SL55 autotrader -- wide range in pricing

John Laidlaw

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Plus there’s areas on these cars where money is best spent otherwise you kind of get carried away doing unnecessary jobs.

I’d rather give the advise before that happens.
I get you on that point, best advise I would give is to budget for couple of struts and a pump and a bit more when you buy one of these and make sure it reflects in the purchase price
That way as you rightly say you’re prepared- anything less is an upside...
 

Stability

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PSE pumps are as common as tyres and they are just under a thousand pound.

The pumps burn out and the carbon impellers crack just because the battery goes flat jolting the pump then you can’t get in the boot to repair it because I guarantee the manual key is not working so you have to smash the light.

Etc etc etc
 

Stability

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As I said before inspections by specialists are your best bet.

I find myself only telling people the bad news once they’ve already bought it.

It’s gets quite disheartening doing this everyday as a living......it’s not always about making a wage but to help people from going down this road.
 

Kirbs

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Whilst the OP might read STABILITYS comments as peeing on his fireworks,its clear that he knows and experiences daily problems with these ,I doubt it would put most folk off but if there are 10 for sale its likely only one of them will be pucker.OP did his research so should be fine within expected boundaries,as should anyone on here.I think STABILITY also cares ,it clearly impacts on him having to tell people that xyz has gone and its 2k to sort,and some day another would be buyer will see this post and dig deeper than he/she would otherwise have done
 

John Laidlaw

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Yeah and some of us bought them despite knowing the potential horrors...informed choice really - it’s an itch you have to scratch albeit an expensive itch
 

flowrider

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To be fair there are a lot of cars that cost a fortune to maintain, AMG 's aren't cheap. The issue is that some people see the SL as a cheaper exotic car to buy and don't budget for maintenance. Fortunately parts prices are getting cheaper.

If no one will spend time and money on SL's they will be gone.
 

LostKiwi

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I think as with anything there are good and bad ones. If you understand what the risks are, accept them and are prepared to do what's necessary to prevent them where possible then there's no reason why the ownership experience shouldn't be pleasant.
 

sl500amgsport

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I was split between buying a Maserrati GT and the SL500 R231 and an older SL63 R231, I assumed the Masser would be out of my budget for servicing, the SL63 I was worried would be too old for reliability and settled on the SL500. I am now not sure I was correct as am facing an £800 servicing bill in my first year of ownership (major service with plugs + Gearbox oil change).

Time will tell I guess...

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flowrider

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I was split between buying a Maserrati GT and the SL500 R231 and an older SL63 R231, I assumed the Masser would be out of my budget for servicing, the SL63 I was worried would be too old for reliability and settled on the SL500. I am now not sure I was correct as am facing an £800 servicing bill in my first year of ownership (major service with plugs + Gearbox oil change).

Time will tell I guess...

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Mercedes servicing is expensive nomatter what model of car. My ML sevicing was generally around £700
 

nicholas15

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Just been quoted £950 for a 40,000/6 year service; but no charge for the coffee lounge.
 

sl500amgsport

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Just been quoted £950 for a 40,000/6 year service; but no charge for the coffee lounge.
Well a bargain then! These posts are cheering me up, my Jag XF never cost more than £380 for main dealer servicing, think I will take out the £58 p/m Mercedes plan for next 2 years...

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Mic

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I am a little bemused by some of the expectations surrounding the costs involved with running a car that when new cost somewhere between £65k and £95k (350-55). What is the comparison......family saloon or a coupe/cab. grand tourer par excellence and which delivers so much more than far more expensive cars to own and run.
A well sorted R230 is a joy to drive and is relatively cheap to run providing it is used regularly, maintained in accordance with the manufacturer's scheduling including time and mileage items.
Sometimes the time and mileage items converge and hence the cost of a service will be circa £1000 but equally sometimes the cost will be little more than an oil change.
I have owned my SL500 from new (so I did not purchase someone else's cost cutting) and it has now covered 147,800 miles at 50ppm excluding depreciation. This compares very well with the cost of running many cars (even HMRC allows 45ppm for the first 10,000 miles each year).
It is important to be in it for the long run because there will be years when there is a £1000 service plus a new set of tyres at circa £800 and additional unexpected repairs such as a new fuel tank (circa £1500), struts maybe (my car is still on its first four struts).......so any one year could easily be £3000+ before tax and insurance and fuel.
Additionally you will have to replace the ABC pump and spheres (circa 85,000 miles; I am on my second) and the sbc pump (circa 125,000 miles, again I am on my second).......these are consumables and should be budgeted expenses.
You should address corrosion to the lips of the rear arches if nowhere else.......say £700 every five years or so......wheels will need refurbishing periodically.......say £400/set.
There will be a need for replacement batteries and other miscellaneous items associated with a car that is over ten years old such as engine/gear box mounts and possibly exhaust/cat issues.
If you expect to spend £3000/year on repairs, maintenance and servicing (10,000 miles/year) any change from that should be regarded as a bonus to be rolled over for next year.

In terms of what it delivers I repeat that the R230 remains a relatively cheap motor car to own and run…… it is a roadster, it is a coupe, it is beautiful, it is fun to drive, it is comfortable, it is a Grand Tourer second none and the naturally aspirated 4966 cubic centimetres V8 M113 engine is expected to be almost indestructible……what is not to love about it? (I believe the supercharged version is equally indestructible; the350 maybe not so?)

I have driven my car to, and in, the following countries:

Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, England, Scotland, Wales, Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Slovenia, Italy, Switzerland, Monaco, Spain, Portugal, Republic of Ireland.

If you expect to run an R230 on the cheap you will be disappointed and become one of the negative Posters on this and other Forum.

Mic
 

nicholas15

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Well a bargain then! These posts are cheering me up, my Jag XF never cost more than £380 for main dealer servicing, think I will take out the £58 p/m Mercedes plan for next 2 years...

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I reckon the 4 year plan I took out will save me about £1,000 - £1,500. 4 years of serviving, (including ATF oil chnage, cabin filters etc.) or £550 per throw.
Not quite £380 as for a Jaguar XF but then its not an XF.
 
OP
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ninjamagic

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  • Thread Starter
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Blimey! I had no idea this conversation had continued so much! (I wasn't getting any notifications)

I've had the car two weeks and nothing's gone wrong... yet...! It's a beast! and the more I drive it, the more I love it.

I'm a realist, and I WANT to know the bad news, to maintain perspective. Blissful ignorance is foolish.

I did get a full inspection done and am aware of some issues that need to be address. Front tyres need changing too and then the ball joints need investigating. I also intend to flush the ABC system and get a magnetic filter in. Since my nephew washed it, I've noticed condensation in the right wing mirror indicator. And there is apparently some work on the boot seal that might need re-doing, but despite the recent rain, I've not noticed any damp spots in the boot.

I'm gonna take it to Alex Crow when I get a chance.

I keep telling myself that it gonna be £3k a year to maintain. But of course, until I get that first mega bill - it's all academic.

BUT:

I do have one question, when the key's in the ignitions and the engine is off -- a red SRS light is on. When the engine is running, it turns off. When I turn off the engine, the light comes on until I've exited the car. Is this a problem?



Thanks!
 

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