Looking to buy a 350 SLK - need some pointers

[eng622]

I'm looking for a 2005 car or year with the £245 road tax and am wanting certain options and ask advice on how to see if potential cars have them.
These are must have:
7 speed auto with steering wheel paddles. Most adverts say tip, so are paddles not that common and is it obvious to see if fitted?
Direct (parametric) steering. How would I know if this is fitted?
Air scarf/heated seats. I think I can see a vent in the head restraint on some cars so assume this the scarf
Other options;
What is Command multimedia, sat nav etc. Is it a desirable option?
Whats in the sports pack fot that year, I can only find for the latest version? Does it include sports suspension and what is the ride comfort like with that set up?
How can you tell if climate control (auto aircon?) is present?
Any other must haves or desirable extras in owners opinions?
Also are 17 inch wheels the limit for ride comfort?
Any pointers to reading about these cars appreciated

 

[MOCAŠ]

Hi eng622, and welcome to the forum.

To benefit from the £245 VED concession you just need to ensure the car was registered before 23 March 2006. (NB: Second-generation SLK 350s, from late 2008 onwards, also fall into the £245 VED bracket.)

The 1st generation cars didn't have paddles (though it may be poisible to retro-fit them). Instead, those fitted with the 7G-Tronic box came with buttons mounted on the back of the steeing wheeel.

The vent in the head restraints are indeed for Airscarf, and this can also be detected by the buttons on the centre console (see beow).

In the photo above, the outer two buttons alongside the triangular hazard light switch are for the Airscarf, flanking the switches for the heated seats (you can't have the former without the latter, though you do sometimes see the latter without the former). In cars without Airscarf, the outer two switches will be absent, as will the grilles in the head restraints.

COMAND (short for COckpit MANagement and Data system) is well worth having, if only because the dashboard looks a little lost without it. It provides FM radio, CD (with optional 6-disc changer), DVD player, satellite navigation (with its own separate, boot-mounted DVD unit) and control over some of the car's settings. You can get an iPod connector installed, which will provide (clunky) steering wheel contol of an iPod and charging while it is connected.

The first generation SLKs came with the NTG1 unit, which is now seen as being someway behind the curve, but this can be replaced with the current NTG2.5 unit which offers a built-in 6-CD changer, voice control and memory card reader, plus a multimedia interface for improved iPod connectivity.

Climate control was an optional upgrade from the standard fit air conditioning, and can be detected by push-button heater controls with digital read-out in place of the air con's four rotary dials.

My car has the sports suspension and 17" wheels, and I find ride comfort is fine, although you do feel (and hear) vertical road seams traversed at low speeds. No idea how much better or worse this would be with other combinations of suspension and wheel size, though.

 

[Noodle-Pulp]

I have to add if you live in an area plagued by speed humps, that your ride may start to grate on you with 17inch wheels and sports suspension..mine did.

If I could have changed the rather basic spec I had; it would be :

Essential
5 or 7 speed auto - mine was the 6 speed manual
heated seats - leather is a tad chilly in the winter months
auto-folding mirrors - I live on a fairly main road, park on the roadside and have lost a few mirrors since I've lived here
climate control - try as I might I could never get it just right , I always had to fiddle with mine
Comand - for Sat Nav - I always, always get lost when driving around Chorleywood

Not essential but worth considering:
Parktronic - I imagine this is useful at first until you get to know the length of your car
paddles - bit gimmicky depending on your driving style and the traffic you drive in
airscarf - nice to have but not a deal breaker, this depends if you want to drive your car with the roof open for 8 months of the year or 10..(some are nuts and do 12 months )

Optional Luxury:
Fitted Luggage - one of my biggest beefs was that I could not get 2 good sized suitcases in, but if I had the fitted luggage I would have been able to get everything I needed into it

 

[flango]

Save yourself a whole load of grief don't go for the 7G box it is a complete dog and will definitely fail prematurely. Don't take my word for it just use the search function or ask *** what his 7G box is like.

