Hello, I’ve also caught the SL500 bug...

flowrider

Senior Member
Joined
Jul 21, 2014
Messages
3,650
Reaction score
1,611
Your Mercedes
SL500 (R230)
Yup, there's massive bills when the legs leak, pump seals go, bottom ball joints on the front legs go, PSE pump gets water in it .............................................................
There have been big cost reductions on all these items in recent times so even a replacement strut is now not too much a concern.
 

100%Bitch

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2006
Messages
3,810
Reaction score
93
Location
Norfolk 'n' good
Your Mercedes
215 CL600, 216 Facelift CL500, 172 SLK55, Nissan Cube, R170 SLK230 & an Auto Trail Comanche.
There have been big cost reductions on all these items in recent times so even a replacement strut is now not too much a concern.

Now I'm wishing that I knew that before I bought my SLK55. I saw a couple that were really low mileage.
 

Conor

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2019
Messages
2,521
Reaction score
1,604
Location
London, UK
Your Mercedes
2010 S212 350 CGI // 2004 R230 500
Yea, regarding the front ball joints.

I recall a northern business had developed a resin injection process to repair the balls.. And remove the need for a new strut.

Had anybody ever actually used them?
 

LostKiwi

Senior Member
Joined
Aug 25, 2006
Messages
31,328
Reaction score
21,575
Location
Midlands / Charente-Maritime
Your Mercedes
'93 500SL-32, '01 W210 Estate E240 (RIP), 02 R230 SL500, 04 Smart Roadster Coupe, 11 R350CDi
Yea, regarding the front ball joints.

I recall a northern business had developed a resin injection process to repair the balls.. And remove the need for a new strut.

Had anybody ever actually used them?
@star on here does it.
Plenty of happy customers.
 

peterws1957

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 3, 2016
Messages
1,822
Reaction score
1,323
Location
Lancashire
Your Mercedes
sl350 /2004/3.7 and CL65/2009/6.0
Yup, there's massive bills when the legs leak, pump seals go, bottom ball joints on the front legs go, PSE pump gets water in it .............................................................
Nothing there really though that an SL500 doesn't suffer from.
 

00slk

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2012
Messages
9,592
Reaction score
9,286
Location
Cambridgeshire UK
Your Mercedes
2002 SL55 AMG, 2005 E320 CDi, 2014 SLK250 CDi, 2003 SLK200
There have been big cost reductions on all these items in recent times so even a replacement strut is now not too much a concern.

Have to agree with you there, they are fast becoming more affordable in the repair department even Main Dealer prices have come down too. If you buy a reasonable one and use it regularly it can be surprisingly trouble free. :D
 

00slk

Senior Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2012
Messages
9,592
Reaction score
9,286
Location
Cambridgeshire UK
Your Mercedes
2002 SL55 AMG, 2005 E320 CDi, 2014 SLK250 CDi, 2003 SLK200
Nothing there really though that an SL500 doesn't suffer from.

Totally have to disagree there Sir, our Jasper Blue car didn't have any of those issues even after 26,000 miles. Though it was probably one out of the box. ;)
 

busbridge

New Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2019
Messages
8
Reaction score
11
Your Mercedes
SL500
Interesting to hear other people going through same journey when being self indulgent over cars. 2 years ago I decided that as the Lotus Elise 111R I had owned for 10 years was only being used for the occasional track day & was not too good to use on the road for any distance it was time for a change.I decided a complete change was needed to something like a V8 & after lots of looking around decided to up my budget a bit & in January this year bought from a dealer,a 57 reg SL500 Sport in the rare colour of Tenorite Grey with 38k on the clock, with a 15 month warranty. 3 former owners & mostly good service history. The MoT history was faultless. It has had some paintwork in the past but good quality. After a thorough check by an independent Merc specialist it was pronounced all good. No signs of water ingress anywhere. The only thing which doesn't work is the driver's side vanity mirror light! It's had a full service plus fluid changes. I stopped trying to close the boot by slamming it when I was reminded that it's a soft close one even tho the doors are not. I treated it to a new windscreen & wiper blades last week as the original was covered in tiny pitting marks making life difficult in low sun & at night. I enjoy just taking it out for a drive, it sounds great & the performance is adequate. I keep a reserve of £2k just in case but hope I won't need it for a while! Find the right car, get it checked out & it will be great. I love it! IMG_1289.JPG
 

