2 004 CLK 55 or 2007/08CLK 350
Discussion
There are several out there with roughly the same mileage and service hx but the obvioulsy the AMGs are a tad older
She wants it as a daily driver (around 10 k mile year with the majority short 20 mile trips)
as the AMG put a depictively broader grin on her face on the test drive I wonder which she should be advised to buy
The obvious is clear
AMg equals more petrol and oil and more expensive one too
Other than that insurance and tax are quite similar
Should the 2 years age difference put us of in a fullys erviced car with similar warranties and milegage? Are there any significant model updates between 2004 and 2007. Will the roof leak??/
Is the AMG significantely more expensive to service (i.e spare part prices) - reliability of the hand built engines??? i heard that the CLS AMG had a tendency to eat it's gearboxes - is this a worry???
Thanks as your help is as always appreciated...
She wants it as a daily driver (around 10 k mile year with the majority short 20 mile trips)
as the AMG put a depictively broader grin on her face on the test drive I wonder which she should be advised to buy
The obvious is clear
AMg equals more petrol and oil and more expensive one too
Other than that insurance and tax are quite similar
Should the 2 years age difference put us of in a fullys erviced car with similar warranties and milegage? Are there any significant model updates between 2004 and 2007. Will the roof leak??/
Is the AMG significantely more expensive to service (i.e spare part prices) - reliability of the hand built engines??? i heard that the CLS AMG had a tendency to eat it's gearboxes - is this a worry???
Thanks as your help is as always appreciated...
The W209 clk had a facelift in 2005, so a 2007 clk 350 will have the three fin grille/updated amg alloys, but more significantly will have the newer mercedes command system and sat nav which are far superior. The old 2004 units really look and feel quite dated.
The two year difference in age won't by itself be critical, however an amg will always cost quite a bit more to run than a 'standard' mercedes, it depends on cars age, condition, driving styles of previous owners, but you should budget on the amg costing 30%-40% more to run if we are talking about a close to 8 year old car with above average/high miles. This may not always be the case, but it's always better to prepare for higher costs.
Performance wise the amg is the clear winner, and although the 5.5 V8 in the clk is not the 'full fat' supercharged 500 bhp version in a cls 55/e55/sl55 but 367 bhp and much less torque on offer it is still very impressive and a lot of fun.
The clk 55 is great value if you find a good one so I would definitely recommend that over the 350 as long as you can handle the bigger bills.
The two year difference in age won't by itself be critical, however an amg will always cost quite a bit more to run than a 'standard' mercedes, it depends on cars age, condition, driving styles of previous owners, but you should budget on the amg costing 30%-40% more to run if we are talking about a close to 8 year old car with above average/high miles. This may not always be the case, but it's always better to prepare for higher costs.
Performance wise the amg is the clear winner, and although the 5.5 V8 in the clk is not the 'full fat' supercharged 500 bhp version in a cls 55/e55/sl55 but 367 bhp and much less torque on offer it is still very impressive and a lot of fun.
The clk 55 is great value if you find a good one so I would definitely recommend that over the 350 as long as you can handle the bigger bills.
Thanks very inormative.
The 54 CLK 55 we testdrove had the modern style command system (obviously with old naci software)- could that be atermarket or where the AMGs early with the facelift???
Hope not that the reg is fake - and who would make it older
Service bills are an issue but thinking of using an independent out o factory warranty would that still apply???
The 54 CLK 55 we testdrove had the modern style command system (obviously with old naci software)- could that be atermarket or where the AMGs early with the facelift???
Hope not that the reg is fake - and who would make it older
Service bills are an issue but thinking of using an independent out o factory warranty would that still apply???
It is possible it's an aftermarket unit, yes. They are fairly widely available so perhaps the 54 car you saw was upgraded.
I used an trusted independent mercedes specialist for my clk 55 amg (since sold and replaced with a cls 55), the main saving is the labor rate, and also a good indie will be prepared to do more diagnostics work without charging what mercedes do. If you know or can find a reliable specialist then that should be a good cost saving on the standard A/B services.
Regarding warranty- the comprehensive mercedes tier 1 warranty should be available, the cost has recently gone up and I'm not sure if there is any age/miles restrictions. If not, it would be something to consider as it is far superior to anything a garage would give you, which would I imagine would limit the number and value of claims you could make.
I never had any issues with my clk other than routine maintenance. Buy on condition, check the service history closely, ask to see recent MOT's, and check any previous invoices as they can give you an idea of what work the car has had done, if possible see more than one car and go for an extended test drive so you can get a good feel for the car.
You won't be disappointed with a clk 55 amg, so if you find a good one my advice would be go for it
I used an trusted independent mercedes specialist for my clk 55 amg (since sold and replaced with a cls 55), the main saving is the labor rate, and also a good indie will be prepared to do more diagnostics work without charging what mercedes do. If you know or can find a reliable specialist then that should be a good cost saving on the standard A/B services.
Regarding warranty- the comprehensive mercedes tier 1 warranty should be available, the cost has recently gone up and I'm not sure if there is any age/miles restrictions. If not, it would be something to consider as it is far superior to anything a garage would give you, which would I imagine would limit the number and value of claims you could make.
I never had any issues with my clk other than routine maintenance. Buy on condition, check the service history closely, ask to see recent MOT's, and check any previous invoices as they can give you an idea of what work the car has had done, if possible see more than one car and go for an extended test drive so you can get a good feel for the car.
You won't be disappointed with a clk 55 amg, so if you find a good one my advice would be go for it
cramorra said:
Thanks very inormative.
The 54 CLK 55 we testdrove had the modern style command system (obviously with old naci software)- could that be atermarket or where the AMGs early with the facelift???
Hope not that the reg is fake - and who would make it older
Service bills are an issue but thinking of using an independent out o factory warranty would that still apply???
I have a 2004 CLK 55 AMG with the facelift and this runs the 2005 software, so I presume MB must have updated the software at one of the earlier services. I have found the AMG costs about £30 more for the service A than a non AMG (from MB dealers) so not much in it.The 54 CLK 55 we testdrove had the modern style command system (obviously with old naci software)- could that be atermarket or where the AMGs early with the facelift???
Hope not that the reg is fake - and who would make it older
Service bills are an issue but thinking of using an independent out o factory warranty would that still apply???
Incidently, my low mileage example is for sale at the moment (see PH classifieds http://www.pistonheads.com/sales/3530036.htm ) although to be fair someone has told me they want it, but I don't count my chickens until I have the cash
Andy
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