2003 Mercedes W209 CLK55 AMG daily driver
Discussion
New car update following on from my old D2 S8 featured here
- https://www.pistonheads.com/news/ph-germancars/aud...
and my 456 featured here
- https://www.pistonheads.com/news/general-pistonhea...
The previous cars being bought through different online auction platforms, I went a different way and purchased from a dealer in Fareham at the higher end of the market but it does come with warranty - I fancied a lower maintenance option this time.
So, why this car? Well, the budget was circa £10k and having had a period of 6 months without a second car, I felt I could get away with a 2 seater for the commute and occasional kids club run. After looking at 3 x R230 SL500’s I gave up on second hand Mercs. Some stories included fake stamped service books that didn’t tally with online MOT checks and Mercedes themselves. Cars that smelt of damp. Receipts for 2 x complete gearbox rebuilds in 40k miles and other cars that hadn’t been serviced in 5 years. But my favourite was probably the car with ABC leaks at every corner <sigh>.
Then my search took me to C5 RS6’s after watching Layer Cake (same story of how I bought the S8 after watching Ronin..). Again, horrible cars on the market with sales pitches of the coilover suspension ‘upgrades’ that looked a bit VW scene.
After going back to the trains for work and having to change 3 times due to a brake down and getting into the office 2 hours late, I went back to the classifieds. Still fancying a Merc but without complicated folding metal hardtops and ABC hydraulic suspension, I ended up checking out a 2003 CLK55 AMG. Full service history, gearbox service, 78k miles and generally spotless, I went for it!
Now this part I got wrong but I’m happy not be back to the drawing board - I didn’t really test drive the car but I did knock £1k off the price and it came with warranty.
First drive back from Fareham at ‘Safari Automotive Fareham’ (correct name appears with a Google) was very scary. Serious wheel judder and worse on braking. Took the car to Guildford Tyres who showed me this:
I’m amazed that tyres over 7 years old that look like this can get through an MOT. It was like riding an elephant on the motorway over 60 (speeds I hadn’t tested before buying).
In addition the balance was at 60g on the fronts. Next steps are 4 x Hankook’s being fitted and then a full Hunter alignment. The car possibly needs bushes doing first.
The handbrake pedal needs to be manually lifted to disengage (maybe just a spring) and there are no ticks against spark plugs being changed in the service book.
The roof needs a bit of love mechanically and makes some knocking noises at the front latches above the windscreen, hoping this fix works - https://youtu.be/771aoW_LHOo
A 20 year old AMG Merc isn’t going to be perfect but I had hoped for better. Anyway, I’m in now so watch this space for an interesting daily driver.
But, I am generally happy every time I put my foot down and hear that iconic M113 thundering sound. The sound you imagine would be used for raising Frankenstein. Wonderful. If you didn’t know, the M113 E55 engine is in the £200k W209 CLK DTM albeit with a supercharger.
More nerdy stuff - it was 55 years of Mercedes AMG last year.
Cost in week 1 - £11,250 + £500 on tyres and balancing + alignment tbc.
- https://www.pistonheads.com/news/ph-germancars/aud...
and my 456 featured here
- https://www.pistonheads.com/news/general-pistonhea...
The previous cars being bought through different online auction platforms, I went a different way and purchased from a dealer in Fareham at the higher end of the market but it does come with warranty - I fancied a lower maintenance option this time.
So, why this car? Well, the budget was circa £10k and having had a period of 6 months without a second car, I felt I could get away with a 2 seater for the commute and occasional kids club run. After looking at 3 x R230 SL500’s I gave up on second hand Mercs. Some stories included fake stamped service books that didn’t tally with online MOT checks and Mercedes themselves. Cars that smelt of damp. Receipts for 2 x complete gearbox rebuilds in 40k miles and other cars that hadn’t been serviced in 5 years. But my favourite was probably the car with ABC leaks at every corner <sigh>.
Then my search took me to C5 RS6’s after watching Layer Cake (same story of how I bought the S8 after watching Ronin..). Again, horrible cars on the market with sales pitches of the coilover suspension ‘upgrades’ that looked a bit VW scene.
After going back to the trains for work and having to change 3 times due to a brake down and getting into the office 2 hours late, I went back to the classifieds. Still fancying a Merc but without complicated folding metal hardtops and ABC hydraulic suspension, I ended up checking out a 2003 CLK55 AMG. Full service history, gearbox service, 78k miles and generally spotless, I went for it!
Now this part I got wrong but I’m happy not be back to the drawing board - I didn’t really test drive the car but I did knock £1k off the price and it came with warranty.