Blobcat

Moderator
Joined
Feb 8, 2006
Messages
38,787
Reaction score
27,420
Location
Grange Moor
Your Mercedes
R171 SLK280, Smart R451, Land Rover 110 County SW, 997 C2S, R1250 GSA TE 40th, CBR600FP
Interesting to hear other people going through same journey when being self indulgent over cars. 2 years ago I decided that as the Lotus Elise 111R I had owned for 10 years was only being used for the occasional track day & was not too good to use on the road for any distance it was time for a change.I decided a complete change was needed to something like a V8 & after lots of looking around decided to up my budget a bit & in January this year bought from a dealer,a 57 reg SL500 Sport in the rare colour of Tenorite Grey with 38k on the clock, with a 15 month warranty. 3 former owners & mostly good service history. The MoT history was faultless. It has had some paintwork in the past but good quality. After a thorough check by an independent Merc specialist it was pronounced all good. No signs of water ingress anywhere. The only thing which doesn't work is the driver's side vanity mirror light! It's had a full service plus fluid changes. I stopped trying to close the boot by slamming it when I was reminded that it's a soft close one even tho the doors are not. I treated it to a new windscreen & wiper blades last week as the original was covered in tiny pitting marks making life difficult in low sun & at night. I enjoy just taking it out for a drive, it sounds great & the performance is adequate. I keep a reserve of £2k just in case but hope I won't need it for a while! Find the right car, get it checked out & it will be great. I love it! View attachment 54273
Nice car, pictures gone unfortunately but there is a guide in the DIY section on how to repair the lights in the sun visors . I should see if I can find the original pics and put them back.
 

rexemper

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 5, 2007
Messages
770
Reaction score
136
Location
Berkshire
Your Mercedes
R230 SL500 - oh yeah!
Interesting to hear other people going through same journey when being self indulgent over cars. 2 years ago I decided that as the Lotus Elise 111R I had owned for 10 years was only being used for the occasional track day & was not too good to use on the road for any distance it was time for a change.I decided a complete change was needed to something like a V8 & after lots of looking around decided to up my budget a bit & in January this year bought from a dealer,a 57 reg SL500 Sport in the rare colour of Tenorite Grey with 38k on the clock, with a 15 month warranty. 3 former owners & mostly good service history. The MoT history was faultless. It has had some paintwork in the past but good quality. After a thorough check by an independent Merc specialist it was pronounced all good. No signs of water ingress anywhere. The only thing which doesn't work is the driver's side vanity mirror light! It's had a full service plus fluid changes. I stopped trying to close the boot by slamming it when I was reminded that it's a soft close one even tho the doors are not. I treated it to a new windscreen & wiper blades last week as the original was covered in tiny pitting marks making life difficult in low sun & at night. I enjoy just taking it out for a drive, it sounds great & the performance is adequate. I keep a reserve of £2k just in case but hope I won't need it for a while! Find the right car, get it checked out & it will be great. I love it! View attachment 54273

Looks awesome in that grey! Enjoy it.
 

McDonald

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2017
Messages
1,958
Reaction score
1,841
Location
Surrey
Your Mercedes
SL500 2004
A beautiful car. Lovely colour. Low miles. Just great.
 

John Laidlaw

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 15, 2013
Messages
26,373
Reaction score
9,163
Location
Wirral
Your Mercedes
Land Rover Discovery 4
Yea, regarding the front ball joints.

I recall a northern business had developed a resin injection process to repair the balls.. And remove the need for a new strut.

Had anybody ever actually used them?
Yes I used them on my 500, they did a great job but you have to get the struts off and ship to them then obviously wait for the return , even though they’re in Liverpool which is close by me.
As LK says, Ian at Star does them a bit cheaper plus you can take the car there to get them done, I believe he does them in place
 

Conor

Senior Member
Joined
Jan 22, 2019
Messages
2,521
Reaction score
1,604
Location
London, UK
Your Mercedes
2010 S212 350 CGI // 2004 R230 500
Yes I used them on my 500, they did a great job but you have to get the struts off and ship to them then obviously wait for the return , even though they’re in Liverpool which is close by me.
As LK says, Ian at Star does them a bit cheaper plus you can take the car there to get them done, I believe he does them in place

Oh thanks for that.. I wasn't aware that Star did them. I will certainly keep that in mind.
 

SL63 Mark

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2012
Messages
4,514
Reaction score
2,589
Location
The South
Your Mercedes
R231 SL63 AMG
Yea, regarding the front ball joints.

I recall a northern business had developed a resin injection process to repair the balls.. And remove the need for a new strut.

Had anybody ever actually used them?

Star motors in Reading did mine 3 or 4 years ago, I am a very happy bunny, cost only £100 per side a the time, and no problems since.

I did have an exchange PSE pump fitted last year by MB, but it's under a grand these days even from MB, and won't need doing again in my lifetime.

