Mercedes SL500 (R230) advice please
Discussion
I am looking to replace my wife's car and the R230 seems a lot of car for the money, I have a budget of around £20k so plenty to choose from. I guess I would be looking at 2002-2004 cars with average mileage.
So what do I need to look out for common faults? essential options for resale? is it worth spending £1400 on a mercedes Tier 1 warranty?
I think there was a facelift in 2004, how do these cars differ from the earlier model?
Do they have small rear seats like the R129? if so can a child seat be fitted?
It will be parked outside as my garage is full, do they suffer from water ingress I seem to remember that the boot seals leak?
It won't do any more than 5k miles a year so I presume that failures aside servicing shouldn't be too horrendous?
Cheers for the advice as ever!
So what do I need to look out for common faults? essential options for resale? is it worth spending £1400 on a mercedes Tier 1 warranty?
I think there was a facelift in 2004, how do these cars differ from the earlier model?
Do they have small rear seats like the R129? if so can a child seat be fitted?
It will be parked outside as my garage is full, do they suffer from water ingress I seem to remember that the boot seals leak?
It won't do any more than 5k miles a year so I presume that failures aside servicing shouldn't be too horrendous?
Cheers for the advice as ever!
Edited by T5GRF on Sunday 5th September 22:39
I've owned a 2002 SL500 and a 2003 SL55. They can give problems with the air suspension shock absorbers and pump which are all very expensive, the roof can go out of adjustment making it noisy when going up or down or sticking.
Some people prefer the panoramic roof and say its essential for an easy resale (panoramic roof wasnt available on 2002 cars) but I think it makes the car look odd.
They dont have rear seats nor can you fit any and a child seat cant be fitted in the rear, behind the front seats there are two lidded storage compartments.
The boot seals leaked on the early ones, my 2002 leaked but my 2003 doesnt. Neither of mine have had water leaks into the passenger compartment.
What is the claim limit (£'s) on the Tier 1 warranty?
Edited by fiveoclockhero1 on Sunday 5th September 22:43
If Frosted thinks he can pick up a decent SL500 for 14k at any time of year then good luck to him.
Stuff to watch: suspension suspension suspension. It's hydraulic (not air as said above) and the costs when it goes wrong are horrendous - thousands at a time.
No back seats.
Boot leaks - easy - keep the seals clean and make sure that the little plastic bits on the inside corner of the boot lid don't go missing and the drains are kept clear. Spark plugs - pricey at dealers but do them yourself with plugs from GSF which takes a couple of hours and you can go on holiday to for a week with the money you've saved.
MPG. Seems to average 23 but start using it round town and it'll be 15 or so, and start doing short urban journeys and you'll be looking at 6 (you read that right).
Did I mention the suspension? ABC is truly the scariest thing ever - it's a horrendous bill just waiting to happen and in all seriousness unless you are desperate for the extra grunt I'd get an SL350 which has lovely jubbly springs and stuff instead. Also the post facelift 350s make about the same power as the early 500s and don't have the crap suspension.
Edited to add: essential options
decent wheels, "comfort seat" thatvmassage your back, I think the Distronic is standard but is worth having if it's not, Linguatronic (voice command) waste of time IMO (don't even know how to work it), TV on older models now not worth bother as it's not digital. Comand is a "must" although, like most fitted sat navs, it's not a patch on a £100 Tom Tom.
Make sure you are supplied with the polyp wind blocker as they're about £500 from MB.
That's about it really. I'm not aware of cabin leaks being an issue but keeping the car outside may change that.
Measure the height above ground of each wheel arch. should be about 69 cm iirc. Make sure the suspension goes up and down on the button. It will do this if all is well. Then it will break and cost many thousands. Don't doubt my word on this - check out threads on Merc forums on ABC issues - people throw fortunes at sorting it for problems to persist, suspension to sink etc.
That aside they rock!
Stuff to watch: suspension suspension suspension. It's hydraulic (not air as said above) and the costs when it goes wrong are horrendous - thousands at a time.
No back seats.
Boot leaks - easy - keep the seals clean and make sure that the little plastic bits on the inside corner of the boot lid don't go missing and the drains are kept clear. Spark plugs - pricey at dealers but do them yourself with plugs from GSF which takes a couple of hours and you can go on holiday to for a week with the money you've saved.