First drive back from Fareham at ‘Safari Automotive Fareham’ (correct name appears with a Google) was very scary. Serious wheel judder and worse on braking. Took the car to Guildford Tyres who showed me this:
I’m amazed that tyres over 7 years old that look like this can get through an MOT. It was like riding an elephant on the motorway over 60 (speeds I hadn’t tested before buying).
In addition the balance was at 60g on the fronts. Next steps are 4 x Hankook’s being fitted and then a full Hunter alignment. The car possibly needs bushes doing first.
The handbrake pedal needs to be manually lifted to disengage (maybe just a spring) and there are no ticks against spark plugs being changed in the service book.
The roof needs a bit of love mechanically and makes some knocking noises at the front latches above the windscreen, hoping this fix works - https://youtu.be/771aoW_LHOo
A 20 year old AMG Merc isn’t going to be perfect but I had hoped for better. Anyway, I’m in now so watch this space for an interesting daily driver.
But, I am generally happy every time I put my foot down and hear that iconic M113 thundering sound. The sound you imagine would be used for raising Frankenstein. Wonderful. If you didn’t know, the M113 E55 engine is in the £200k W209 CLK DTM albeit with a supercharger.
More nerdy stuff - it was 55 years of Mercedes AMG last year.
Cost in week 1 - £11,250 + £500 on tyres and balancing + alignment tbc.
Edited by fastgerman on Wednesday 8th March 14:24
Looks a good example you’ve bought. I’ve had one nearly 4 years now and when I bought mine the handbrake pedal had to be lifted up by foot.
There is an inspection panel under the rear seats, once you remove the bolts from the panel and lift it away you’ll see where the handbrake cable splits off to each rear wheel. The mechanism had seized so I cleaned it up and gave it a squirt of WD40. You can also tighten the cable from here if need be.
There is an inspection panel under the rear seats, once you remove the bolts from the panel and lift it away you’ll see where the handbrake cable splits off to each rear wheel. The mechanism had seized so I cleaned it up and gave it a squirt of WD40. You can also tighten the cable from here if need be.
Edited by CLK55 on Wednesday 8th March 12:44
Edited by CLK55 on Wednesday 8th March 13:12
fastgerman said:
Next steps are 4 x Hankook’s being fitted and then a full Hunter alignment. The car possibly needs bushes doing first.
Looks good.From personal experience, I'd be inclined to have the springs and the dampers properly inspected along with the bushes before having an alignment done, as they are known to break springs and, if the dampers (especially the rears) are original, they will not be at their best. It is quite possible to spend a significant proportion of the total cost on repeated alignments if you just fix one thing at a time.
This is a good point re-inspecting suspension. I’ve seen some recommendations for servicing at Guildford Mercedes on Pistonheads. 40% off labour for older cars is coming in at Specialist prices. They can have my car for its next service and will ask them to check everything.
I will however be doing some home spannering on the roof clamps and handbrake (mentioned above) as I have quite the tool box from my 2 years of 90’s Ferrari ownership haha.
I will however be doing some home spannering on the roof clamps and handbrake (mentioned above) as I have quite the tool box from my 2 years of 90’s Ferrari ownership haha.
I agree on the sound, the SL55 being my favourite. It was also this old Fifth Gear video that got my looking at the CLK55 - https://youtu.be/su4gOhDGt9E
Excellent choice.
I also have one of those (a 2005) albeit currently off the road as the MOT expired. Its been the most reliable car I've ever owned. I popped a new battery in it at the weekend and it started started first attempt and settled into a nice idle.
It definitely a car that ages very gracefully.
One thing I would also check is the emergency door lock on the drivers door (the key slides out of the remote key). They have a habit of failing and it locks you out of the car if the battery also runs low.
I also have one of those (a 2005) albeit currently off the road as the MOT expired. Its been the most reliable car I've ever owned. I popped a new battery in it at the weekend and it started started first attempt and settled into a nice idle.
It definitely a car that ages very gracefully.
One thing I would also check is the emergency door lock on the drivers door (the key slides out of the remote key). They have a habit of failing and it locks you out of the car if the battery also runs low.
Nice, the 2005 model has the later nav unit and bigger brakes. Good to hear it’s been reliable.
You have reminded me of another reason I left the R230 - 2 x batteries and the one in the boot needs to be kept well charged otherwise the electrics play games.
Couple more pics:
You have reminded me of another reason I left the R230 - 2 x batteries and the one in the boot needs to be kept well charged otherwise the electrics play games.
