2007 C55 AMG estate - buying advice

[AC43]

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

Balls. Thanks though.

Hmm..
https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202011226...

Often with dark wheels unfortunately.

God, why do people do that to wheels??

To me it just represents a faff to put them back to standard. Still, at least he hasn't smoked his lights and fitted 3D plates.....

The rest of the car scrubs up nicely.

[Sheepshanks]

samoht said:

Also worth checking the fuller version of this thread https://forums.mbclub.co.uk/threads/2007-c55-estat... where you can get a sense of just how much money a bad one of these can eat up.

I bet you can't quite believe your luck in being able to grab that car!

[Terzo123]

Sheepshanks said:

samoht said:

Also worth checking the fuller version of this thread https://forums.mbclub.co.uk/threads/2007-c55-estat... where you can get a sense of just how much money a bad one of these can eat up.

I bet you can't quite believe your luck in being able to grab that car!

Just had a quick read of that thread. Astonishing.

The car must be in fantastic condition.

Cant be many 2007 cars that have had an open cheque book maintenance scheme.

[Bullet-Proof_Biscuit]

samoht said:

Also worth checking the fuller version of this thread https://forums.mbclub.co.uk/threads/2007-c55-estat... where you can get a sense of just how much money a bad one of these can eat up.

Thanks. Try daily-ing a 997 911! Ok thank you, I'll kill keep an eye out for rust. I do like cheap things though..../.

[Bullet-Proof_Biscuit]

Wait a minute, does the E55 not suffer the same rust fate? Namely rear subframes & their mountings turning to dust??

[samoht]

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

Balls. Thanks though.

Yeah, I was really disappointed, I was hoping MBS would come back with a short list of issues and a quote and I could get them to do the work, but (to their credit) they made it clear it was more involved than that.

Sheepshanks said:

I bet you can't quite believe your luck in being able to grab that car!

To be fair, I did pay quite a bit more than my original budget of 8-10k, as I felt it was well worth it for this example. Yeah I'm really happy with it, lovely thing and the V8 is awesome .

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

Thanks. Try daily-ing a 997 911! Ok thank you, I'll kill keep an eye out for rust. I do like cheap things though..../.

It's funny, OP has a rather nice 996 that he's put tens of thousands into, and I have an RX-7 that's been similarly costly. IMO the C55 Estate is the perfect complement to a sports car.

I think those first two dodgy silver cars are setting a low bar for the market, so you may find a good car for the price of a lemon if you're patient/lucky. Otherwise key thing is to know what a car needs and price up the parts and work before committing, e.g. 4 brake discs and pads ~£1k, headlights ~£1300, heater flap clicking ~£750, etc, obv secondhand parts and doing work yourself can cut these costs. IMHO a properly sorted one of these is 'worth' £12-15k+, so if you can come in under that then you're doing well. Good luck with the hunt, it's worth it!

[Bullet-Proof_Biscuit]

Yep understood, I've setup listing alerts on everything..
Nobody told me the E55 comes with a blower though!!

[DKL]

I have managed to acquire both a c55 and an e55 estate on the drive. Both nice cars but the E is by far the nicer at that price point. Unless size is an issue buy the E. I suppose the C has fewer trick bits but either can throw a good bill if necessary. I spoke in some detail to my MOT chap about the rear subframe of our C at MOT time as I wa a bit worried after this thread. He seemed quite complimentary mind (fortunately).

[AC43]

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

Yep understood, I've setup listing alerts on everything..
Nobody told me the E55 comes with a blower though!!

The 55K motor is immense.

Plus you get self-levelling via the Airmatic at the back and air struts at the front.

Altogether more sophisticated.

More to go wrong of course.

Worth looking into.

[evojam]

10-15k max should get you as nice lowish miles C55 AMG estate,they do come up so just a case of being patient and waiting for the right car to come along which it will...a lovely alrounder,the E55 Kompressor is in a different league performance wise especially after 100mph with an extra 100bhp along with 140ft Ibs torque,lots of very miley examples around now at around 10k and often under but you take your chances!

