few clips for you from the 2006 survey

1 - Luxury
You might expect the German executive barges to walk this one, but no - the Lexus IS200/300 is the top luxury car around. And though the Jaguar marque is languishing in the doldrums, owners haven't been deterred with the XJ and S-Type both recording strong positions. "The Mercedes E- and S-Class bring up the rear, with poor reliability causing the problems again."

2 - SUV
It's another victory for Lexus in the 4x4 category, with owners exalting the RX300's combination of bullet-proof build quality and on-road manners. Second place for the Kia Sorento is a great result for a model aimed at the budget end of the SUV market. Mercedes manages to avoid the wooden spoon in this category, but only just - "the utilitarian Jeep Cherokee proving even worse than the M-Class."

3 - " It wasn't just the French manufacturers getting a kicking, though. Mercedes' A-Class and M-Class both put in bad performances, proof of how disastrously Benz lost the plot a few years back."

I rest my case -

OK, a little evidence at least in support of your point. Thank you [y]. I may point out however that the survey you link is of customer satisfaction levels - presumably price would be a factor in that ie someone who paid Merc prices expects more than someone who paid Fiat prices. And it is somewhat dated. Of course it also covers much more than just build quality and no doubt the cost of spares and service (ouch!) had a sizable impact. Looking at the same source of data as you gave, lets see what they say about the CL500 -CL500 verdict. Hum, not quite the same story is it?

But of course this thread is about a 1998 230SLK, not a 2005/7 SL500. Now of course you weren't suggesting that the performance of a manufacturer in 2007 would be a good measure of the advisability of buying a model from the last century, were you? Well, leaving that alone, let me take a few quotes from this source which apply to the SLK series:

"Mechanical integrity"
"real cachet"
"Shrugs off the passing years"
"the vast majority of used SLKs will imbue their owners with the same sense of satisfaction and supreme confidence in every other area of their operation"

Humm, interesting. Maybe suggesting that the OP should be careful about Merc reliability was not such a valid argument with regards to a 230SKJ after all. Wish I had one.

Honey Lamb's advice to 'play nicely' is sound. The real issue I have, which is the quality (not) of your posts in general has been taken to PM.

John , I am not in the mood to argue so lets agree to disagree - Lets call a truce - ok?

[Scrooge]

Just trying to keep the thread on topic guys (yes please take it to PM's)as many of you know I have been looking for a new car, the problem is when it comes to buying a car I have the attention span of an 8 year old A.D.D. kid on crack and crystal [:0]

One minute I want an 4x4, next a sports car then a nice 4 door sports car.

I have test driven everything that is out there and have pretty much narrowed it down to these choices.

Mazdaspeed6
Nissan Altima Coupe

And the massive dark horse that I keep coming back to The Sonata

As most of my driving is freeway I am looking for a car that is comfortable and not tiring to drive (hence no GTO [:#]), after spending a lot of time behind the wheel of everything bar the Altima Coupe I was amazed if not shocked at how nice the Sonata is, as the salesman told me before we went out for a drive, Hyundia used the A6 as it's benchmark for this car and boy does it show.

Of course there are other factors to put in, the big one being the price drop on the thing, however after a quick look around it seems like I can pick up a used one with 5-10k miles on it fully loaded for around $15k...now that speaks volumes to my cheap wallet ,money saved on car = more flights [y], however it is a Hyundai and it has no place being that nice.

One thing I will say is that while they are viewed as a budget brand in both the UK and the US the car is getting great reviews in the trade and I am seeing a lot of them on the streets.From talking to owners they love them....but it's a Hyundai [:?]

Looks good to me scrooge. Hell, you even have room to put you zimmer in the trunk. And the grandchildren will really love the picnic rug and cushions on the back seat.

On the other hand, maybe a Honda Legend (right manufacturer?) would suit your virtual image more.

BTW - is it a logical impossibility to get off topic in the off topic forum - wouldn't that mean you are on topic?????

[Scrooge]

BC#2 you are of course right, the 2 1/3 kids plus the 1 1/2 golden retrievers would fit nicely in the back seat.

I did look at the Acura TL and RL, but the seats were like rock to me.

Yes you are correct, is is impossible to be off topic in an off topic forum, however you can go off topic in regards to a certain thread.

In the end all I can say is, why the hell are you picking on me...don't you have to go figure out a way to cut costs more, say figure out a way to do away with seat cushions [:0]

Just to get in on this topic i really do love Honda.

I have one just now and find them to be very reliable and wouldnt hesitate in buying another one.And above all parts are pretty reasonable should you need them.

Go on buy a Honda you know you want to![}:)]

[Scrooge]

No I don't want a Honda, had one, loved the car hated the dealerships out here, I ended up getting the thing serviced in San Diego just so I wouldn't have to deal with them here.

Originally posted by Scrooge
One minute I want an 4x4, next a sports car then a nice 4 door sports car.

So buy a nice little RX8 (never mind this middle aged Nissan/ Hyundai/ Mazda 6 nonsense).A doddle to drive, comfy as a sofa,goes like a bat out of hell and is drop dead gorgeous to look at. Even the fuel consumption (one word -dire [:0]) won't be too much of a shocker[}:)]

[Scrooge]

Well with petrol getting up there (I know still cheap compared to the UK) anything with a Wankel is out.

Have you ever took the decorative engine cover off an RX8 and looked at the engine? Explains a bit why they call it a Wankel. Also, don`t start it up then switch the engine off straight away. The engine floods and you need to have the dealer strip and clean the spark plugs (not FOC either).The engine also has the torque of a lawn mower. Other than that .....

Originally posted by Paul H
Have you ever took the decorative engine cover off an RX8 and looked at the engine? Explains a bit why they call it a Wankel. Also, don`t start it up then switch the engine off straight away. The engine floods and you need to have the dealer strip and clean the spark plugs (not FOC either).The engine also has the torque of a lawn mower. Other than that .....

....It's a fantastic car! Yes I have (taken the decorative cover off) -the wankel engine is a fantastic piece of engineering.ISTBC but modern fuel injected cars can also have the same problem if you start them up and then turn the engine off straight away thereby flooding the fuel injectors(as I did a couple of months ago and had to be rescued by the RAC).
Who cares if the RX8 has the torgue of a lawnmover? Most RX8 owners won't be wanting to pull caravans( heaven forbid[}:)] I'm with Clarkson on that one) and the RX8 will pull away cleanly (and quickly)and keep on going (and going):D.