Another new project! Mercedes C55 AMG W203

[Petrol Pete]

Today I started cleaning the interior….. well I say today but it was last Friday that I started the cleaning. I spent some time cleaning the seat belts. I tried to use a hard brush but it wasn’t making much of a difference. I pulled the seat belts out, sprayed some chemicals and jet washed them. They look a lot better now.

Today I concentrated on cleaning the dashboard, steering wheel which I have to say, it has come up like new now!

I washed the seats also, the carpets and roof lining.

Cleaned the windows properly and now it’s nearly finished inside also. Still got a few small things to do















I also cleaned the trims by the doors as they were dirty. As you can see, they look like new now

First time I have seen a 203 C class with the LED HVAC control panel , all (including mine) seem to have the last incarnation of the version with the two small manual knobs for temp control.

3 scenarios (in my mind)

1. Previous owner changed it (unlikely)

2. It failed and MB fitted the newer version (also fairly unlikely)

3. last but not least, yours was one of the last off the like and they had run out of the older versions ! (also unlikely !)

The parts manual shows various types across the 203 range .

So I am none the wiser , but I like the way it looks and I note from an online search the plug on the back is the same as on the one in my car . I wonder if its a 'plug and play' replacement

 

[Sam87]

Thanks for the great thread..I had a C55 from 2008-2012..it’s still on the road as i was contacted by its new owner last year. I believe the final models had paddle shifters instead of the annoying buttons. Do the heated seats work? Had to have mine repaired twice (under warranty) Enjoy the car, looks fab!

Thank you for taking the time to read through the thread and commenting! It's nice to see forum members appreciate the effort that goes into the car
It's just the upper part of the seat that warms up. I read online and it seems like a common problem for the lower part to fail but to repair it, the lower part of the seat need replacing. I don't think I'll be doing that.

Yours might have been first registered in 2007 , but was most likely built in 2006 , a decent build card acquired by using the VIN will determine that.

I checked and it came up with

Delivery Date 05-09-2006

Date Of First Registration 27/06/2007

OK , your next job is to find out what emblem is supposed to be on top of the gear selector , the original one is missing on mine , just as it is on yours . There are all sorts of replacements available online , I have yet to know what came from the factory.

I thought the C55's didn't have an emblem on top of the gear selector?
I'll speak with Mercedes and see if they have any info on this

Are you sure the beige ones are not proper OEM ? I looked for replacements only to be told the beige ones are the real deal and no longer available. I have a black 203 set from Lidl in there at the moment , for winter, the beige ones have been cleaned and stored.

The last owner said the car didn't have the floor mats when he bought it and ordered the beige ones. They fit well but the grey with the beige is just too much for my eyes. Black mats would look better imo and from what I've seen online, C55's with grey interior have black mats

First time I have seen a 203 C class with the LED HVAC control panel , all (including mine) seem to have the last incarnation of the version with the two small manual knobs for temp control.

3 scenarios (in my mind)

1. Previous owner changed it (unlikely)

2. It failed and MB fitted the newer version (also fairly unlikely)

3. last but not least, yours was one of the last off the like and they had run out of the older versions ! (also unlikely !)

The parts manual shows various types across the 203 range .

So I am none the wiser , but I like the way it looks and I note from an online search the plug on the back is the same as on the one in my car . I wonder if its a 'plug and play' replacement

Ah, I hadn't noticed that! I thought they were all the same
It doesn't look like it's been taken apart when inspecting the car, I haven't spotted any marks on the panel or the trims so possibly it's how it came from factory and it has this panel due to the car being a very late model?

 

[Sam87]

Today I added the C55 badge as well. I think the C55 is one of those cars that deserves to have the badge as it came from factory.
When I went to pick it up from Mercedes, I was surprised to see the badge said CLS550 . They said just use the letter and numbers that you need as this is how they come. Anyone want to buy SL 0?
If anyone with a Mercedes SL wants them, just let me know and I'll post them to you

 

[Petrol Pete]

My seats have been the same since I bought it , back (lumbar) part warms up but both 'bum' squabs don't warm up . I've just left it like that .

So the car was built in 2006 , not sure what month as the Germans usually do DD/MM/YY. Not how you have it.

The gear selector is an interesting one . Any C55 owners (ex owners) on here who can clear this up ?

Interesting , it's possible your car could have been sitting unloved and unregister, brand new, in an MB dealership while New C63 w204 owners were waiting to collect their new cars.

Might be the last one ever registered in the UK !

 

[Petrol Pete]

Today I added the C55 badge as well. I think the C55 is one of those cars that deserves to have the badge as it came from factory.
When I went to pick it up from Mercedes, I was surprised to see the badge said CLS550 . They said just use the letter and numbers that you need as this is how they come. Anyone want to buy SL 0?
If anyone with a Mercedes SL wants them, just let me know and I'll post them to you

It will have had C55 badge on the boot , they all had it OEM . Previous owner might have removed it , or the the rear has had some damage repair , but you would have spotted that.

