2001 AMG32 SLK - Advice Please
Discussion
A neighbour's father is selling a 2001 Mercedes-Benz SLK AMG32
Metallic red
Black leather
1 previous owner
38K miles
Full Mercedes-Benz service history
Full MoT
Only used in dry weather
It's in superb condition and sounds great.
He's asking £8.5K which sounds reasonable for a low mileage example of a rare car.
What did these cost when new and what are they like to drive/live with?
Metallic red
Black leather
1 previous owner
38K miles
Full Mercedes-Benz service history
Full MoT
Only used in dry weather
It's in superb condition and sounds great.
He's asking £8.5K which sounds reasonable for a low mileage example of a rare car.
What did these cost when new and what are they like to drive/live with?
I had one of these a few years ago.
The biggest potential problem is rust-check the car very carefully for this. Mercedes paid for a lot of paintwork rectification on many of the R171 SLKs.
Check the heated seats work-they often fail due to the element fracturing.
There were one or two fairly minor mechanical problems noted but other more knowledgeable folk may be able to help with those.
I thought it was a great car, really just as fast as the later SLK55.
The biggest potential problem is rust-check the car very carefully for this. Mercedes paid for a lot of paintwork rectification on many of the R171 SLKs.
Check the heated seats work-they often fail due to the element fracturing.
There were one or two fairly minor mechanical problems noted but other more knowledgeable folk may be able to help with those.
I thought it was a great car, really just as fast as the later SLK55.
jmn said:
I had one of these a few years ago.
The biggest potential problem is rust-check the car very carefully for this. Mercedes paid for a lot of paintwork rectification on many of the R171 SLKs.
Check the heated seats work-they often fail due to the element fracturing.
There were one or two fairly minor mechanical problems noted but other more knowledgeable folk may be able to help with those.
I thought it was a great car, really just as fast as the later SLK55.
Thanks for that. The biggest potential problem is rust-check the car very carefully for this. Mercedes paid for a lot of paintwork rectification on many of the R171 SLKs.
Check the heated seats work-they often fail due to the element fracturing.
There were one or two fairly minor mechanical problems noted but other more knowledgeable folk may be able to help with those.
I thought it was a great car, really just as fast as the later SLK55.
It's always been serviced by MB so will check with the seller if it's ever had any paint rectification by them or anyone else.
I have checked with the current owner and the OSF wing was replaced by M-B under warranty in 2010.
The only other paint it's had is around the boot lock where it had bubbled slightly.
The leather trim is actually black and red which suits the car.
The aforementioned heated seat elements don't work apart from the passenger seat back.
Is this a relatively simple fix?
The car has been serviced by M-B approximately every 5K miles and still qualifies for their Mobilo Assistance warranty.
It has a private 'SLK' plate too.
Piccies:
The only other paint it's had is around the boot lock where it had bubbled slightly.
The leather trim is actually black and red which suits the car.
The aforementioned heated seat elements don't work apart from the passenger seat back.
Is this a relatively simple fix?
The car has been serviced by M-B approximately every 5K miles and still qualifies for their Mobilo Assistance warranty.
It has a private 'SLK' plate too.
Piccies:
Looks very nice - and as for the heated seats, do you really need them? Just put an extra layer on for cold days :-)
I owned one of these for a year or so back in the day - wonderful performance, but the steering isn't great and the handling rather imprecise. As a hotrod / GT, it's great - as a trackday weapon, it isn't.
Things to watch out for from my experience:
- The supercharger is activated via a clutch (with the intention of saving on powertrain losses when not needed). Check that it engages consistently, especially when warm. You'll notice a huge difference in performance if/when it doesn't engage, which could be caused by anything from a slipping clutch to a problem with the intercooler. It's not fun to be overtaking a lorry, confident in the surge of power that's about to push you past, only to find there's nothing there and the oncoming traffic is getting closer by the second...
- They're very sensitive to tyre wear, and tramline like nothing else I've ever driven if the fronts in particular aren't tip-top. There's also enough play in the steering for there to be no sense of it through the wheel at all... which is rather offputting.
- The electrics can play up - I had all kinds of intermittent sensor failures, including ABS and speed sensors, and if any mis-read it tends to cause the whole stability control system to deactivate. Can be very expensive to fix, so beware of any error messages that get thrown up. Ideally, get someone to check it over with a STAR machine.