Couple more pics:
Edited by fastgerman on Thursday 9th March 09:45
fastgerman said:
I see it has the same complicated climate control as my sports coupe - if you press both of the knobs at the same time it goes into a mode where it automatically controls not only the temperatures on each side of the car, but also the distribution of the air using various sensors, including, I recall, a sensor on the bonnet air vent near the scuttle, which senses the direction of the sun!Ah I didn’t know that - pretty cool! Clearly I need to have a read of the user manual. There are a lot of very cool Mercedes features as you open the door, climb in and start the car:
Door glass drops, steering wheel lowers (it raises so you can move your knees and get out), the seatbelt is handed to you by the seatbelt butler.
I like the seat adjustment controls on the sides also, reminds me a bit of this:
Door glass drops, steering wheel lowers (it raises so you can move your knees and get out), the seatbelt is handed to you by the seatbelt butler.
I like the seat adjustment controls on the sides also, reminds me a bit of this:
Edited by fastgerman on Thursday 9th March 11:04
fastgerman said:
Mercedes features as you open the door, climb in and start the car:
Door glass drops, steering wheel lowers (it raises so you can move your knees and get out), the seatbelt is handed to you by the seatbelt butler.
As well as the steering wheel lowering, I suspect there will also be an option in the on-board computer (under comfort access iirc) to also have the seat move back when you exit the car and move forward when you put the key in the ignition.Door glass drops, steering wheel lowers (it raises so you can move your knees and get out), the seatbelt is handed to you by the seatbelt butler.
The seat will move back and forth itself when you enter / exit the car however it depends on where your seating position is. It will only move back when you remove the key if you sit quite close to the steering wheel. I’m 5’9 and for my seating position it doesn’t move when entering or exiting the car.
CLK55 said:
The seat will move back and forth itself when you enter / exit the car however it depends on where your seating position is. It will only move back when you remove the key if you sit quite close to the steering wheel. I’m 5’9 and for my seating position it doesn’t move when entering or exiting the car.
In my W203 sports coupe, there's something along the lines of the following options in the on-board computer under the heading of comfort access (iirc):Off
Steering wheel only
Steering wheel and seat
trevalvole said:
In my W203 sports coupe, there's something along the lines of the following options in the on-board computer under the heading of comfort access (iirc):
Off
Steering wheel only
Steering wheel and seat
Yes, mine has the same option but the seat will only move back and forth for access if you sit close to the wheel. My steering wheel moves for access as I have it quite low. Off
Steering wheel only
Steering wheel and seat
My car does have quite a few issues though so maybe mine should move for access no matter how far away from the wheel you sit?
CLK55 said:
Yes, mine has the same option but the seat will only move back and forth for access if you sit close to the wheel. My steering wheel moves for access as I have it quite low.
My car does have quite a few issues though so maybe mine should move for access no matter how far away from the wheel you sit?
I'm a little bit shorter than you, but the seat does move back quite a long way. I think these cars are built for big Germans, so unless you are 6ft 8 and the seat is pushed back as far as it will go, then I think it should move for access.My car does have quite a few issues though so maybe mine should move for access no matter how far away from the wheel you sit?
Edited to add that if I'm at a loose end, then I might try setting my seat quite far back to see if it still moves for access.
Edited by trevalvole on Thursday 9th March 15:58
mholt1995 said:
fastgerman said:
More nerdy stuff - it was 55 years of Mercedes AMG last year
Indeed it was, had chance to see it myself!
A second-gen V8 CLK has been on the "long list" for quite some time, looking forward to living vicariously through you for a bit!
MHolt - Very cool that you went to see this in person, I have some Mercedes and Porsche visits on my Instagram here - https://instagram.com/fast_german?igshid=YmMyMTA2M...
Trevalvole and CLK55 - keep the info coming as this is very interesting!
At Guildford Tyres now getting all 4 tyres changed. Looking forward to a less lumpy ride. Will go from there on suspension/bushes etc. Traction control kicks in on quarter throttle at the moment so guessing this is down to the tyres getting a bit ‘plasticky’.
Also just seen that they made a CLK DTM Cabriolet
Trevalvole and CLK55 - keep the info coming as this is very interesting!
At Guildford Tyres now getting all 4 tyres changed. Looking forward to a less lumpy ride. Will go from there on suspension/bushes etc. Traction control kicks in on quarter throttle at the moment so guessing this is down to the tyres getting a bit ‘plasticky’.
Also just seen that they made a CLK DTM Cabriolet
Completely different car now thanks to Guildford Tyres.
Alignment also done (for free) + a small cost to change the toe in at the front. Very happy with the outcome.
Apparently the bushes and suspension all look good and no play in anything.
The best bit - traction control doesn’t come on even at full throttle. Feels like a proper muscle car now.
Alignment also done (for free) + a small cost to change the toe in at the front. Very happy with the outcome.
Apparently the bushes and suspension all look good and no play in anything.
The best bit - traction control doesn’t come on even at full throttle. Feels like a proper muscle car now.
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