My SL55 AMG

[Talkwrench]

Hello all, I'm new to Mercedes and the forum and my first post.

I recently purchased a rather lovely SL55, I've always liked them and after I finally let my RX7 go I decided to scratch the itch, and wow am i glad I did. Its magnificent and I love it!

To be honest I knew there was a few things that needed doing to it but I was completely sold on that paint colour I believe its quite rare and when the sun hits it really pops! According to the VIN its designo chromaflair 031U can anyone shed any light on the rarity of it? The previous owner suggested there are 3 in the UK but i took that as pre-sales BS to be honest.

It does need a good detailing to correct the finish but its low on the list of things to do and will probably be done in the spring now. I've already given it damn good clean under the bonnet and interior and I've had all the wheel arch liners out to check for corrosion and any hidden history! Thankfully it was a tidy and just needed cleaning / degreasing and I've sprayed a decent covering of Bilt Hamber clear chassis wax in the areas that probably need it most, I've been checking all the usual suspect areas for leaks and so far so good and I've cleaned all the seals and regreased them with silicone grease. Car has a full service history and some recent big repair bills including a new SBC pump and gearbox module from MB with new batteries and bits and pieces.

I've ordered a massive list of parts to hopefully get the old girl feeling a bit tighter, there are some knocks from the lower links, brakes are well past it, engine mounts feel like they've given up and it needs some bigger, better wheels & tyres then lowering. I like to work on my own cars so I will slowly update this thread as my journey with this car unfolds.

 

[flowrider]

Welcome to the forum from another SL owner. Love the colour and it is indeed rare, I have only seen 2 cars this colour including yours. If you do a search you will find many threads describing what to check on the SL, I have done a few.........

1. Check the boot seal at the bottom of rear window as it tends to leak but there is a cheap fix for this. If the boot carpet is damp then I suspect the seal leaks.
2. Check all 5 water drains are clear, 1 in the front at the base of the airbox (which is under the passenger side bonnet vent), 1 each at base of c pillars and 1 each at the ends of the boot seal. Pull back the passenger carpet and make sure it is dry underneath, a wet or damp carpet indicates a blocked or previously blocked airbox drain.
3. Make sure the PSE pump in the boot is dry, its under the boot floor panel on the nearside under a big sponge. If the sponge is dry then the pump should be dry.
4. The ABC suspension hydraulic fluid should be light green in colour, if its brown or even worse black get it changed.
6. The rear wheel arches can rust, the inner arch lining allows crud to collect.
6. Check the age of the consumer battery, this is the one in the boot. This battery runs all the electrics and has a hard life. The battery under the bonnet is only for starting the car.
7. Does the gearbox go from Park into Drive smoothly, these cars have a plastic linkage which can crack and break which results in being stuck in Park.
8. Listen for any metallic noise coming from the fuel tank, there is a baffle in the tank that can break free and cause an annoying rattle when the fuel level gets low.

 

[W1ghty]

Stunning car buddy . Looking forward to future updates

 

[Smart320]

looks very smart, love the colour

 

[Londonscottish]

Hello all, I'm new to Mercedes and the forum and my first post.

I recently purchased a rather lovely SL55, I've always liked them and after I finally let my RX7 go I decided to scratch the itch, and wow am i glad I did. Its magnificent and I love it!

To be honest I knew there was a few things that needed doing to it but I was completely sold on that paint colour I believe its quite rare and when the sun hits it really pops! According to the VIN its designo chromaflair 031U can anyone shed any light on the rarity of it? The previous owner suggested there are 3 in the UK but i took that as pre-sales BS to be honest.

It does need a good detailing to correct the finish but its low on the list of things to do and will probably be done in the spring now. I've already given it damn good clean under the bonnet and interior and I've had all the wheel arch liners out to check for corrosion and any hidden history! Thankfully it was a tidy and just needed cleaning / degreasing and I've sprayed a decent covering of Bilt Hamber clear chassis wax in the areas that probably need it most, I've been checking all the usual suspect areas for leaks and so far so good and I've cleaned all the seals and regreased them with silicone grease. Car has a full service history and some recent big repair bills including a new SBC pump and gearbox module from MB with new batteries and bits and pieces.

I've ordered a massive list of parts to hopefully get the old girl feeling a bit tighter, there are some knocks from the lower links, brakes are well past it, engine mounts feel like they've given up and it needs some bigger, better wheels & tyres then lowering. I like to work on my own cars so I will slowly update this thread as my journey with this car unfolds.

One of my all-time favourite cars.

But i can't see any pictures :-(

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Lovely

 

[C240Sport97]

fantastic colour

 

[togthecat]

A very nice car, and that colour really suits it. Welcome and enjoy the car.

 

[Londonscottish]

A very nice car, and that colour really suits it. Welcome and enjoy the car.

Ah OK I can see it now. V unusual colour. I like dark metallics that pop in the sun.

 

[Talkwrench]

Thank you all for the comments and warm welcome. I have some plans for later this week to start rebushing and swapping out some mounts and ball joints, new brakes etc. Should I take some pic's? Is that somethin you'd want to see?

 

[mattk1]

Welcome, again. Great car & yes we all love pics!

KR Matt

 

[togthecat]

Yes please to more pics ☺

 

[C43AMG]

Let us know the spec year history etc.

Love the colour, very rare. Very like my favourite MB colour, Almandine Black. A set of AMG 1V wheels would set the car off

Yes lots of before and after photo's

 

[Talkwrench]

Let us know the spec year history etc.

