1997 sl280

[comrie]

Thinking of purchasing one of these as a weekend toy.......any advice ...pitfalls.....things to watch out for greatly received



steve

Edited by comrie on Monday 26th January 09:41

[5 wh]

Mechanicals bombproof if serviced correctly/regually.Watch out for rust,but the main problems with the sl come from the control unit and hydraulic pump which controls the electric roof-make sure this works by testing it a good few times,even if it means removing the hardtop to do so.If the seller objects to this for any reason-walk away.

[r129sl]

Head gaskets can fail, look for oil leaks at the back of the engine.

Check the hardtop and soft top for condition and operation. Failure of the control unit and pump is extremely rare but it can be damaged (in particular by jump starting) and is expensive to fix.

Trim costs a lot.

Look for accident damage, too. You don't want one of these if it has had a big whack.

I would also stay clear of aftermarket accessories, especially wheels. Not only are they generally of inferior quality, they are the sign of an owner who cares more about style than substance. Rather than fancy wheels, you want a big service history.

[74merc]

This will be the V6 rather than the straight 6 so I don't think head gaskets will be a problem. I don't know much about R129s but the general consensus seems to be to avoid the 280 as it's underpowered. The 320 has a much better balance of power and economy.

[comrie]

Not too worried about it being underpowered as i have a 911(964) if i need a weekend thrash.....just always fancied a soft top and these seem good value at the moment.....do they all come with a hard top option....if it didnt have one would that be a deal breaker....also serviced once every 12,000 miles i presume.....any cam belts or timing belts due around 60,000 miles


thanks for the info so far


steve