[sbk1972]

samoht said:

I had that first one, KN54 OCR, inspected by MBS at Soton and, well, they recommended I not proceed. Issues found:

General rust to rear end
Rear arches rusting
Heater flap clicking on start up
O S R box joints splitting
N S F jacking point missing
O S inner arch panel not fitted correctly
Top rocker covers leaking oil
Headlight level link broken (previously been cable tied)
Headlights clouding over and have condensation inside
Both front fog lights showing water ingress
N S F arch liner damaged
N S R brake binding
Both front torque arm bushes psplit
Outside temp sensors inop - no plugs visible
Parking sensors inop
Battery clamp missing
Odo displaying 260k miles rather than 130k

The heater flap is an expensive dash-out job, new headlights are £1300 or so, rear end rust £3.5k to disassemble and sort, ...

Also worth checking the fuller version of this thread https://forums.mbclub.co.uk/threads/2007-c55-estat... where you can get a sense of just how much money a bad one of these can eat up.

The second one is Cat C and I'd not be terribly optimistic about rust given how coastal and damp Ireland is. Also you'd want a detailed inspection before committing to buying a plane ticket, AA and RAC don't do NI, (AA doesn't do these cars anyway, unsure on RAC), is there a local Merc specialist who could be trusted?

The third one is newly on the market and looks the most promising, I'd try and find a local Merc specialist and ask the seller to take it there for an inspection.

I have a 2003 ML55. Same engine and gearbox in a 4x4 frame / chassis. These engines are bullet proof, same with the gearbox as long as you regulary change the oil / filter in the gearbox with the correct mercedes oils. Sometimes you need to change the back plate in the gearbox but again that isnt too diffcult and isnt that pricey.

I recently removed my dashboard to reseat a loom connector and my top vent motor clicks too. Its the plastic arm that breaks and is only a £5 part. However you can just leave it, it isnt the end of the world. It will click on switch off and start up and directing heat up to the windscreen may / may not work but its liveable.

Brakes are no issue, yesterday I swapped out the 16x spark plugs, installed front and rear pads, changed oil in under 2 hours. Yes each cylinder has 2 spark plugs. Mercedes charges £300 for the spark job but parts can easily be brought from carparts4less on a flash sale.

Headlights. Remove, dry out and reseal. Again not a difficult job. Mine has condensation but its liveable.

Rocker cover gaskets are easy to remove as the inlet goes to the back of the engine so the top is rather free of inlets etc.

260K. I bet in the past the speedo has been set to read in KMS ? Mine had the same issue as one of the previous owners took my car to Spain and changed the odo reading in KMS. Setting the odo to miles / kms doesnt then convert the mileage though so if your on 160kms then the speedo wont change to 100mies, it wil stay at 180 but going forward reading miles. So this will mean you need to work out the correct mileage mots etc.

Rust is in the only thing to be careful with. This era of mercedes are known for rust issues. Luckily my ML55 is black and Smoothrite Black is the same colour back so I tend to use that to touch things up. I have stripped the back of mine one, sanded down and used hammerite. Unless properly prepared underseal just locks in the wet.

There are many many forums for these Mercedes cars / engines and the internet is awash with information. I've owned my ML55 now for 5 years and I have literally ripped it apart, fixed everything and its now a rattle free enjoyable truck. Before I brought it I had the usual....ML55's made in the USA and are crap, rust buckets, issues..... but its been a great car. These cars / engines need regulary maintenance and someone that understands that these old girls tend to throw up issues etc. If you want 100% reliable, start and go then buy a toyota or honda.

