Mercedes SL55 AMG - Buying Advice

Mercedes SL55 AMG - Buying Advice

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Discussion

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Sunday 31st January 2016
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Hi forum!

I've been reading the forum for ages and there are loads of helpful tips out there.

I don't want to ask the same old questions but I test drove a 2003 SL55 over the weekend. It seemed very well looked after and had a good amount of mercedes / specialist history however I noticed a couple of things which I am worried about. Firstly, under hard acceleration I could here a noise or squeal which sounded like it was coming from the rear of the car. It could be the supercharger as I have read this is common but to my untrained ear it seemed to be coming from the rear of the car. Could that be a problem with the rear diff? Although it wasn't raining, the road was wet and I drove in 'winter' mode. Every time I was aggressive on the throttle the car span and moved from side to side, then the electronics kicked in and cut the power. Is that normal? I couldn't really test the brute force of the machine in wet conditions but poodling around at low speed it was a joy to drive. The engine sounded very nice.

Also, it had been raining heavily and when I looked in the boot it was a little wet. Not drenched but there was a little water in there. If everything still works should I be concerned about potential electrical problems from the leaking boot? Finally, I looked at the rear wheel arches and on the outside they were fine but the inside was rusty bubbling. Will the rust continue to spread if left along?

Any advice from owners would be really helpful as I am not used to the sounds of the car so I don't know what is perfectly normal and what isn't!

Thanks guys

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Monday 1st February 2016
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Anyone?

BigBen

11,610 posts

229 months

Monday 1st February 2016
quotequote all
bonnim said:
Hi forum!

I've been reading the forum for ages and there are loads of helpful tips out there.

I don't want to ask the same old questions but I test drove a 2003 SL55 over the weekend. It seemed very well looked after and had a good amount of mercedes / specialist history however I noticed a couple of things which I am worried about. Firstly, under hard acceleration I could here a noise or squeal which sounded like it was coming from the rear of the car. It could be the supercharger as I have read this is common but to my untrained ear it seemed to be coming from the rear of the car. Could that be a problem with the rear diff? Although it wasn't raining, the road was wet and I drove in 'winter' mode. Every time I was aggressive on the throttle the car span and moved from side to side, then the electronics kicked in and cut the power. Is that normal? I couldn't really test the brute force of the machine in wet conditions but poodling around at low speed it was a joy to drive. The engine sounded very nice.

Also, it had been raining heavily and when I looked in the boot it was a little wet. Not drenched but there was a little water in there. If everything still works should I be concerned about potential electrical problems from the leaking boot? Finally, I looked at the rear wheel arches and on the outside they were fine but the inside was rusty bubbling. Will the rust continue to spread if left along?

Any advice from owners would be really helpful as I am not used to the sounds of the car so I don't know what is perfectly normal and what isn't!

Thanks guys
The squeal will almost certainly be the supercharger clutch, as you say very common. Being aggressive on the throttle in the damp will of course spin the wheels and cause the electronics to take over, in fact this is also possible in the dry!

When you say some water in the boot where do you mean? The bootlid is quite good at dumping water into the boot when you open it. If you mean the sponge pad over the hood motor was wet then that may be a bigger problem. If you are near Cambridge you are welcome to come and have a ride in mine and use it for comparison, not at the moment as I am having radiator fan problems....

Ben

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Monday 1st February 2016
quotequote all
Ben,

You are a true gent, I can't believe that... I almost want to come over and buy you a pint! I love in Kent so a bit of a way, but thanks!

It had been raining heavily and the seller brought the car inside. The car was completely wet so it had been hammering it down. The first thing I did was life the boot and felt the carpet, it was not soaked but was ever so slightly wet / damp. Perhaps it was from opening he boot as you say but it did feel that it was all over rather than in one place. Anyway, if I pay an mb specialist to look the car over and it has no faults should I really be worried? Could I just wrap the pump in plastic for extra piece of mind?

BigBen

11,610 posts

229 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
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bonnim said:
Ben,

You are a true gent, I can't believe that... I almost want to come over and buy you a pint! I love in Kent so a bit of a way, but thanks!

It had been raining heavily and the seller brought the car inside. The car was completely wet so it had been hammering it down. The first thing I did was life the boot and felt the carpet, it was not soaked but was ever so slightly wet / damp. Perhaps it was from opening he boot as you say but it did feel that it was all over rather than in one place. Anyway, if I pay an mb specialist to look the car over and it has no faults should I really be worried? Could I just wrap the pump in plastic for extra piece of mind?
There is a decent DIY on the internet for sorting out boot leaks. If it was a bit damp that is probably OK but having a specialist do a check will reveal all.

There are also some who fit a spacer under the pump to stop it sitting in a puddle, I have not done this.

Ben

Edited to add get one, they are great cars.

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
Thanks again Ben!

Incidentally, what are your maintenance costs like for your sl55 (excluding tyres, brakes, servicing etc).

Should I be worried about a little bit of bubbling on the inside of the rear wheel arches? Can that be sorted for sensible money?

Cheers

ZX10R NIN

27,490 posts

124 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
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I live in Kent & use Keys Mercedes they're a good independent to use they look after my 55 & I can't fault their work, they aren't the cheapest but anytime I have a problem with my cars they always diagnose the fault correctly & get the repair done swiftly. I would say have a ride in mine but I have a deposit on it so I'm trying not to use it, also it's a long way from standard.

As for the boot being wet, lift up both floors & check thoroughly preferably when dry if there's any moisture or the sponge round the central locking is wet then expect the central locking/soft close to give up at some point.
It's not a big deal & I have the number of a company in Maidstone who repair or refurb them for around £250-450 depending on what's needed.

