The Tank - CL500
Discussion
After selling the Jag S Type R and having a bad experience in trying to buy my first choice car - an Audi TT V6 - I went back to the drawing board.
I'm in Germany for 3 1/2 days a week - did I need a second car - no, did I want one - yes.
What does the M135i provide me with - its quick, agile, brand new and practical enough
Identifying this gave me a wish list for a second car - economy not an issue, age - irrelevant, usage - 3/4k per year, too old for something totally impractical so preference for a wafter - a high days and holidays cruiser
Always admired the Mercedes W215 series - a truly beautiful car in my opinion, yes it has its weak spots, electrolytic corrosion at certain points, ABC pump replacement costs (but a lot lower than they were) - the fear factor was diminishing. I briefly considered a CLK500 but it just did not look or feel special enough, I'd always be thinking that I should have gone for the real Mercedes coupe rather than the mass market model.
A lot of CL's were silver and / or with grey leather - neither of them were particularly appealing, I wasn't concerned about mileage, condition / provenance was more important
On searching the various sites I came across a very nice looking CL500 being sold by a Mercedes specialist in Reading, good history, 6 months full warranty, 16 stamps in the service book - what appealed was the fact it was being sold by a Mercedes specialist - that was giving me some reassurance.
An email was sent a week last Sunday, I got a call from the owner of the specialists about half an hour later, a long chat ensued and we agreed a deal - i wanted a couple of minor points rectified, a service, transmission fluid change etc. He refused to accept a deposit until I had spoken to a couple of customers which I did.
Within 10 minutes of paying the deposit the car had been removed from their website and Autotrader, the following morning I got the invoice stating that deposit was fully refundable in event of car not being as described and that all my travels costs would be reimbursed - very positive.
Yesterday was collection day - car was totally as described, business is rarely as pleasurable and straightforward as this was
Without further ado - here he is:
Its stuffed full of toys - double glazing, electric rear sunblind, fully refurbished 19" AMG alloys, fridge behind rear armrest, air-conditioned centre storage, rear parking sensors that has a dashboard display and a repeater display in headlining for when you are looking over the shoulder when reversing, rear headrests that raise electrically and automatically when it senses a rear seat passenger.
Every switch, dial, control has a hewn from solid feel that is unlike anything I have ever experienced, the 120+ mile drive home revealed absolutely no squeaks or rattles.
Plans - assessment tomorrow, new tyres in the next few weeks and a thorough deep clean I'm pretty sure will reveal a car that I'm really going to enjoy
I'm in Germany for 3 1/2 days a week - did I need a second car - no, did I want one - yes.
What does the M135i provide me with - its quick, agile, brand new and practical enough
Identifying this gave me a wish list for a second car - economy not an issue, age - irrelevant, usage - 3/4k per year, too old for something totally impractical so preference for a wafter - a high days and holidays cruiser
Always admired the Mercedes W215 series - a truly beautiful car in my opinion, yes it has its weak spots, electrolytic corrosion at certain points, ABC pump replacement costs (but a lot lower than they were) - the fear factor was diminishing. I briefly considered a CLK500 but it just did not look or feel special enough, I'd always be thinking that I should have gone for the real Mercedes coupe rather than the mass market model.
A lot of CL's were silver and / or with grey leather - neither of them were particularly appealing, I wasn't concerned about mileage, condition / provenance was more important
On searching the various sites I came across a very nice looking CL500 being sold by a Mercedes specialist in Reading, good history, 6 months full warranty, 16 stamps in the service book - what appealed was the fact it was being sold by a Mercedes specialist - that was giving me some reassurance.
An email was sent a week last Sunday, I got a call from the owner of the specialists about half an hour later, a long chat ensued and we agreed a deal - i wanted a couple of minor points rectified, a service, transmission fluid change etc. He refused to accept a deposit until I had spoken to a couple of customers which I did.
Within 10 minutes of paying the deposit the car had been removed from their website and Autotrader, the following morning I got the invoice stating that deposit was fully refundable in event of car not being as described and that all my travels costs would be reimbursed - very positive.
Yesterday was collection day - car was totally as described, business is rarely as pleasurable and straightforward as this was
Without further ado - here he is:
Its stuffed full of toys - double glazing, electric rear sunblind, fully refurbished 19" AMG alloys, fridge behind rear armrest, air-conditioned centre storage, rear parking sensors that has a dashboard display and a repeater display in headlining for when you are looking over the shoulder when reversing, rear headrests that raise electrically and automatically when it senses a rear seat passenger.
Every switch, dial, control has a hewn from solid feel that is unlike anything I have ever experienced, the 120+ mile drive home revealed absolutely no squeaks or rattles.
