advice wanted. sl 55 sell or break?

supra dan

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i have a 2003 sl 55 that has problems, mainly electrical. ive owned it 6 years and its had very little go wrong. main problem at the moment is that the airbag light is on and if its reset it comes back so I cant mot it. problems with the roof (it works but thinks its unlocked when its shut) and rear arches are rusty. I cant find anyone who can fix it in a reasonable time frame and ive lost interest in it. mechanically its great starts first time every time. would it be worth it to sell it for parts or or persevere and get it repaired before selling. not sure what it would go for as is. any advice welcome
 

peterws1957

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i have a 2003 sl 55 that has problems, mainly electrical. ive owned it 6 years and its had very little go wrong. main problem at the moment is that the airbag light is on and if its reset it comes back so I cant mot it. problems with the roof (it works but thinks its unlocked when its shut) and rear arches are rusty. I cant find anyone who can fix it in a reasonable time frame and ive lost interest in it. mechanically its great starts first time every time. would it be worth it to sell it for parts or or persevere and get it repaired before selling. not sure what it would go for as is. any advice welcome
I would get it fixed. A Star session should tell you what's wrong with the airbag light issue and the roof. The rust can be sorted. As long as there are no issues with the ABC you may not have to spend a fortune and SL55's seem sought after at the moment at the right price. Seems a shame to break if everything else OK. Some one on here should be able to advise you of an MB indie in your area.
 
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supra dan

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thanks peter. there is a specialist in my town but hes one man and always busy. I took it to a bosch garage they got someone with a star to look at it but it wasn't obvious what the problems were and he said might be bad connections and it would need to have some of the interior stripped out to investigate. its more the time it would take than the money.as you say the rust isn't a major problem.
 

flowrider

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If it were my car I would let my local indie have the car to investigate the problems and if it was going to be a lengthy repair I would buy a cheap runaround to keep mobile in the meantime.
 

McDonald

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i have a 2003 sl 55 that has problems, would it be worth it to sell it for parts or or persevere and get it repaired before selling. not sure what it would go for as is. any advice welcome

You've enjoyed this car for 6 yrs, surely it would hurt to see it broken. You need a proper MB specialist with a brief to fix it. You may get a better price if you leave it with them to fix when business is slow ie. fit it around their bread and butter work.

These cars fetch good money, you just need to find someone who'll love it back to life.
 

ajlsl600

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suspect you need a good night out, breaking up the r230 ,unless its been in quite an accident seems almost criminal to me. i feel for yr dramas. ponder on it for a while.
 
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supra dan

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It is a dilemma. It's not my main car it's a summer car. Would be a shame to break but I don't think I have the enthusiasm to fix. Not sure how easy it would be to break. Would anyone want a supercharged v8
 

00slk

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Give Giles a call at LG Motor Services in Swaffham, he should be able to help you out on both accounts ;)
 

LesTaylor

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If you can hang on to it, try to get it fixed and body repaired. Try to regain your interest; especially if they are gaining value.
 

ajlsl600

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i just broke up an a class at home. its no joke, getting into recylce sized bits ! DONT do it . KEEP IT GOING OR donate it to someone who will. post a price and some pictures.
 

John Laidlaw

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Your only big issue is your location!
Not many indies very close to you
Elsewhere in the country I’d be finding a trusted Indy who’s prepared to work on the car over a longer period where time allows with a view to sharing the profits after sale if you know what I mean
As others have said it’d be criminal to break a 230 in especially a 55
 

peterws1957

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thanks peter. there is a specialist in my town but hes one man and always busy. I took it to a bosch garage they got someone with a star to look at it but it wasn't obvious what the problems were and he said might be bad connections and it would need to have some of the interior stripped out to investigate. its more the time it would take than the money.as you say the rust isn't a major problem.
You really need someone who has Star and is also an expert at interpreting the results. Even the cheapest 55 seems to go for £10k so breaking I don't think will be economic. I still think your best bet is to find a recommended indie even if some distance from you and at least get the electrics sorted. The alternative if you just want shut of it is to advertise it with the faults on (dare I say it) Ebay or the like and put a sensible reserve on it. Would seem a shame to me though.
 
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supra dan

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Was thinking of sticking it on eBay and see if it gets a reasonable price. If not I'll keep it and get it fixed over the winter. But that was my plan last year too lol
 

noonboots

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An SL 55 is barely worth any more in parts than a 500. Breaking it would be madness. Its a massive and thankless task. 6Selling it with the issues would be a far better idea but fixing it is by far the best option if circumstances allow.
 

alexanderfoti

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I agree, definitely fix it. I don't think those bits are massive money to fix. It would be a shame to break it.
 

Capra

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Was thinking of sticking it on eBay and see if it gets a reasonable price. If not I'll keep it and get it fixed over the winter. But that was my plan last year too lol
Why don't you advertise here rather than breaking it up? It doesn't sound like your heart is in it anymore. have you got any pics as it is?
 
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supra dan

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I think you are right might just do that and see what happens
 


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