MPG. Seems to average 23 but start using it round town and it'll be 15 or so, and start doing short urban journeys and you'll be looking at 6 (you read that right).
Did I mention the suspension? ABC is truly the scariest thing ever - it's a horrendous bill just waiting to happen and in all seriousness unless you are desperate for the extra grunt I'd get an SL350 which has lovely jubbly springs and stuff instead. Also the post facelift 350s make about the same power as the early 500s and don't have the crap suspension.
Edited to add: essential options
decent wheels, "comfort seat" thatvmassage your back, I think the Distronic is standard but is worth having if it's not, Linguatronic (voice command) waste of time IMO (don't even know how to work it), TV on older models now not worth bother as it's not digital. Comand is a "must" although, like most fitted sat navs, it's not a patch on a £100 Tom Tom.
Make sure you are supplied with the polyp wind blocker as they're about £500 from MB.
That's about it really. I'm not aware of cabin leaks being an issue but keeping the car outside may change that.
Measure the height above ground of each wheel arch. should be about 69 cm iirc. Make sure the suspension goes up and down on the button. It will do this if all is well. Then it will break and cost many thousands. Don't doubt my word on this - check out threads on Merc forums on ABC issues - people throw fortunes at sorting it for problems to persist, suspension to sink etc.
That aside they rock!
Edited by Dog Star on Sunday 5th September 23:09
Aviz said:
Pvapour said:
frosted said:
Wait till January and you will get the same car for 14k
+12002, R230, sl500, 80k miler, fsh, pretty good state, @ auction £15,500 2 weeks ago.
Aviz said:
Pvapour said:
frosted said:
Wait till January and you will get the same car for 14k
+12002, R230, sl500, 80k miler, fsh, pretty good state, @ auction £15,500 2 weeks ago.
mercfunder said:
Aviz said:
Pvapour said:
frosted said:
Wait till January and you will get the same car for 14k
+12002, R230, sl500, 80k miler, fsh, pretty good state, @ auction £15,500 2 weeks ago.
Edited by Aviz on Monday 6th September 08:33
Pvapour said:
frosted said:
Wait till January and you will get the same car for 14k
+12002, R230, sl500, 80k miler, fsh, pretty good state, @ auction £15,500 2 weeks ago.
Personally I'm not Carcoat Damphands and I think it would take a braver man than me to risk buying a computer and technology laden car like that from an auction.
Dog Star said:
Pvapour said:
frosted said:
Wait till January and you will get the same car for 14k
+12002, R230, sl500, 80k miler, fsh, pretty good state, @ auction £15,500 2 weeks ago.
Personally I'm not Carcoat Damphands and I think it would take a braver man than me to risk buying a computer and technology laden car like that from an auction.
3rd party warranty can be had if your that nervous I guess, or do they exclude vehicles bought from auction? actually, dont BCA offer a warranty service?
Dog Star said:
Pvapour said:
Braver maybe or possibly know more about what your looking for
The thing is that I know *exactly* what I'm looking for. But to buy from an auction without being able to drive and do the "fine toothcomb" thing - no thanks!To be fair there are 3 good spec 500's for sale at them moment with full main dealer histories, and less than 70,000 miles for between £13500 an £15,500. I don't mind spending more for a really good car and certainly wouldn't buy this kind of car without a pre-purchase inspection of some kind.
The Mercedes dealer network are unlikely to stock an approved used car in my price range because of the cars age, so I think a private sale with an inspection and then adding the Mercedes Tier 1 warranty which covers the ABC issue and seemingly most other things is probably the best way for me to go.
Can anyone give me a link to the standard specification for a 2002-2004 500 SL and what options were available from new?
Cheers for the responses
The Mercedes dealer network are unlikely to stock an approved used car in my price range because of the cars age, so I think a private sale with an inspection and then adding the Mercedes Tier 1 warranty which covers the ABC issue and seemingly most other things is probably the best way for me to go.
Can anyone give me a link to the standard specification for a 2002-2004 500 SL and what options were available from new?
Cheers for the responses
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