W129 SL 500 Ownership advice please

[T5GRF]

I am off to look at a couple of cars today typically the cars have all covered 110k with decent service history and are 96 and 97 registered. I think the self destructing wiring loom problem should have been resolved on these cars but what else at this kind of mileage should I expect to see bills for?

One of the cars is fitted with adaptive suspension there is no evidence of it having been rebuilt is this an eye watering bill waiting to happen?

The car will cover around 5000 miles a year what are the service intervals and what is a decent independent going to charge?

Can someone recomend a good independent in the Hertfordshire area for a pre purchase inspection and future servicing.

Any other advice or links to resources would be much appreciated as I know very little about these cars.

Many thanks in advance

[Nuisance_Value]

T5GRF said:

I am off to look at a couple of cars today typically the cars have all covered 110k with decent service history and are 96 and 97 registered. I think the self destructing wiring loom problem should have been resolved on these cars but what else at this kind of mileage should I expect to see bills for?

No wiring loom problems on this age of car. Potentially nothing if it's been well maintained, though they are big and heavy so suspension should be carefully checked, no squeaks or groans. Check gearbox shifts smoothly, absolutely no heavy clunking into drive. Check soft top a few times.

T5GRF said:

One of the cars is fitted with adaptive suspension there is no evidence of it having been rebuilt is this an eye watering bill waiting to happen?

Possibly, it's not cheap if it goes pop, it's just a question if it will or not. I believe it's pretty reliable, though a decent inspection would confirm the status.

T5GRF said:

The car will cover around 5000 miles a year what are the service intervals and what is a decent independent going to charge?

Lubrication service every 9k miles/yearly. Maintenance service every 18k miles/2 yearly. £500 a year should cover it easy at an independent.

T5GRF said:

Can someone recomend a good independent in the Hertfordshire area for a pre purchase inspection and future servicing.

No, I live in Scotland. Sorry.

T5GRF said:

Any other advice or links to resources would be much appreciated as I know very little about these cars.

Many thanks in advance

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&t=734301&r=12135144&hm=23129&mid=23129#12135144

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/index.php

[r129sl]

I agree with what has been said above and in the linked threads.

I would probably budget a bit more than £500 a year for servicing and maintenance if your objective is to maintain or improve the car's condition rather than merely manage its deterioration. These cars go through front brake pads and front anti-roll bar bushes very rapidly; and tyres can be expensive (Michelin PS2 tyres are leagues apart from all other tyres and worth the extra cost).

At this age, you should be thinking about gradually rebuilding or re-bushing the rear suspension; this is not particularly expensive as it is all w124 stuff. You'll probably want to service the transmission, too.

I would work on £1,500 a year plus tyres every three years (£750) at that mileage. For that money you should have a car in very good order.

The ADS suspension is like everything else: utterly sublime and very reliable, but expensive to fix if it goes badly wrong. It probably won't but you only read the horror stories.

[T5GRF]

Many thanks for the replies. I looked at a 1996 500 on Monday with circa 120,000 miles. The history of the car was pretty good with a lot of recent expenditure on the cooling and airconditioning systems, but cosmetically the car was a little shabby with a few dents, lot of stonechips, some poor paint on a rear arch, kerbed and corroded replica AMG wheels, worn drivers seat bolster and cracked instrument glass. It is fairly cheap but it feels as though it hasn't been loved much. I guess to sort out the list of cosmetic defects is going to be £1500 plus. I also noticed on the test drive that when the box was changing down there was a clunk on occasions. There is no evidence of the gearbox being serviced or overhauled so on balance I think unless it was very cheap probably not for me. Just out of interest given the details of the car at what price do you think it would be worth taking a "punt" on it?

Is anyone looking to sell a nice 500 SL on here?

[Nuisance_Value]

T5GRF said:

Many thanks for the replies. I looked at a 1996 500 on Monday with circa 120,000 miles. The history of the car was pretty good with a lot of recent expenditure on the cooling and airconditioning systems, but cosmetically the car was a little shabby with a few dents, lot of stonechips, some poor paint on a rear arch, kerbed and corroded replica AMG wheels, worn drivers seat bolster and cracked instrument glass. It is fairly cheap but it feels as though it hasn't been loved much. I guess to sort out the list of cosmetic defects is going to be £1500 plus. I also noticed on the test drive that when the box was changing down there was a clunk on occasions. There is no evidence of the gearbox being serviced or overhauled so on balance I think unless it was very cheap probably not for me. Just out of interest given the details of the car at what price do you think it would be worth taking a "punt" on it?

Is anyone looking to sell a nice 500 SL on here?

Sounds a bit ropey to me, I would leave it. You would be better adding that £1500+ you would spend putting it right into the purchase price of a better one to start with. Dents, poor paint and stonechips mean you could end up respraying the whole car, and that could end up be around £3k before anything else is looked at! Without looking at it, model, year, miles etc, I would reckon about it's worth about £3k, if that, for a punt, but I really wouldn't. If it hasn't been looked after externally, what's it like internally? Too risky for me.

[T5GRF]

Nuisance yes you are probably right, the cheapest it could be bought for I think is 4.5k so it could be cosmetically pretty much together for 6k but I guess it will have still done 120,000 miles. It does look nice though it is a facelift car, black with black leather and has a few nice options like ADS.

What would have been standard on a car of this vintage? I know that ADS was a very expensive option.

[pollawyn]

Buy on condition and be prepared to pay up to £10,000 for a really good low mileage, around 60,000 miles, fsh, with all the bits and you will not be disappointed. I got one to use as a third car and now just want to drive it all the time and am selling my 280CDi as, marvellous car as it is, I just have no need for it, my wifes car can do the shopping.