If it's a small amount of rust then get it treated straight away also check the paint code if it has a K or C near the numbers it means your car has Ceramic Lacquer which requires a different form of rectification.

Your more than welcome to take a look around mine have a chat & I can show you some of the weak spots & give you some tip on value for money upgrades.

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
Thank you very much! Where about a in Kent are you??

Do all sl55s have soft close? I'm worried now because this 2003 I went to see didn't have soft close for either the boot or doors...

Thanks for the tips on mainentance and servicing, that's really helpful!!

BigBen

11,610 posts

229 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
bonnim said:
Thank you very much! Where about a in Kent are you??

Do all sl55s have soft close? I'm worried now because this 2003 I went to see didn't have soft close for either the boot or doors...

Thanks for the tips on mainentance and servicing, that's really helpful!!
Not on the doors but on the boot (unless mine is in fact broken). The problem with the boot is often the motor / manifold bit inside the boot trim rather than a moisture problem, can be fixed with a bit of hot melt!

Ben

ZX10R NIN

27,490 posts

124 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
I'm near Brands Hatch PM me if you'd like to meet up.

Soft close is on the boot only so don't panic if the doors didn't do it.

Monkeylegend

26,226 posts

230 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
I assume the SL55 will have ABC suspension. Read up about it and make sure you know the cost implications when it goes wrong, which it probably will.
The struts are over £1k each, and the pump is £7-800 ish from memory, plus labour on top of that, so potentially big bills.

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
Thanks to you all, really helpful tips. I'm having the vehicle inspected by an MB specialist tomorrow and if they say it's ok I will take the plunge... A bit scary but you only live once and owning the sl55 has been a distant dream of mine for a long time!!

Monkeylegend

26,226 posts

230 months

Tuesday 2nd February 2016
quotequote all
You will love it. You will get friendly with your local tyre supplier and filling station if you are doing it correctly.

It shouldn't lose you any money either if you look after it, prices will only go one way over the next few years.

BigBen

11,610 posts

229 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
Monkeylegend said:
I assume the SL55 will have ABC suspension. Read up about it and make sure you know the cost implications when it goes wrong, which it probably will.
The struts are over £1k each, and the pump is £7-800 ish from memory, plus labour on top of that, so potentially big bills.
What attracted me to mine was the previous owner had spend a low five figure sum on refreshing the suspension, all the struts are from Arnott in the US where are guaranteed for life. Otherwise the ABC suspension is a scary prospect.

Monkeylegend

26,226 posts

230 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
BigBen said:
Monkeylegend said:
I assume the SL55 will have ABC suspension. Read up about it and make sure you know the cost implications when it goes wrong, which it probably will.
The struts are over £1k each, and the pump is £7-800 ish from memory, plus labour on top of that, so potentially big bills.
What attracted me to mine was the previous owner had spend a low five figure sum on refreshing the suspension, all the struts are from Arnott in the US where are guaranteed for life. Otherwise the ABC suspension is a scary prospect.
I have recently bought a 350 because I was too concerned about ABC issues with the 500. All I have to worry about now is SBC wink

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
OMG!! More than 10k on the suspension? I heard the costs were more like 5k... And I thought the arnott gear was cheaper than the Mercedes gear!! Now I really am scared! The one I'm looking at has had about 7k recently on suspension and ac pump. That's what attracted me to it!

BigBen

11,610 posts

229 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
bonnim said:
OMG!! More than 10k on the suspension? I heard the costs were more like 5k... And I thought the arnott gear was cheaper than the Mercedes gear!! Now I really am scared! The one I'm looking at has had about 7k recently on suspension and ac pump. That's what attracted me to it!
Check what the £7k covered if the ABC pump was done and the struts replaced then you are in good shape. The £10k covered a few goes at some of the struts from what I can tell, I did not look in massive detail just saw that the number was reassuringly high!

Ben

bonnim

Original Poster:

53 posts

98 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
Think it was 2 sets of struts and shocks reunion bushes track rod ends as well as abc pump and fluid. Also replaced gear selector module, alarm siren and ac compressor. It looks like nsf and nsr has been replaced.

I guess I just have the worry about 2 of the 4 struts if that's the case right... Other than the supercharger that's most of the worries items I guess??


BigBen

11,610 posts

229 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
cb1965 said:
One more thing. MBClub forum has some good people on it, but also an awful lot of pedants, snobs and fantasists some of whom will prescribe £10 miracle fixes for common SL issues ... do not be tempted as apart form wasting £10 you will usually make the problem worse.... the boot seals is a common one where people reckon they can tackle it with magic turd polish or the likes.The ABC system also has a fair few weird cheap fixes associated with it. Beware!

These cars need to be maintained properly not by some half wit DIY bodger in his garden shed!
I would argue the boot seals are the exception where a DIY fix will be better than what the dealer offers. £1200 of new seals which use the same adhesive to stick to the screen vs. some flexible adhesive applied to the exiting seals is not a difficult decision especially where there are many examples of dealers not managing to fix leaky boots.

I use a specialist for most work on mine but have found a lot of it up to and including replacing ABC spheres fairly easy to do at home, not quite the average shed as I have an MB star system.

Ben

anonymous-user

53 months

Wednesday 3rd February 2016
quotequote all
BigBen said:
I would argue the boot seals are the exception where a DIY fix will be better than what the dealer offers. £1200 of new seals which use the same adhesive to stick to the screen vs. some flexible adhesive applied to the exiting seals is not a difficult decision especially where there are many examples of dealers not managing to fix leaky boots.

I use a specialist for most work on mine but have found a lot of it up to and including replacing ABC spheres fairly easy to do at home, not quite the average shed as I have an MB star system.

Ben
The seals go out of shape, it's not the adhesive! The DIY fixes are a temporary respite.