Plans - assessment tomorrow, new tyres in the next few weeks and a thorough deep clean I'm pretty sure will reveal a car that I'm really going to enjoy
Andy665 said:
Every switch, dial, control has a hewn from solid feel that is unlike anything I have ever experienced, the 120+ mile drive home revealed absolutely no squeaks or rattles.
A cracking motor, and one I seriously considered when replacing my CLK430 convert. However, what you are describing feels like a world away from most of the Mercedes (including the 215s) of this age that I've driven.bmthnick1981 said:
Just lovely. I enjoyed my previous shape 600. I would like one of these with the 600 TT engine or the CL55K. 500 still a very, very nice car indeed and yours looks like an excellent example.
I did consider setting my sights higher at a 55 but to be honest the S Type R never had its performance exploited, I have the M135i if I want the speed, the 500 engine is pretty bulletproof and does a decent job for a GT carThankyou4calling said:
That engine bay will come up really well.
Great looking car, what did you pay for it?
Started on the engine bay this morning, nice to see no sign of oil weepage anywhere, just grimy through age - Bilt Hamber Surfex will make light work of itGreat looking car, what did you pay for it?
Paid a little short of 5k for it - I know there are cheaper ones out there but this was the right colour combo, good service history, specialist checked and a warranty made it a much safer buy
R6VED said:
Lovely looking car, I had a CLS 500 with £12k of options taking it to £72k new - I loved it and regret selling it.
According to the council thread, Irish numberplates are not the done thing ;-) get those off straight away :-)
I'm keeping the plate :-), if it was BAZ or GAZ then it would be straight off but I quite like the XKZAccording to the council thread, Irish numberplates are not the done thing ;-) get those off straight away :-)
Edited by Andy665 on Thursday 25th August 12:34
Mikeeb said:
Get the ABC oil and filter changed. You'll be amazed how horribly black the (green) oil will have become, degraded oil is the biggest killer of ABC system components.
I had a 55 for a year, beautifully built car and an absolute delight on a motorway journey.
It was done as part of the deal, also had a transmission fluid change doneI had a 55 for a year, beautifully built car and an absolute delight on a motorway journey.
Thankyou4calling said:
I think you've done well there. £5k is enough to make you think twice but still leaves something to upgrade areas.
Lovely looking car in my opinion and i'm sure it's great to drive.
I agree, its not perfect but bodily only a couple of minor scratches that I think will machine polish out and some light front end stone chipping, interior wise there are a few fixings / fasteners missing (soon to be remedied), just needs a little TLC - most people would probably say its absolutely fine but I'm OCDLovely looking car in my opinion and i'm sure it's great to drive.
I had a rather bad experience with one around 6 months ago, stupidly traded my immaculate e36 328i sport + £500 for a ice blue CL500 which again was sporting a Irish plate, I drove 300 miles to view the car and should have listened to my head and walked away as I purchased it from a group of unsavoury characters on some run down council estate in Staines. The sound of the V8 persuaded me!
To cut a long story short I sold the thing for £500 two months later after discovering the rear suspension was on its way out and was quoted 2k to replace a rear shock absorber.
Oh ye forgot to mention over that two months I spend close to 2k on fuel!
I moved on to a 335d after that
To cut a long story short I sold the thing for £500 two months later after discovering the rear suspension was on its way out and was quoted 2k to replace a rear shock absorber.
Oh ye forgot to mention over that two months I spend close to 2k on fuel!
I moved on to a 335d after that
toby-w8jtf said:
I had a rather bad experience with one around 6 months ago, stupidly traded my immaculate e36 328i sport + £500 for a ice blue CL500 which again was sporting a Irish plate, I drove 300 miles to view the car and should have listened to my head and walked away as I purchased it from a group of unsavoury characters on some run down council estate in Staines. The sound of the V8 persuaded me!
To cut a long story short I sold the thing for £500 two months later after discovering the rear suspension was on its way out and was quoted 2k to replace a rear shock absorber.
Oh ye forgot to mention over that two months I spend close to 2k on fuel!
I moved on to a 335d after that
You get both rear shock absorbers and a brand new ABC pump fitted for less than that - I was only tempted by this as it was for sale by a reputable Mercedes specialist - gives me some peace of mindTo cut a long story short I sold the thing for £500 two months later after discovering the rear suspension was on its way out and was quoted 2k to replace a rear shock absorber.
Oh ye forgot to mention over that two months I spend close to 2k on fuel!
I moved on to a 335d after that
freenote said:
Who was the dealer?
It's so difficult to find a decent one.
Calcot Cars of Reading - small place, not far from the town centre Tesco, both Ian and James appear to be 100% genuine people - very good buying experience from themIt's so difficult to find a decent one.
Very nice, fairly unique in black as you say and has the 19's! I had one for a few months and sold it around a month ago - had a few issues, nothing too bad, the ABC pipes etc underneath scared me a bit and it never felt as solid as it should have done to me (interior trim quality) but a bloody good car and always felt special.
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