- There's an ECU in the bootspace that is vulnerable to water ingress - check for any signs of damp carpet etc
- The window seals will probably need replacing if haven't already been done - you'll notice a whistle from the drivers' window; mine went with the car 6 years old.
- Check the roof mechanism works properly, time-and-again, and that all the various parts of the mechanism work at the same speed, each time...
Hope that helps
I owned one of these for a year or so back in the day - wonderful performance, but the steering isn't great and the handling rather imprecise. As a hotrod / GT, it's great - as a trackday weapon, it isn't.
Things to watch out for from my experience:
- The supercharger is activated via a clutch (with the intention of saving on powertrain losses when not needed). Check that it engages consistently, especially when warm. You'll notice a huge difference in performance if/when it doesn't engage, which could be caused by anything from a slipping clutch to a problem with the intercooler. It's not fun to be overtaking a lorry, confident in the surge of power that's about to push you past, only to find there's nothing there and the oncoming traffic is getting closer by the second...
- They're very sensitive to tyre wear, and tramline like nothing else I've ever driven if the fronts in particular aren't tip-top. There's also enough play in the steering for there to be no sense of it through the wheel at all... which is rather offputting.
- The electrics can play up - I had all kinds of intermittent sensor failures, including ABS and speed sensors, and if any mis-read it tends to cause the whole stability control system to deactivate. Can be very expensive to fix, so beware of any error messages that get thrown up. Ideally, get someone to check it over with a STAR machine.
- There's an ECU in the bootspace that is vulnerable to water ingress - check for any signs of damp carpet etc
- The window seals will probably need replacing if haven't already been done - you'll notice a whistle from the drivers' window; mine went with the car 6 years old.
- Check the roof mechanism works properly, time-and-again, and that all the various parts of the mechanism work at the same speed, each time...
Hope that helps
GreenMan said:
Looks very nice - and as for the heated seats, do you really need them? Just put an extra layer on for cold days :-)
I owned one of these for a year or so back in the day - wonderful performance, but the steering isn't great and the handling rather imprecise. As a hotrod / GT, it's great - as a trackday weapon, it isn't.
Things to watch out for from my experience:
- The supercharger is activated via a clutch (with the intention of saving on powertrain losses when not needed). Check that it engages consistently, especially when warm. You'll notice a huge difference in performance if/when it doesn't engage, which could be caused by anything from a slipping clutch to a problem with the intercooler. It's not fun to be overtaking a lorry, confident in the surge of power that's about to push you past, only to find there's nothing there and the oncoming traffic is getting closer by the second...
- They're very sensitive to tyre wear, and tramline like nothing else I've ever driven if the fronts in particular aren't tip-top. There's also enough play in the steering for there to be no sense of it through the wheel at all... which is rather offputting.
- The electrics can play up - I had all kinds of intermittent sensor failures, including ABS and speed sensors, and if any mis-read it tends to cause the whole stability control system to deactivate. Can be very expensive to fix, so beware of any error messages that get thrown up. Ideally, get someone to check it over with a STAR machine.
- There's an ECU in the bootspace that is vulnerable to water ingress - check for any signs of damp carpet etc
- The window seals will probably need replacing if haven't already been done - you'll notice a whistle from the drivers' window; mine went with the car 6 years old.
- Check the roof mechanism works properly, time-and-again, and that all the various parts of the mechanism work at the same speed, each time...
Hope that helps
Thanks for that GreenMan!I owned one of these for a year or so back in the day - wonderful performance, but the steering isn't great and the handling rather imprecise. As a hotrod / GT, it's great - as a trackday weapon, it isn't.
Things to watch out for from my experience:
- The supercharger is activated via a clutch (with the intention of saving on powertrain losses when not needed). Check that it engages consistently, especially when warm. You'll notice a huge difference in performance if/when it doesn't engage, which could be caused by anything from a slipping clutch to a problem with the intercooler. It's not fun to be overtaking a lorry, confident in the surge of power that's about to push you past, only to find there's nothing there and the oncoming traffic is getting closer by the second...
- They're very sensitive to tyre wear, and tramline like nothing else I've ever driven if the fronts in particular aren't tip-top. There's also enough play in the steering for there to be no sense of it through the wheel at all... which is rather offputting.
- The electrics can play up - I had all kinds of intermittent sensor failures, including ABS and speed sensors, and if any mis-read it tends to cause the whole stability control system to deactivate. Can be very expensive to fix, so beware of any error messages that get thrown up. Ideally, get someone to check it over with a STAR machine.