One thing to note is that the 5.4 litre is a big lump of heat. Wires go brittle, looms do get splits. I recently had a can bus error and had to literally remove half of my loom to inspect and re-tape up. Turned out to be a connector behind the footbrake, hence why I had to remove the dash. There are so many youtube videos showing you what to do.

i suggest you by a good coder reader as this saved me £1000s and made diagnosing faults easier. Acute Maxidiag is a good one.

I love my ML55, the noise alone is addictive.

Simon

[samoht]

Sbk1972 - thanks for the info, sounds like you've got the skills to DIY these cars, which must be a pretty nice situation to be in :-)

DKL said:

I have managed to acquire both a c55 and an e55 estate on the drive. Both nice cars but the E is by far the nicer at that price point. Unless size is an issue buy the E. I suppose the C has fewer trick bits but either can throw a good bill if necessary. I spoke in some detail to my MOT chap about the rear subframe of our C at MOT time as I was a bit worried after this thread. He seemed quite complimentary mind (fortunately).

Thanks for your suggestion to look at these cars! Glad your C is in good health. Personally I was definitely looking for something compact, hence the C, but otherwise I agree the E55 looks great value, those must be near-200mph cars delimited, which is crazy.

£9500 https://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/202010054...

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

Nobody told me the E55 comes with a blower though!!

The W210 E55s have the same nat-asp engine as the C55, the W211 got the kompressor. The later 6.2s are also coming under £15k ;-)

W210 1998 E55 M113 5.4 350hp
W211 2003 E55 M113K 5.4S 470hp
W211 2007 E63 M156 6.2 507hp
W212 2009 E63 M156 6.2 518hp
W212 2011 E63 M157 5.5T 518hp (PP 549hp)
W212 2013 E63 M157 5.5T 549hp (S 557hp)
W213 2016 E63 M177 4.0T 563hp (S 612hp) 4WD

[SwaffhamCountyFayre]

AC43 said:

God, why do people do that to wheels??

To me it just represents a faff to put them back to standard. Still, at least he hasn't smoked his lights and fitted 3D plates.....

The rest of the car scrubs up nicely.

Next to no service history though on this, makes it a major brave pill in my book unfortunately.

[sbk1972]

Samoht - That's the thing, at the start I didnt have the DIY skills. When I first brought my truck my skills were average etc however I soon learnt via youtube / forums. I remember taking my truck to my local Mercedes specialists and the prices he was going to charge, for simple maintenance things, were ridiculous. I did use him to try and fix a idling issue and 3 days in he asked me to collect my car as he couldnt fix it. When home I raised to the bonnet to find lots of nuts / bolts sitting on the rad which he had left. 30 mins on youtube and it was fixed, was a vaccum hose around the back of the engine, and so from that point I decide to `have a go` ;p-) If you can do Lego / Meccano then it really isnt too different.

I did look at C55s, CLK55s, CLS55, E55 before buying my ML55, I also looked at the 63 versions too however at your budget point then you will be looking at the early 63 engines that suffer from headbolts and cam wear / bucket issues. You will need to get the engine number and check to see if its the later version.

The C55 werent sold in large numbers either so your selection to choose from, I found supply was limited and pricey. I loved the look of the saloon and the practicability of the estate. There are 2 in my town and we often get together and swap `war` stories about owning them. The ones I looked at mostly had high mileage which if serviced isnt an issue. This is when the Ml55 becomes great value. There are so many horror stories about them so people are put off however most are untrue or are common amongst all mercs of this era. 5 years ago I paid £4K for a 89K, 2003, Black, 22inch alloys, private plate, sports exhaust. I was offered £4.5 by a someone when I was having my tyres replaced however I just wont sell it. I originally decided on a ML63 and about to buy it when I saw it. It gave me 85% of the fun for 25% of the cost.

All of these models, at these ages, will suffer from rust, bushes, need suspension updates, possible wiring issues, gearbox services. All cars use early CAN bus and possible of cooked modules. The first one which often goes is the fan module !!!

