CL500 advice.

[merc85]

So why in the 160k miles that Mercedes main dealerships serviced MY cl did they use mobil1?

Again do you know anything about these cars that you can help the OP with?

And yes research, you will not get the key facts on a car from 1 forum post, Google has got plenty for the op to read about.

You are very good at spouting, not so good at answering any questions asked towards you.

Your very good at jumping down peoples throats, and not helping. Which is what the Op was asking for instead of trying to belittle him probably due to his low post count.

I'm not entertaining your sarcastic comments towards the op or myself as im not lowering myself to your level so i'm leaving that at that.

If you think that technology doesn't move on and improve for eg Mb switching From Mobil1 to Petronas amongst other reasons you are mistaken.

As already explained to the Op by other poster's who have managed to be polite and useful i think the Op would be disappointed in the associated ruining costs of a cl500.

And if all poster's were like you he may well have been better off using Google in the 1st place.

 

[m2287]

Your very good at jumping down peoples throats, and not helping. Which is what the Op was asking for instead of trying to belittle him probably due to his low post count.

I'm not entertaining your sarcastic comments towards the op or myself as im not lowering myself to your level so i'm leaving that at that.

If you think that technology doesn't move on and improve for eg Mb switching From Mobil1 to Petronas amongst other reasons you are mistaken.

As already explained to the Op by other poster's who have managed to be polite and useful i think the Op would be disappointed in the associated ruining costs of a cl500.

And if all poster's were like you he may well have been better off using Google in the 1st place.

Remind me again of what my first post said?

You must be having a bad day !

 

[cb1965]

Shocked they are this bad. I'm talking about a flagship car with less than 60k miles with a documented history. I could pull a 25 year old lexus ls400 from a scrap yard and I reckon it would work fine, that too was a flagship, an old one.

Welcome to the world of Mercedes Benz. A Lexus is generally a far more reliable vehicle than a W215 CL ever will be.

That said at least it's not a R230 SL LOL!

 

[toffee-pie]

Guys. !

I know it's a 100k car and maintenance should be treated as such. What I am not prepared for is replacing the entire suspension, amongst others as pointed out here.! I have not skimped on looking after my lexus and it doesn't miss a beat. Using castrol edge, Goodyear tyres and all that.

With a documented service I would expect the cl500 I am considering to be relatively pain free motoring. I can live with the occasional part that may need going. I am getting a 3 month warranty and I will get the car checked by an independent also.

 

[cb1965]

Guys. !

I know it's a 100k car and maintenance should be treated as such. What I am not prepared for is replacing the entire suspension, amongst others as pointed out here.! I have not skimped on looking after my lexus and it doesn't miss a beat. Using castrol edge, Goodyear tyres and all that.

With a documented service I would expect the cl500 I am considering to be relatively pain free motoring. I can live with the occasional part that may need going. I am getting a 3 month warranty and I will get the car checked by an independent also.

The ABC suspension WILL go wrong. It's not a question of if, it's a question of when!

If you can live with that go for it

 

[Alex]

CL is like a stunning girlfriend with expensive taste in pretty much everything.

If you don't like that concept, you can get an Ugly Betty but you will have to ride her with the lights off.

 

[Mr Kripling]

Whenever the question of C215 CLs comes up there's always lots of comment about how they'll bankrupt you, ABC stands for All Bank Contents etc, etc...

Below is a link to a spreadsheet of the costs that my CL55 has incurred since it left its warranty period that I had the paperwork for. I acquired it in October last year and prior to that everything had been done at a MB main dealer (hence some of the ludicrous prices for the jobs). I've had a few things done at MB (EIS replacement and service) but everything else has been done by Olly (BlackC55) at Prestige Car Service.

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1s3SQ1Q5MAMACDEvAnPMUIaREIAW6RF7nTkoHdSVvgHQ/edit?usp=sharing

To my mind, the only issue I've had which could be considered "congenital" for the C215 has been the ABC pump. I suspect one of the struts may need replacing at some point but otherwise everything seems okay.

As has been said before, it was expensive car to buy new and while the ABC may give you some headaches the engine and gearbox are likely to give fewer headaches than some of those in its peers.

 

[lexman8]

I owned a Lexus RX for 10 years. Literally nothing went wrong in all that time.

I've owned a W215 CL500 for 2.5 years and have spent £5,532 on repairs and servicing during that time. It's been in the garage for the last 10 days after a problem with the gearbox which is currently with a specialist firm for diagnosis/repair. This could take my expenditure to about £7k.

The CL is great to drive but I won't ever get another one.

 

[toffee-pie]

I think I am slowly moving towards another Japanese car.! shame really.

I only ever intended to keep the CL for a year or so but it looks a bit like too much effort and tlc is required. I am going to Ireland for christmas and the last thing I want is the car I would potentially buy breaking down, which seems to be high enough going by what I have read here.