- There's an ECU in the bootspace that is vulnerable to water ingress - check for any signs of damp carpet etc
- The window seals will probably need replacing if haven't already been done - you'll notice a whistle from the drivers' window; mine went with the car 6 years old.
- Check the roof mechanism works properly, time-and-again, and that all the various parts of the mechanism work at the same speed, each time...
Hope that helps
I've had mine since 2008 and run it with an SLK55.
These are pretty much bulletproof, in the 6 years and 45k I've done all I've needed to do other than regular servicing is
replace Intercooler pump- used an after market Johnson CM30 marine pump rather than the standard Bosch as the impeller is metal rather than plastic on the OEM part. This is a well known swap and not only is the pump more effective with a higher flow rate but longer lasting than the 30k or so you will ordinarily get out of a Bosch- You can test this by warming the car up and then undergoing half a dozen or so foot to the floor accelerations - if the pump is on the way out this will cut out after the first 2-3 goes
Replace the cam shaft sensor- £100. These just wear out after going through the heat up / cool down cycle but are a straightforward fix. i got mine done by the MobiloLife van when I called him out
As mentioned earlier- rust is the biggest killer - around the wheel arches ( especially rear) and the bootlid, mine was resprayed under warrantly in 2009 by Mercedes but now needs doing again - the missus uses it as a daily driver.
Performance wise, it is actually more fun to drive than my SLK55- because it has the supercharger its like the millenium falcon- nothing and then bang!- its like being fired out of a gun
I had the kleemann pulley convesrion done on mine so it now kicks out 400+bhp- you could get that done and it would still be under £10k including the car!
I really struggle to see where else you would get so much bang for your buck
One final thing- I would also get the transmission fluid changed- its meant to be sealed for life but I had mine done and the gearbox was a lot smoother- i took the view that preventative care is where its at and for peace of mind it was worth spending a couple of hundred quid
These are pretty much bulletproof, in the 6 years and 45k I've done all I've needed to do other than regular servicing is
replace Intercooler pump- used an after market Johnson CM30 marine pump rather than the standard Bosch as the impeller is metal rather than plastic on the OEM part. This is a well known swap and not only is the pump more effective with a higher flow rate but longer lasting than the 30k or so you will ordinarily get out of a Bosch- You can test this by warming the car up and then undergoing half a dozen or so foot to the floor accelerations - if the pump is on the way out this will cut out after the first 2-3 goes
Replace the cam shaft sensor- £100. These just wear out after going through the heat up / cool down cycle but are a straightforward fix. i got mine done by the MobiloLife van when I called him out
As mentioned earlier- rust is the biggest killer - around the wheel arches ( especially rear) and the bootlid, mine was resprayed under warrantly in 2009 by Mercedes but now needs doing again - the missus uses it as a daily driver.
Performance wise, it is actually more fun to drive than my SLK55- because it has the supercharger its like the millenium falcon- nothing and then bang!- its like being fired out of a gun
I had the kleemann pulley convesrion done on mine so it now kicks out 400+bhp- you could get that done and it would still be under £10k including the car!
I really struggle to see where else you would get so much bang for your buck
One final thing- I would also get the transmission fluid changed- its meant to be sealed for life but I had mine done and the gearbox was a lot smoother- i took the view that preventative care is where its at and for peace of mind it was worth spending a couple of hundred quid
Worth adding that if indeed it is still covered by Mobilo, you'll need to ensure that you continue to have it serviced by the dealer network. That way the 30 year corrosion warranty is still valid. I'm not sure if you have to have yearly inspections for that to remain valid...perhaps others know?
And if you don't want to buy it, I'll join the queue!
And if you don't want to buy it, I'll join the queue!
When I had mine done for the arches they said that they were only paying for those up to 10 year old with the Full MBSH as a 'goodwill' gesture as the warranty was for perforation.
When I took mine to the bodyshop they used to show them the rust coming through again he said that was down to Mercedes and they said it was the responsibility of the bodyshop
if you do buy it I would spray loads of rust inhibitor around the internal arch lip ( DYNAX). loads of crud gets stuck there and that is what causes the rust
When I took mine to the bodyshop they used to show them the rust coming through again he said that was down to Mercedes and they said it was the responsibility of the bodyshop
if you do buy it I would spray loads of rust inhibitor around the internal arch lip ( DYNAX). loads of crud gets stuck there and that is what causes the rust
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