My First AMG - ridiculously excited !!

[juice]

juice said:

The previous owner wants his plate back, so I've just sent off the V5 and removal of plate form to DVLA. His retention cert should turn up in about 10 days or so...I could have just kept the age related plate that would be assigned...but then I found this online, for 280 quid.

Just a bit of fun (and inspired by Harry's Zonda from way back in the early Evo days !)

Edited by juice on Tuesday 4th June 15:20

Got back from holiday, opened the post and there was the retention cert...so as it's a gorgeous day, a trip to Halfords was on the cards.
All fitted now, only a bit of fun, certainly not worthy of inclusion in the good plate thread...but it makes me

[juice]

SiT said:

I like it a lot! Remember the UFO plate from Evo days. We are taking a run across to Wilton tomorrow if your around and fancy an early start, leaving Wedmore at 7am collecting a couple from Shepton Mallet around 7.30 then on towards Wilton picking the last few up in a layby just shy of Wilton House.

See here - https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...

Si

I can be in Shepton for 7:30 a.m at Dobbies, It's about 30 mins from me.

I got the Green light from the missus so yeah I'm up for it !

[juice]

CoolHands said:

Can I be an ignoramus and ask, where / what website do you go on to buy a plate like you did?

I like the rear shot looks ace

I used Platehunter - they're kinda a search engine for plates..You can put in any combo and it'll spit out plates for sale.

I wanted PC55 AMG (PC being my wife's initials) but that was well over a grand + fees...

This plate (imo) is good value compared to the above (as much as I'd have liked it)

[juice]

SiT said:

Good man, look forward to seeing (hearing!!!!) the car!!! There should be a CLA45 AMG there and possibly an M240i and we will join you there.

Si

Cool - see you there !

[juice]

Just spamming but I got a new Samsung S10+ so I stopped by Blagdon Lake on the (long) way home. It takes great Photos!

[juice]

Just quick update - the car is still fantastic, I'm putting WAY too many miles on it and finding excuses to 'nip out'

But.....The joys of living in the country...a rock covered with grass on a country lane



And this



I've never been happy with the bumper anyway as it has delamination by the nose



And this massive bleb



So it's been booked into JB Autos at Longwell Green to have the Bumper removed and resprayed and the wheel repaired.

The Car's going in tomorrow to Parkway to have the Transmission fluid changed, as well as the torque/control arm bushes replaced.
For the other bits that were advisories : Sump Gasket, Engine/gearbox mounts and prop donut they are going to inspect themselves, see the state of play and see if anything needs doing. That makes me trust them as they could have quite easily just done the work regardless.

I've also asked them to inspect the rear subframe as I know it's a potential issue. So if this is OK, then I'll get it treated.
Is waxoyl still the 'go to' ?

Lastly are the C pillar 'facings'. They've delaminated again due to sun, quite common on the SLK from reading all the posts on SLK world.



So I ordered these as replacements. Only 35 quid each from MB. The part Numbers are there if anyone needs them





So once it's all sorted mechanically and cosmetically, I might investigate a cheeky X-Pipe at Infinity after hols in Sept.

[juice]

SiT said:

Good progress although thwarted by grass covered rock!!!! Every cloud and all that - you will have a mint front end once its painted.

Glad your still enjoying it.

Si

Cheers Si. Is your dash all done ?

[juice]

DamnKraut said:

OP, there is a good instruction on slkworld for changing the c pillar trim. If you can’t find it let me know and I can send it over.

Getting them off was not the challenge but installing the new ones is an utter bh of a job. Finally stopped myself after endless cursing and rising worries about breaking them on installation and let the MB dealer handle the installation instead. All in price was about 120 quid for both the parts and installing them. Given they should last about 5 years before potentially starting to delaminate again, that’s reasonable money I’d reckon.

Yeah I've seen the posts on slkworld on the broomstick and how to replace the pillars. I was going to do it, but as the car's in having the tranny fluid/bushes done I asked them to fit the new ones while it's there.

[juice]

juice said:

Just quick update - the car is still fantastic, I'm putting WAY too many miles on it and finding excuses to 'nip out'

But.....The joys of living in the country...a rock covered with grass on a country lane



And this



I've never been happy with the bumper anyway as it has delamination by the nose



And this massive bleb



So it's been booked into JB Autos at Longwell Green to have the Bumper removed and resprayed and the wheel repaired.

Picked the car up last Sat, gotta say..JB Autos did a brilliant job !!

No road rash anymore


Wheel is now all sorted



And the delamination/bleb has gone




I'm really happy with how it's turned out and luckily there are no cracks in the bumper underneath (as it does bottom out quite easily...stupid non-germanic roads ! )

[juice]

As the weather's starting to turn a bit rubbish and opportunities to drive with the roof down or on dry roads are few and far between, I thought about maybe getting a cheap daily to run over winter and then cover the car once the gritters come out. As the roads are getting greasier, it's ok don't get me wrong but I'd rather be driving on sunny days and dry roads.

So, I just bought this, an 07 Jazz Sport - yes, really

Sport is apparently top of the range - who knew ? It comes with automatic climate control (that was a surprise), alloy wheels, foglights and side-skirts !





I bought a classic additions cover for the SLK and wanted to trial fit it before winter to see how easy it was to fit. So after a good clean....






I need to get a battery conditioner, any suggestions ? C-Tek seems to be quite good ? I have power in the shed so no issues there...

[juice]

Kewy said:

Mr lestat said:

I have an optimate and leave that plugged in whenever not in use.