The costs of ownership are manageable if you get a well sorted and cared for one. It is not like buying a new car, you need a bit of mechanical empathy and knowledge I would say. SL55 ownership is very rewarding but it takes time, money and the ability to research and understand occasionally complex issues. Fortunately the information and expertise are all out there, (and the parts). That is the benefit of owning a Merc versus a rarified supercar, there are people who can help fix it, and excellent forums like this.
 
Last edited:

SL63 Mark

Senior Member
Joined
Oct 1, 2012
Messages
4,514
Reaction score
2,589
Location
The South
Your Mercedes
R231 SL63 AMG
Can I just add, the PSE pump I replaced last year was the original one, so it had lasted 14 years, which is not bad. I do not consider that unreasonable, or unreliable for something that is running so often. It had not been exposed to water, and failed because of some electrics on the PCB board, not the actual pump itself.
 
OP
neeklaus

neeklaus

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2019
Messages
120
Reaction score
171
Your Mercedes
2002 SL55
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #98
Interesting to hear other people going through same journey when being self indulgent over cars. 2 years ago I decided that as the Lotus Elise 111R I had owned for 10 years was only being used for the occasional track day & was not too good to use on the road for any distance it was time for a change.I decided a complete change was needed to something like a V8 & after lots of looking around decided to up my budget a bit & in January this year bought from a dealer,a 57 reg SL500 Sport in the rare colour of Tenorite Grey with 38k on the clock, with a 15 month warranty. 3 former owners & mostly good service history. The MoT history was faultless. It has had some paintwork in the past but good quality. After a thorough check by an independent Merc specialist it was pronounced all good. No signs of water ingress anywhere. The only thing which doesn't work is the driver's side vanity mirror light! It's had a full service plus fluid changes. I stopped trying to close the boot by slamming it when I was reminded that it's a soft close one even tho the doors are not. I treated it to a new windscreen & wiper blades last week as the original was covered in tiny pitting marks making life difficult in low sun & at night. I enjoy just taking it out for a drive, it sounds great & the performance is adequate. I keep a reserve of £2k just in case but hope I won't need it for a while! Find the right car, get it checked out & it will be great. I love it! View attachment 54273
Lovely looking car! Looks like those rear lights have got the smokey treatment
 
OP
neeklaus

neeklaus

Senior Member
Joined
Nov 9, 2019
Messages
120
Reaction score
171
Your Mercedes
2002 SL55
  • Thread Starter
  • Thread starter
  • #99
Star motors in Reading did mine 3 or 4 years ago, I am a very happy bunny, cost only £100 per side a the time, and no problems since.

I did have an exchange PSE pump fitted last year by MB, but it's under a grand these days even from MB, and won't need doing again in my lifetime.

The costs of ownership are manageable if you get a well sorted and cared for one. It is not like buying a new car, you need a bit of mechanical empathy and knowledge I would say. SL55 ownership is very rewarding but it takes time, money and the ability to research and understand occasionally complex issues. Fortunately the information and expertise are all out there, (and the parts). That is the benefit of owning a Merc versus a rarified supercar, there are people who can help fix it, and excellent forums like this.
I read about these neat things star do. All in all as I look at more of these cars and become a bit more familiar with them, ownership seems far less scary than it did when I first started looking.

Went to check one out nearby in London last week. A blue 55 in that ‘rare colour’ as @00slk put it! It’s actually a great colour and works nicely on the 55 too. The owner seemed decent, but the car was running when I arrived and he told me about a gearbox service and some new tyres and a regular service which he ‘paid cash for and didn’t get receipts’... had me a bit suspicious there I have to say. Although the interior was very nicely kept and the abc fluid was a good green. Still interested I think, but it’s been garaged and he didn’t drive it much. And the sentiment on here largely seems to be that these cars like to be used! Still, 85k or so. So it’s been used enough in its life, despite having had comparatively not much use recently.
 

McDonald

Senior Member
Joined
Apr 11, 2017
Messages
1,958
Reaction score
1,841
Location
Surrey
Your Mercedes
SL500 2004
I think, but it’s been garaged and he didn’t drive it much. And the sentiment on here largely seems to be that these cars like to be used! .

I have a suspicion that those with high mileage cars say, 'these cars like to be used.' Mine was a low mileage car and it's been consistently good. Absolute idleness is surely harmful, but frequent servicing compensates nicely for intermittent use. The sheer joy of being in it has bumped my mileage up to about 6,000 a year.
 

d:class automotive are specialists in automotive interiors and upholstery. From Mercedes and modern cars to custom and classics. Tel: 01483 722923 Email:info@dclass.co.ukWeb:www.dclass.co.uk
Top Bottom