 

[Sam87]

My seats have been the same since I bought it , back (lumbar) part warms up but both 'bum' squabs don't warm up . I've just left it like that .

So the car was built in 2006 , not sure what month as the Germans usually do DD/MM/YY. Not how you have it.

The gear selector is an interesting one . Any C55 owners (ex owners) on here who can clear this up ?

Interesting , it's possible your car could have been sitting unloved and unregister, brand new, in an MB dealership while New C63 w204 owners were waiting to collect their new cars.

Might be the last one ever registered in the UK !

It will have had C55 badge on the boot , they all had it OEM . Previous owner might have removed it , or the the rear has had some damage repair , but you would have spotted that.

It was built in September 2006 but first registered in June 2007. I think it's probably the last C55 registered in the UK. I can be happy about it as it's one of the last W203's or be sad thinking no one wanted a C55 in 2007 as the C63 had just come out

Last owner said he took the badge off so people wouldn't know it was a C55

I've been doing some research and it looks like the C55 didn't have an emblem on top of the gear stick.
I found this pic online of a new C55

Edit, I just noticed this car also has the same control panel as my car

 

[Petrol Pete]

It was built in September 2006 but first registered in June 2007. I think it's probably the last C55 registered in the UK. I can be happy about it as it's one of the last W203's or be sad thinking no one wanted a C55 in 2007 as the C63 had just come out

Last owner said he took the badge off so people wouldn't know it was a C55

I've been doing some research and it looks like the C55 didn't have an emblem on top of the gear stick.
I found this pic online of a new C55

Edit, I just noticed this car also has the same control panel as my car

Showing newer HVAC control unit but no 'flappy paddles' ?? The last few of our C55's certainly look like part bin specials

 

[Sam87]

Showing newer HVAC control unit but no 'flappy paddles' ?? The last few of our C55's certainly look like part bin specials

It does seem that way doesn't it!

 

[aquanaut]

It was built in September 2006 but first registered in June 2007. I think it's probably the last C55 registered in the UK. I can be happy about it as it's one of the last W203's or be sad thinking no one wanted a C55 in 2007 as the C63 had just come out

Last owner said he took the badge off so people wouldn't know it was a C55

I've been doing some research and it looks like the C55 didn't have an emblem on top of the gear stick.
I found this pic online of a new C55

Edit, I just noticed this car also has the same control panel as my car

Well specced car, also had the rear blind fitted as mine did..i have photos of my interior C55 but does not show the gear stick…but from memory it did not have emblem as per photo

 

[Petrol Pete]

Sam87 , you had the sunroof safety recall letter, or has it been done ?

 

[Sam87]

Well specced car, also had the rear blind fitted as mine did..i have photos of my interior C55 but does not show the gear stick…but from memory it did not have emblem as per photo

The one in this photo is not mine, just a photo I found online. I do have all the options on mine apart from the rear blind.

Sam87 , you had the sunroof safety recall letter, or has it been done ?

I was told by the last owner that it had a new sunroof from Mercedes.

 

[Sam87]

Today I went to Mercedes to pick up some more parts
The guy at the parts department asked if I plan on stopping at some point as i just keep ordering parts from them

A few of the guys came out to look at the car and everyone loved it. It was getting some attention today.

I had to take a few photos which is not un unusual thing as I seem to be doing that every time I take one of the cars out .

 

[Petrol Pete]

I look forward to you going to your MB parts department for rear brake pads/pins/spring or caliper.

In my case 'Computer say's no! ' on more than one occasion, the Main Dealer muppets insisted the rear brakes must have been modified and were unable to help..end of. I have not been back there since.

Spoiler alert . The rear brakes on a C55 are not the same as any other 203 of the same vintage......they are from the previous 'sleeper' ...The C32.

See what I mean about 'parts bin special' !

Top Tip . The exact same hardware is used on Volvo and available cheaply from brakesinternationl.co.uk . Pads are a matter of personal taste , I have Akebono Carbon ceramic pads all round . Practically Zero dust.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

First time I have seen a 203 C class with the LED HVAC control panel , all (including mine) seem to have the last incarnation of the version with the two small manual knobs for temp control.

3 scenarios (in my mind)

1. Previous owner changed it (unlikely)

2. It failed and MB fitted the newer version (also fairly unlikely)

3. last but not least, yours was one of the last off the like and they had run out of the older versions ! (also unlikely !)

The parts manual shows various types across the 203 range .

So I am none the wiser , but I like the way it looks and I note from an online search the plug on the back is the same as on the one in my car . I wonder if its a 'plug and play' replacement

My S203 (2006) has the LED controls also and I dont even have COMAND:

 

[Notwen]

My seats have been the same since I bought it , back (lumbar) part warms up but both 'bum' squabs don't warm up . I've just left it like that .