Love the colour, very rare. Very like my favourite MB colour, Almandine Black. A set of AMG 1V wheels would set the car off

Yes lots of before and after photo's

As for history its a 2004 80K mile example, full MB & McClaren service history. Im the 8th owner and to be fair I bought it off condition really, I had a good dig around it looked to be in good shape and the paint colour totally sold it to me! haha.

As for spec, its the got Designo Chromaflair 031U paint, anthracite interior, panoramic roof, bose sound, massage heated & cooled seats, keyless go phone in the arm rest which has suddenly stopped opening. I've no idea what is standard equipment on these, I know! i really should have done more research ahead of purchasing and as usual I bought it with my heart. Im no stranger to working on cars and I'm highly confident I can get this car in tip top shape, the work starts tomorrow with swapping out bushings, ball joints and brakes all round & Thursday should see the engine & gearbox mounts swapped out.

List of known faults thus far are:-

Ash tray cover doesn't close
Arm rest wont open
Engine start / stop button doesnt work but keyless entry does. Hoping the button is at fault here
crack in the centre console plastics
Little cover missing from the all foldy bits in the back
Some wheel arch liner fasteners missing
Crank pulley has got a bit of a wobble on
Clunks like mad over speed bumps
Engine NVH is a bit much
brakes are haggered
tyres are perished!

So plenty to be getting on with. As for wheel choice, they're inbound but not AMG or OEM and certainly not Chinese!

Oh and I have already swapped the manky buttons for some aesthetically pleasing paddles

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

As for history its a 2004 80K mile example, full MB & McClaren service history. Im the 8th owner and to be fair I bought it off condition really, I had a good dig around it looked to be in good shape and the paint colour totally sold it to me! haha.

As for spec, its the got Designo Chromaflair 031U paint, anthracite interior, panoramic roof, bose sound, massage heated & cooled seats, keyless go phone in the arm rest which has suddenly stopped opening. I've no idea what is standard equipment on these, I know! i really should have done more research ahead of purchasing and as usual I bought it with my heart. Im no stranger to working on cars and I'm highly confident I can get this car in tip top shape, the work starts tomorrow with swapping out bushings, ball joints and brakes all round & Thursday should see the engine & gearbox mounts swapped out.

List of known faults thus far are:-

Ash tray cover doesn't close
Arm rest wont open
Engine start / stop button doesnt work but keyless entry does. Hoping the button is at fault here
crack in the centre console plastics
Little cover missing from the all foldy bits in the back
Some wheel arch liner fasteners missing
Crank pulley has got a bit of a wobble on
Clunks like mad over speed bumps
Engine NVH is a bit much
brakes are haggered
tyres are perished!

So plenty to be getting on with. As for wheel choice, they're inbound but not AMG or OEM and certainly not Chinese!

Oh and I have already swapped the manky buttons for some aesthetically pleasing paddles

McLaren service history? Tell us more!

 

[Londonscottish]

Crank pulley has got a bit of a wobble on

Engine NVH is a bit much

If the crank pulley is wobbling it's likely to be breaking up, if it's anything like the one on my 211 E500.

If there's too much NVH could be engine/gearbox mounts?

 

[Bert_W164]

Beautiful car, absolutely stunning.

RX7, always had a soft spot for them, never got round to owning one...if you have any pics of yours, would love to see that too

 

[Talkwrench]

McLaren service history? Tell us more!

Well to be honest I don't have any info other than the fact the service book has three stamps in it, when I've got more time I'll try and chase up invoices etc.

If the crank pulley is wobbling it's likely to be breaking up, if it's anything like the one on my 211 E500.

If there's too much NVH could be engine gearbox mounts?

Yeah I thinks its the rubber bit of the pulley has just had enough, I've ordered a new OEM pulley and some anodised pulleys to replace all the plastic idlers and various pulleys, it'll also need new belts as the pulley run out has worn the edges of the current belts. Engine & gearbox mounts are on the to do list, I have the parts to fit and im just working through the car. I've started on the rear end pressing out bushes and fitting new ones and replacing some arms etc. Those Mercedes engineers must have lost the plot when they spec'ed out the fasteners for this car, they literally used every possible bolt head from the catalogue inverted torx, torx, allen, ribes the bloody lot! This car has never been apart before the bolts put up one hell of a fight! The bushings were knackered and the lower outer ball joints on the rear were really sloppy. So at least the last two days of working on my back under the car should see a marked improvement! I really didn't take many pictures sadly, i was too busy swearing as I kept having to change sockets! Just about got the rear end back together this afternoon along with new discs, parking brake shoes and I was sent the wrong pads! So the old pads have gone back in, there is loads of life in them anyway but the discs were well past it.

Beautiful car, absolutely stunning.

RX7, always had a soft spot for them, never got round to owning one...if you have any pics of yours, would love to see that too

Thanks dude, RX7's lovely looking things and epic when they work, trust me though just don't do it! This was mine, a very rare type RZ, it was single turbo conversion and mapped by myself and ran about 450hp on a good day, It was quick!

So i've got one of those carbon diffusers to fit to the rear in place of the OEM mesh. I didn't realise the length of boot trim disassembly to get the rear bumper off! Its made me think twice but even then the original mesh wants painting anyway. Looks like I've no option but to go through the ball ache of stripping it all apart regardless. I'll try and get some more pictures of interesting bits next time i get under it. Thanks for looking and commenting guys

 

[Bert_W164]

There's too much sexy going on in one thread. That RX7 is stunning - rare to seem them looking so clean and fresh.

 

[Talkwrench]

There's too much sexy going on in one thread. That RX7 is stunning - rare to seem them looking so clean and fresh.

Haha Im only just getting started! Once I've got all the mechanicals are up to scratch the real fun can begin. I have some international packages inbound