Is the car going in the shed with the cover on. Or is it staying outside ? I would be concerned on the black paint with micro scratches from the inside of the car cover if it’s outside in the wind flapping about.

Was about to say the same. Covered car out in the wind doesn't sound like a great idea to me. Probably better off giving it a nice thick coating of wax and leave the cover off.

It's going to stay outside. The cover is a very tight fit anyway, but it also has 3 concealed straps underneath the car to stop any movement plus its spot on the drive is very sheltered naturally. When I tested the cover for a few days earlier this month, after taking it off there were no marks I could see which is encouraging.

I went for the cover after seeing this, where they tested the cover over winter. Yes it's not independent but at least it's a real-world test replicating a winter storage, which is what I wanted to achieve.

https://www.classicadditions.com/en-GB/ultimate-ou...

I other news...I like driving the Jazz It's got very direct steering and turns in quickly so there's fun to be had in keeping up momentum (it's not fast at all) and just chucking it around. It's also doing 42MPG and takes normal (rather than Super) so it's a pretty cheap way to and from work.

Edited by juice on Saturday 19th October 07:30

[juice]

Vocht said:

Absolutely love these! Obviously being a 5.4L V8 consumption isn't going to be amazing but out of interest what real world mpg are you getting?

I've been toying with the idea of running one as a daily for a while now but want to know if it's worth stretching the extra for an R123? They're meant to be relatively decent due to their cylinder deactivation technology.

I commute about 11 miles to work and it's all hills round here (I live in a valley so the only way is up !).
Over 4K this year I've averaged 22mpg which isn't so bad I guess, on a clear run into Bristol I did once see 25 !

Edited by juice on Friday 25th October 06:20

[juice]

Vocht said:

22mpg is better than I was expecting tbf! Not really too bad at all. So tempting! Any recommendations when looking for one? Thanks!

This is what I used - kinda the buying bible !

https://www.slkworld.com/slk-r171-general-discussi...

Engine - Suffers from rocker cover leaks (due to how hot it gets in there) - they all do it at some point. About 200 quid to fix.

Gearbox - conductor plate (valve body) - symptoms - clunky changes, sometimes stuck in 3rd gear, box of neutrals even when display shows 'D'. Replacement plate approx 600 quid fitted.
Transmission fluid changes essential every 4 years/45K imo. If it's not had it done, then at an indy it's about 175 quid. Do it !

Roof seals - inspect carefully. Potential source of numerous leaks - arm yourself with a bottle of gummi pflege.
Electrics - check everything, every switch, function, light works. Heated seats are sometimes knackered due to people kneeling on the seats and breaking the elements. Check the Airscarf works, A/C etc - you know the drill.

They're great cars, I love mine to bits.

[juice]

dunc69 said:

Juice, I’m in Blagdon. Look forward to seeing / hearing you about!!

Hiya Dunc, your Stinger looks amazing !! I'm surprised I've not bumped into you on the 368.
I regularly take my dogs down to the lake at Blagdon, it's a lovely walk along there.
Cheers

[juice]

Latest mod...

Adds 50BHP apparently

[juice]

So 2 weeks ago, I was driving to work and the car 'failed to proceed'....

Driving normally the car cut-out and then coasted to a halt with all the lights on the dash. It wouldn't start (starter motor would turn). I was by the side of the road for 30 mins and just as I was about to call for recovery, it started again (but with CEL on). Thoughts ? I'm hoping its the CPS...but it may be something transmission related maybe ?

So it's in the Car Hospital now for that and the following list to be looked at. BTW - Si, I gave Avantgarde another go

1) The 'Failure to proceed' issue
2) A 'G' Service (Which is an 'A'' plus time related bits)
3) Leak from the Rocker Covers
4) A suddenly developed whine from the front of the engine, I think it's a belt-tensioner pully bearing gone bad (am desperately hoping it's not the alternator !)
5) Replacing the C Pillar facings finally...

Roll up for the sweepstake ! Place your bets on how much that little lot will cost !

I reckon I'll be walking away with a bill for well over a grand...

[juice]

It was the Crank Position Sensor that caused the failure to proceed (thankfully).
So they're doing the Rocker Cover leak and while there changing the plugs (x16).
Repair the sump leak
Needs new pads on the rear (80% worn)
The CPS replacement
Filters, Fluids etc

Approx £1500 quid.

Hey ho....at least it'll be in rude health for when it goes to Infinity for the X-Pipe next year !

[juice]

Well, that escalated....


[url]



To be fair, a lot of it was 'well while you're there' thinking...For example, when they told me they had to take the engine out to fix the sump I told them 'while you're there you may as well do the engine mounts' which was lucky as after they took the engine out one of the mounts fell off !

As they had to take the coils off to do the rocker covers, may as well do the spark plugs...

And as they had to take the front axle off, they replaced the control arms while they were there.

Seems the car has K&N filters on it, so they were only cleaned rather than replaced...

So I now have a car that has had everything that's needed to be done, done. It's had tranmission fluid, plugs, leaks fixed, CPS replaced, engine mounts, pads etc etc. Hopefully the next service will be a cheapy !

Drives lovely now I must admit !

[juice]

cerb4.5lee said:

That is a meaty bill for sure but at least it has given you some piece of mind that the car is in fine fettle now.

Yeah, it's only money...right ?

[juice]

595Heaven said:

Ooh.... Not nice. Hope it goes perfectly after all that!

Mine passed 70,000 miles a couple of days ago. Nothing to report at the moment luckily.

Yeah Yeah, rub it in