 

[MOCAŠ]

^^^ Just to counter the above comment, I've had my SLK 350 for over five years now, and the 7G 'box has never given me any trouble at all. Perhaps it is better suited to some MB models/engines than others?

In fact, the car as a whole has been a model of reliability.

 

[GP801]

Agree with most of the above.
I think 17 wheels with ordinary suspension is a better option.
Full climate is very good.
Ours is very high spec - Comand, harman karman audio, auto, phone kit, climate, airscarf, heated leather seats, electric memory seats, remote roof operation, heated steering wheel, auto fold mirrors, colour solid red (fire opal). Apart from electric passenger seat and remote roof they are all worthwhile. Heated steering wheel is brilliant if you do want to drive all year wit the roof down.
Go for the highest spec you can find. Not cost much more used than poverty spec ones.
It will look stunning in Fire Opal (if you can find one) rather than the usual black or silver.
Never had any trouble with ours in 5 years.

 

[flango]

^^^ Just to counter the above comment, I've had my SLK 350 for over five years now, and the 7G 'box has never given me any trouble at all. Perhaps it is better suited to some MB models/engines than others?

In fact, the car as a whole has been a model of reliability.

I think you are bang on with that comment the box is suited to some cars more than others, but I was just looking earlier, this year we have had 9 7G boxes in all that have failed prematurely and needed repair. In the last 12 years of trading we have only seen 1 x 5G box for repair. To me that tells a story

 

[Tan]

Apart from all the options that have already been mentioned, i think the AMG styling package and wheels is a really nice option and makes the car look that little bit better.

Harmon Kardon sound is also very good and for me would be an essential, the last convertible we had, an Audi A4 had Bose and whilst not great did make a difference with the roof down. We didn't look for an upgraded sound system when we bought a new convertible for my wife this time and that is the one option that I really miss when the top is down.

 

[Noodle-Pulp]

You guys have reminded me of the lack of bass in mine with the roof down at high speeds.. does the HK sound system improve on this?

 

[GP801]

It is better but it can still struggle when the roof is down at speed. The perspex wind deflector makes it easier to hear the sound system as there is less wind noise.

 

[eng622]

Thanks for the consul picture and other pointers.
Regarding wheels I see cars with 18 inch AMG ones so is the ride affected unduly? I will put a separate post anyway as want to find out more about ride/handling.
Is there a build specification sheet when new listing all the options by name/number which hopefully gets passed on to the new owner?
I will put a post on about the direct steer as no comments so far

 

[Noodle-Pulp]

Is there a build specification sheet when new listing all the options by name/number which hopefully gets passed on to the new owner?

Some cars have the original spec sheets - some don't - but you can ask the dealer for this - and even if you forget, you can also ask for this when it's in for any service.

 

[Noodle-Pulp]

The perspex wind deflector makes it easier to hear the sound system as there is less wind noise.

For me I'd say this was an essential item too!

 

[GP801]

Perspex deflector is very good but you get reflections from the radio in it at night.

 

[Noodle-Pulp]

Perspex deflector is very good but you get reflections from the radio in it at night.

I think this depends on how high your seat is and how tall you are, I never had this problem.

 

[GP801]

I have got used to it. Does not bother me. In any case the perspex deflector is so much better than the mesh one

 

[Colin_b]

My slk350 has the 7g box. I've owned it for 3 years from new. I've had no issues with anything at all. 3 services, 2 rear tyres and that is it.

Essentials I'd say are airscarf if you are going to do roof down. Heated seats I think are standard on the 350.

Paddles on the wheel also bring slightly different software for the gearbox which seems to make the performance a bit sharper, though this is subjective. They do work well, though

Sport suspension is a little harsh on less than excellent roads.

Comand is a nice to have. Standard audio is a bit weak, to put it politely.

Overall, its exceeded my expectations, with the exception of the audio.