SLK 320 2001 - buying advice
Discussion
Nice car, but check for rust around the boot handle aperture:
and on the inside leading edges of the rear wheel arches.
Vario roof operation MUST be faultless, but is very reliable.
Heated seats (if fitted) can be unreliable.
2001 model with a mere 54000 miles and a fsh are definite plus points!
If you plan on doing any touring, you'll be glad to know that the R170 model SLK (such as the one you're looking at) has the largest boot of any SLK - a much more useful shape than on later models. You can buy fitted luggage from www.roadsterbag.co.uk which fits perfectly under the boot 'top down' space limit:
As for fuel economy, mine gave me an average of almost 28 mpg over 4 months of mixed driving. I only sold it when I was able to trade it in for an SLK32 AMG!
and on the inside leading edges of the rear wheel arches.
Vario roof operation MUST be faultless, but is very reliable.
Heated seats (if fitted) can be unreliable.
2001 model with a mere 54000 miles and a fsh are definite plus points!
If you plan on doing any touring, you'll be glad to know that the R170 model SLK (such as the one you're looking at) has the largest boot of any SLK - a much more useful shape than on later models. You can buy fitted luggage from www.roadsterbag.co.uk which fits perfectly under the boot 'top down' space limit:
As for fuel economy, mine gave me an average of almost 28 mpg over 4 months of mixed driving. I only sold it when I was able to trade it in for an SLK32 AMG!
Edited by nickwilcock on Friday 24th February 21:45
Like nick says look out for the rust -wheelarches and bootlid
The only other thing is at this age things will start to wear out-my crankshaft sensor failed the other day but other than that it has been faultless in 4yrs. You may want to consider having.the transmission fluid changed its meant to be sealed for life but got mine done last year (can only help prolong gearbox life) and it is recommended.
The only other thing is at this age things will start to wear out-my crankshaft sensor failed the other day but other than that it has been faultless in 4yrs. You may want to consider having.the transmission fluid changed its meant to be sealed for life but got mine done last year (can only help prolong gearbox life) and it is recommended.
Snap! My CPS started to fail a couple of weeks ago. Car would crank over but not start until the engine had cooled after about 10 min. Next day I took it to the dealership as the EMU light was on - they charged £40 to tell me that there was a 'crankshaft position sensor' failure recorded. But even though the car is on a Tier 1 extended warranty, they didn't change the sensor; instead they told me to 'monitor' the situation. A few short journeys during the following week were fine. What they didn't tell me ws that CPS failure is more likely after the engine has reached normal operating temperature, otherwise I would have checked.
Roll forward a week and I'm stuck in a car park with a car which won't start. Mobilolife arrive after 90 minutes and quickly find another logged instance of CPS failure - which they fixed in 15 min by replacing the sensor.
The car now being over 8 years old, I have to have it serviced by a main dealer in order to retain Mobilolife benefits and the Tier 1 warranty. Yet that dealer didn't see fit to change the obviously faulty CPS? As a result I missed an important meeting and wasted nearly £15 on petrol and £5.70 on a railway car park ticket. £60 out of pocket and a missed appointment all because the dealer was more interested in extracting £40 for a diagnostic check than providing a proper warranty service.
Roll forward a week and I'm stuck in a car park with a car which won't start. Mobilolife arrive after 90 minutes and quickly find another logged instance of CPS failure - which they fixed in 15 min by replacing the sensor.
The car now being over 8 years old, I have to have it serviced by a main dealer in order to retain Mobilolife benefits and the Tier 1 warranty. Yet that dealer didn't see fit to change the obviously faulty CPS? As a result I missed an important meeting and wasted nearly £15 on petrol and £5.70 on a railway car park ticket. £60 out of pocket and a missed appointment all because the dealer was more interested in extracting £40 for a diagnostic check than providing a proper warranty service.
Edited by nickwilcock on Saturday 25th February 10:17
Thanks for your replies. Nick, very helpful, especially the photos. Been to see the car today. It's immaculate and no signs of rust. Front discs are worn but they're going to replace those. Only two owners and been garaged. Roof mechanism smooth and engine sweet. Think I'm going to have to watch right foot as it's definately a quick car! Picking it up next Sat - can't wait!
Congratulations, Woody4 - I'm sure you'll love the car! The SLK320 is probably the nicest R170 for grand touring; it isn't as fast as the SLK32 AMG but has a more comfortable ride and smoother automatic transmission.
A 'Used Roadtest' for the SLK320 in the Feb 2009 issue of Mercedes Enthusiast gives a 0-62 mph time of 6.9 sec, top speed of 147 mph and fuel consumption of 27.2 mpg (for the more automatic version). Incidentally, the M-B Mobilolife chap who changed the crankshaft position sensor for me the other day was full of praise for the build quality of the R170 SLK.
Is yours a manual or automatic? Both performance and economy for the automatic are actually better than the manual.
Colour? Options??
