CLK 230 Convertible

[turbopete]

i thought they only put the vented wings on the mustang powered ZT!

 

[SteveX]

The SV and the Mk2 180 Zs had them too, very rare by all accounts

The reliability and feel of the ZT made me want another MG, but I wanted to go newer because of the body issues.

Most ZS are hatch backs, I thought the saloon which is also harder to come by would be better, However, the ZS looked smart although not everyone's cup of tea, but it really was tiring to drive long distances.

By comparison, I've uprated all of the suspension on the Porsche with components from Porsche this year, it also has GT3 ride height, much thicker roll bars and shorter shocks etc. Yet it is still about ten times more comfortable than the ZS was!!!!

And although the 230 I saw Saturday morning was rough / tatty, the ride was still stunning by comparison to the ZS, so I am totally sold on them providing I can find a good one

 

[SteveX]

Oh, just found this one as well!

Pretty much identical, but lower mileage and one year newer:

http://www.selectedcarsales.co.uk/u...ntgarde-2dr-tip-auto-ferndown-201210455674161

I'll be calling him on the way as well, at this rate I might not make it to the museum!!

 

[SteveX]

Hi Guys, any tips on what to look for on the 320 today would be appreciated.

Had a hard time sleeping last night (only had just over 3 hours) so I'm not really on the ball today.

I heard the 'four' catalytic converters can cause issues and break up and rattling is common. I guess at the mileage both of these cars have they could be on their last legs, so I've priced up approved sections at about £300.00, so not too bad. Although whether I would want to fit them or not is another story. Hopefully they are ok for now as I don't fancy a project car right away.

I also heard of ECU trouble? Is this something to be concerned about?

I'll check the body and arches, gear box operation, brakes and all of the usual things as you would on any car.


Thanks

 

[SteveX]

Well, I've only gone and done it!

I now officially own two 12 year old cars!! Whether this is a good thing or not who knows.

The second one in the thread I actually saw first (the lower mileage blue one). When we turned up it was solid-ish but one arch was bubbling and it had the same problem below the filler cap near the bumper as the black one.

The interior was also tatty and very dirty, things like the glovebox were broken and just came off in my hand. The roof did not work (although he said he would fix that and the rust for the sale). The engine was dirty and the biggest problem was a flat battery and the car couldn't be started. I didn't really have time to mess around trying to jump start it to test it, and with the non-working roof, rust and tatty interior I decided to walk away and put it on the back burner.

The higher mileage (89k) 320 that looked identical (colour, wheels etc) was actually very impressive from the outside. None of the arches have any sign of rust and are solid, the spot of rust on the other two on the rear quarter was not there either. The boot lock was fine, inside the engine bay not rusty points either and a clean engine. For a 12 year old car, it had no rust I could find and was a fantastic body.

It had all recent tyres, recent discs and pads and FSH. The roof worked fine, and all other electrics I tested at the time.

It started from cold and was very quiet. It also drove fantastically, very responsive and tight.

There were however two issues; one, the rear cats were clonking around a little on tick over, when I say a little, you can only hear outside when bending down to the bottom of the car and there is no other noise around at all. When driving it sounds fine, the other is that the drivers electric seat moved forward a bit then seemed jammed, I put it back fine then forward again and it freed it, but when I tried to move it again it would not work and now fails to go forwards or back, all other adjustments on this seat and the passenger seat works fine. The MB logo has also come off of the top of the auto shifter and requires replacing.

I was really thinking of walking away, the dealer dropped the vehicle from 3450 to 3200. It has a couple of months Tax but quite a long MOT (end of next summer).

I continued to the motor museam to mull it over, then went back for a second look after we had finished there. I was still in two minds, as I didn't want too much of a project car, I really just wanted to sit in it and drive it. After 30 mins of thinking it over and nearly walking out the door, as he put the paperwork for the car away I had a sudden urge to buy her. So I did!

The reason is she drove really well, the bodywork I think is likely to be one of the best I will find, I liked the colour and trim, history was there, and apart from the seat all other elecs worked.

Realistically I knew it would be a tall order finding one that had this much going for it and for only 3.2k! The cheap price gave me some room to work on the car.

Anyhow, she drove home great. It cost me £15.00 to do around 90 miles home, that was mostly a / b roads through lots of little villages slowing and accelerating quite a bit. Computer showed nearly 33mpg, and it certainly seemed that way from the fuel used as I still had half of the £30 I put in left Happy with that.

So, I need to find a working motor and fit it, or try and free the other, look at getting replacement cats in a few months and find a gear shifter motif.

It's not all smiles though sadly, as 50 miles into the journey I went to accelerate up a hill, and when kicking down the accelerator quickly the car did not kick down. From that point on the accelerator pedal felt somewhat detached from the car in that performance was far under par and sluggish compared to normal, the car did not want to kick down, would not pull away at all unless at half throttle. The car also just wanted to sit in gear around 2-3k and not get moving.

This happened around the same time I pressed the cruise stalk in and it said 'speedtronic fault, take to workshop' or something similar. I drove steadily home for the remaining 30 miles feeling a little glum

Upon stopping the car though at my parents, then restarting to come home, the fault cleared and bingo, the car was back to it's pokey self

So I guess one more thing to add to the list, identify the faulty sensor or issue putting the car into a sort of 'limp' mode. I wonder if it was related to the error when I pushed the stalk in?

Other than that I love the car.

Seems like it will be a bit of a project but if I can get her up together I think it will be worth it.


Many thanks!