So the car was built in 2006 , not sure what month as the Germans usually do DD/MM/YY. Not how you have it.

The gear selector is an interesting one . Any C55 owners (ex owners) on here who can clear this up ?

Interesting , it's possible your car could have been sitting unloved and unregister, brand new, in an MB dealership while New C63 w204 owners were waiting to collect their new cars.

Might be the last one ever registered in the UK !

Great thread, makes me miss my 55 wagon
My (old) 55 plate had the same HVAC controls.
Gear shifter should just be an aluminium disc, no logo. Our CLK55 has the same shifter.

 

[Sam87]

I look forward to you going to your MB parts department for rear brake pads/pins/spring or caliper.

In my case 'Computer say's no! ' on more than one occasion, the Main Dealer muppets insisted the rear brakes must have been modified and were unable to help..end of. I have not been back there since.

Spoiler alert . The rear brakes on a C55 are not the same as any other 203 of the same vintage......they are from the previous 'sleeper' ...The C32.

See what I mean about 'parts bin special' !

Top Tip . The exact same hardware is used on Volvo and available cheaply from brakesinternationl.co.uk . Pads are a matter of personal taste , I have Akebono Carbon ceramic pads all round . Practically Zero dust.

To be fair, they’ve always been excellent with me. I’ve been going there for years and they’re always helpful.

That’s interesting that it has the same brakes as the C32!

I need to get some ceramic pads as I hate seeing brake dust on the wheels. The worst one is the S63! It has genuine brakes but after half a mile of driving, I can see brake dust on the wheels. I don’t know why it’s so bad.

Great thread, makes me miss my 55 wagon
My (old) 55 plate had the same HVAC controls.
Gear shifter should just be an aluminium disc, no logo. Our CLK55 has the same shifter.

View attachment 167875

View attachment 167876

Thank you!
Lovely CLK! I think the CLK has aged very well and the AMG models look even better. I had a CLK before but unfortunately it wasn’t the V8, just a 200 Kompressor with the AMG kit

 

[Sam87]

Another update for the C55,

When I inspected the car, I noticed that the oil breathers had possibly been off before as it looked like someone got a bit too excited while applying the silicon!

The oil breather pipes felt a bit hard as well, not perished but as I was going to get oil breathers sorted, I thought I might as well change the hoses.

I also ordered the rocker cover gaskets from Mercedes.

While I was getting these parts at the dealer, I also ordered the spark plugs from them. I’m sure I paid less for 24 plugs that the S65 takes!

Anyways, because the car has done 50k miles, I thought there is a possibility that the plugs have never been changed and while I’m getting all these work done, just get the spark plugs done at the same time.

I got all the filters and engine oil from Mercedes too and yesterday I thought it was the day I would tackle all these jobs.

Taking the rocker covers off wasn’t bad at all. What took a lot of my time, was getting the silicon off the oil breathers! I spent ages making sure it was as clean as possible before applying new silicon.

I was so impressed how clean and fresh the engine looked inside! The cleanest engine I have seen so far!

No wear at all on the chain.

The gap on the spark plugs still looked good but I wasn’t going to put the old ones back on as @Petrol Pete mentioned that Mercedes removes them for inspection but if they still look good, they’d put them back!

I carried on with removing the silicon, changing the spark plugs while the rocker covers were off and after many hours, the car was all done.

Here are some photos,

As I said, it’s not a difficult job to do, just time consuming.



Old vs new spark plugs



One clean engine!





Just a tiny but if silicon removed from the drivers side oil breather ( what a mess! )


The spark plugs were torqued to 24NM if I remember correct now



The new gaskets, oil breathe pipes and plugs.



Nice and clean









Nearly done
The rocker cover bolts were torqued to 9NM as it said on technical data



All back together!



The old rocker cover gaskets didn’t feel hard but as I’ve read they tend to fail, I thought it was a good time to change them.



New air filters




I didn’t changed the engine oil yet as I thought I’d do that once the silicon is dry and I could run the engine for a bit and warm up the oil before I drain it. Car has only done about 50 miles since I last changed the oil but Mr OCD tends to do these when first buying a car and use the first oil change as an engine flush

 

[Notwen]

Just a tiny but if silicon removed from the drivers side oil breather ( what a mess! )

Did you fit new bolts? I seem to recall they are single use on the breather, not sure if the main cam cover bolts are single use.

 

[Sam87]

Did you fit new bolts? I seem to recall they are single use on the breather, not sure if the main cam cover bolts are single use.

Hi,

Yes I did fit new bolts. You are right, they’re meant to be single use whereas the cam cover bolts can be used again.
I go into so much detail when I post, yet I forgot this part

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Amazing project! - Puts my humble W203 project to shame.

Only thing id change on yours would be the yellow calipers