I had to wait a week between agreeing to buy my current SLK and picking it up back in 2005. Those 7 days went VERY slowly! But you'll have yours just in time for Spring.
Photos when you've got it safely home would be nice!
A 'Used Roadtest' for the SLK320 in the Feb 2009 issue of Mercedes Enthusiast gives a 0-62 mph time of 6.9 sec, top speed of 147 mph and fuel consumption of 27.2 mpg (for the more automatic version). Incidentally, the M-B Mobilolife chap who changed the crankshaft position sensor for me the other day was full of praise for the build quality of the R170 SLK.
Is yours a manual or automatic? Both performance and economy for the automatic are actually better than the manual.
Colour? Options??
I had to wait a week between agreeing to buy my current SLK and picking it up back in 2005. Those 7 days went VERY slowly! But you'll have yours just in time for Spring.
Photos when you've got it safely home would be nice!
Edited by nickwilcock on Saturday 25th February 17:56
The heated seat issue is only the SLK32 so there should be no problem with the seat elements, do however check they work as the switches are also the control module and they can fail.
Nice cars and I have had two over the years with a total of 9 years ownership and never had a reliability issue.
Nice cars and I have had two over the years with a total of 9 years ownership and never had a reliability issue.
Hi everyone, thanks for the replies. Yes, think the week will go very slowly.... but we've had such beautiful weather this weekend, hoping it'll be like that when I pick it up. Any ideas re insurance companies. Have had one very expensive quote so far.
Its blue, and auto. Doesn't have heated seats, so that's one thing less to worry about! Has lovely walnut dash and part steering wheel and we checked it over as much as poss. Garage says it'll do everything necessary before it leaves the showroom. Just one, thing, is it chain/belt drive? Just need to check when last replaced.
Roll on Saturday!
Its blue, and auto. Doesn't have heated seats, so that's one thing less to worry about! Has lovely walnut dash and part steering wheel and we checked it over as much as poss. Garage says it'll do everything necessary before it leaves the showroom. Just one, thing, is it chain/belt drive? Just need to check when last replaced.
Roll on Saturday!
I can't help about owners clubs, but if your in Hampshire, then I highly recommend taking your car here for any servicing it needs:
http://www.prestigecarservice.co.uk/
They've looked after my R129 wonderfully every time I've been there.
http://www.prestigecarservice.co.uk/
They've looked after my R129 wonderfully every time I've been there.
Is this your car, sir?
If so, it's got over £3300 of extras:
Automatic transmission with Tiptronic and Speedtronic cruise control: £1450
Eucalyptus wood trim with matching steering wheel inserts and gearshift: £460
Leather upholstery: £740
Metallic paint: £600
Audio 10 radio/single CD player: £60
Nice!!
If so, it's got over £3300 of extras:
Automatic transmission with Tiptronic and Speedtronic cruise control: £1450
Eucalyptus wood trim with matching steering wheel inserts and gearshift: £460
Leather upholstery: £740
Metallic paint: £600
Audio 10 radio/single CD player: £60
Nice!!
Hi Nick, yes it is! Very clever of you to find one. Thanks for all the info - gratefully received and very welcome. It is very exiting and I can't wait to drive it again. Think its a DOHC (so it says on the engine but is definately chain driven. Had good quote on insce too - bargain!
Woody4, the SLK320's M112 is a 90º V6 with 3 valves per cylinder (2 intake, 1 exhaust) driven by one overhead camshaft per cylinder bank.
See http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detail...
See http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detail...
Argh! It's threads like this one that put my head into a spin! Your car looks lovely mate, a really tidy example. It's also good to read the positive reviews from owners on here about the 320. I'm currently torn between one of these and a R129 SL as a possible replacement but my search isn't going well 
....
The 320 SLK I looked at, low mileage, all the options and nice grey colour got half way round it's test drive and the gearbox went into limp home, I pulled over, turned it off and tried again.... All seemed fine but 30 seconds later it kept happening!
The R129 I tried, with the 280 engine. I spoke to the owner over the phone, travelled to see the car, looked it over for a good 15 minutes all seemed well until I started the engine.... A massive blow in the exhaust and a huge fuel leak underneath the car!
I really want one of these models but neither seem to like me, I really wish you better luck with your car mate. When you get it, please start a readers car thread, an insight on ownership would be great!
How many days now until you pick the car up??
....The 320 SLK I looked at, low mileage, all the options and nice grey colour got half way round it's test drive and the gearbox went into limp home, I pulled over, turned it off and tried again.... All seemed fine but 30 seconds later it kept happening!
The R129 I tried, with the 280 engine. I spoke to the owner over the phone, travelled to see the car, looked it over for a good 15 minutes all seemed well until I started the engine.... A massive blow in the exhaust and a huge fuel leak underneath the car!
I really want one of these models but neither seem to like me, I really wish you better luck with your car mate. When you get it, please start a readers car thread, an insight on ownership would be great!
How many days now until you pick the car up??
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