If I was honest though, I would now be looking at a CLS55 or E55 and not C55s. It's the same engine with a supercharger bolted on top but such a better car in regards to later technology and design. There are a few on offer around the country and prices are around £10K. There is a great youtube video showing the different of the CLS55 / E55 and which is the best age / model to get.

Which ever model you go for, once your an AMG owner you then can never leave the brand. ;-) The engine noise is addictive !!

Edited by sbk1972 on Tuesday 8th December 07:35

[ArmaghMan]

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

Wait a minute, does the E55 not suffer the same rust fate? Namely rear subframes & their mountings turning to dust??

Some rust, some dont.


Sold this to a chap from the north of England.
He really wanted a nice E55 and promissed not to resell straight away.


Car 100% original.
There are a few nice ones out there.

Edited by ArmaghMan on Friday 11th December 12:24

[Bullet-Proof_Biscuit]

That's a W210 and they DO rust, and big time, same goes for the W202 chassis. Source: welded sills on both of mine.. Interestingly they did have the M113 in the amg versions and the 5,5 & K are both direct fit into the chassis, mounts & bellhousing.

I think my search is leaning towards a W211 55k estate as they seem to be slightly better value (for my £10kish budget), read: Less sought after? Although there's even less of those for sale ffs. That is unless I can't imagine anyone here is considering selling their C55 though....

[AC43]

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

That's a W210 and they DO rust, and big time, same goes for the W202 chassis. Source: welded sills on both of mine

I had 2 x 20c C43's. One had rusty sills when I had it, the other after.

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

I think my search is leaning towards a W211 55k estate as they seem to be slightly better value (for my £10kish budget), read: Less sought after? Although there's even less of those for sale ffs.

The problem with C55's is that there were only very few to start with. The C43's were bad enough with around 250 saloons and 140 estates. The 55's sold in far smaller numbers - maybe 150 in total. So rarity helps.

Rust issues aside, C55's are generally much simpler than the E55k's which can suffer from problems with their Airmatic, SBC brakes, s/c intercoler, etc and also come loaded with a lot more kit. So the running costs tend to be higher.

If I was buying a 55k I'd try to get a forum member's car from MBClub.co.uk as some really well looked after examples come up on there from time to time.

[edc]

My C55 was previously owned by a member at mbclub. Lovely cars understated and more than ample power especially after a ECU and TCU remap 😁

[ArmaghMan]

Bullet-Proof_Biscuit said:

That's a W210 and they DO rust, and big time, same goes for the W202 chassis. Source: welded sills on both of mine.. Interestingly they did have the M113 in the amg versions and the 5,5 & K are both direct fit into the chassis, mounts & bellhousing.

I think my search is leaning towards a W211 55k estate as they seem to be slightly better value (for my £10kish budget), read: Less sought after? Although there's even less of those for sale ffs. That is unless I can't imagine anyone here is considering selling their C55 though....

I think you're missing my point. Yes its a W210 but no they dont all rust. There are still some nice ones out there. Mine had absolutely no rust on a 22 year old car.
Point is, wait until a miinter comes up. Good ones dont make silly money.
I took 8 and a half for mine, but the guy was a genuine fan. Seen a couple that I thought were'nt as nice as mine up for 12 grand plus but they didnt sell.
Plenty of not so nice stuff up for 5 or 6 which would take a second mortgage to put right.
My advice bide your time and a nice one will appear.

Edited by ArmaghMan on Friday 11th December 18:09

[Bullet-Proof_Biscuit]

Absolutely, I was initially looking for a 202 C43 estate, then got reading into M113 fitments, then scope creep happened..
I've got MBWorld etc login credentials from my W202 days so maybe I'll post a wanted ad.
The E55k stuff is all fixeable at least, air struts go, sbc brake pump dies, charge cooler pump failure, all just parts replacements.
A smaller blower pulley and a remap releases another 100hp/lbft!

• *Starts shopping in earnest...