 

[toffee-pie]

let me get this straight, even with a documented service record, low ish miles and even a once over by a Merc garage I am still looking into massive bills and things breaking?!

(I am not counting fluids, tyres, and general maintenance here which I can live with)

 

[500E]

let me get this straight, even with a documented service record, low ish miles and even a once over by a Merc garage I am still looking into massive bills and things breaking?!

(I am not counting fluids, tyres, and general maintenance here which I can live with)

You could get lucky but its likely a CL500 will have suspension issues.

 

[toffee-pie]

if its any use, these advisories showed up on the 2004 cl500 i am interested in (57,351 miles at the MOT in 2014)

Advisory notice item(s)
Nearside Front Windscreen has damage to an area less than a 40mm circle outside zone 'A' (8.3.1d)
Offside Rear Shock absorber has a light misting of oil (2.7.3)
Nearside Front Track rod end ball joint has slight play (2.2.B.1f)
offside rear number plate light dim

the car had a current MOT, pass and no advisory (58,020 miles) - to me it looks good. Clearly not what others think.!

actually, these showed up in the 2013 MOT @ 57,338 miles (Prior to that it has all Pass and no advisory)

Advisory notice item(s)
Nearside Front suspension has slight play in a lower suspension ball joint (2.5.B.1a)
Offside Front suspension has slight play in a lower suspension ball joint (2.5.B.1a)
Nearside Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1)
Offside Rear Tyre worn close to the legal limit (4.1.E.1)
Windscreen has damage to an area less than a 40mm circle outside zone 'A' (8.3.1d)
Both front tyres smooth on inner edges.

Would all that nasty suspension stuff be ironed out in them advisories, or is that wishful thinking? (no pun intended) The cost to buy this incidentally is £2,500 plus my car.

 

[Borys]

There is one in Peterborough at Junction17
Used to be mine
Safe buy, suspension sorted

 

[toffee-pie]

linky? it would seem the suspension is sorted on the one I have eyed up too?

 

[lexman8]

let me get this straight, even with a documented service record, low ish miles and even a once over by a Merc garage I am still looking into massive bills and things breaking?!

(I am not counting fluids, tyres, and general maintenance here which I can live with)

Yes. In particular, various components in the ABC suspension system can fail without any warning signs whatsoever. My ABC pump failed while I was doing 70 in the middle lane of the M62 and in the process it destroyed the auxiliary belt. I lost suspension, power steering and all the systems driven by the belt. It cost almost £1,000 to repair.
_

 

[MercedesDriver]

Shocked they are this bad. I'm talking about a flagship car with less than 60k miles with a documented history. I could pull a 25 year old lexus ls400 from a scrap yard and I reckon it would work fine, that too was a flagship, an old one.

This is a flagship car which requires flagship maintenance. If you are considering saving money on oil or any other part for this car, forget it, this is not for you.
As previously mentioned these cars need to be driven in order to work properly.
Great car.

 

[toffee-pie]

This is a flagship car which requires flagship maintenance. If you are considering saving money on oil or any other part for this car, forget it, this is not for you.
As previously mentioned these cars need to be driven in order to work properly.
Great car.

I never said i am saving money or cutting corners. I have not done so on my Lexus and don't intend to on my next car. - I use Shell V Power on my is250 all the time (and it does drink alot too) It's the 'unwanted' issues or bills that prop up I am most concerned about.

I can buy a 2005 CL500 from a dealer right near me here (warranty and all) but it doesn't have BOSE.

Used Mercedes-benz Cl Coupe 5.0 Cl500 2dr in Lymington, Hampshire | Hills Of Lymington

 

[toffee-pie]

if the ABC and suspension is so troublesome are Merc not liable to repairs or has anyone not brought this up with them? Suspension goes on cars eventually, but not on the grand scale that has been mentioned here - I don't care how fancy dan the system is, I am sure the VW Phaeton has equally as expension suspension and it has issues also?

 

[MercedesDriver]

Just saying that the ownership of it can be costly.
Now about the one you are thinking of. Too low mileage for this car.
NSR looks too low compared to OSR. Strut???
I think you can find better ones for less. Look for ones in range of upto 6k and keep the change for any eventuality.
Engines are bulletproof so don't worry about that. As long as all electrics work and no rust in engine bay, at the rear quadrant or underneath you will be safe. Check if all hydraulic parts are dry, if not walk away. Also pay attention to all side windows, if there is a delamination of glass layers, walk away - can be very expensive to change.
Instrument cluster has to work properly without flickering or missing pixels.
Advertised CL has standard equipment with no options.

 

[MercedesDriver]

if the ABC and suspension is so troublesome are Merc not liable to repairs or has anyone not brought this up with them? Suspension goes on cars eventually, but not on the grand scale that has been mentioned here - I don't care how fancy dan the system is, I am sure the VW Phaeton has equally as expension suspension and it has issues also?

As you said suspension fails eventually but no-one will complain about £200 for standard one but when it's £1500-£2500 everybody cry. I cried.