R plate SL60 AMG 19,000 miles

[stats007]

Cat C means its had a thump at some time - how good was the repair? The roof/hardtop thing I just don't buy - you can't just pinch a hard top off these cars - they're held on hydraulically.....

Greg

It doesn't necessarily mean it's had a thump - according to his story it was because both roofs were stolen, the electrics damaged in the process and some water damage. An odd story but feasible I suppose.

 

[BTB 500]

Bill, it doesn't have ADS....look in the engine bay pic - the MacP strut towers don't have anything going to them. This makes me think it doesn't have ADS (plus what Nick says).

That's unanimous then! My ADS car has a full cover on it, so easier to peek at the console switches than open the bonnet

 

[KLP 92]

Cat C is normally structural damage.

 

[Satch]

Cat C is normally structural damage.

Now where is that Barge Pole.....

 

[imadoofus]

It's in Cov, and so am I.

I'll see what I can do....

PJ

 

[glojo]

It's in Cov, and so am I.

I'll see what I can do....

PJ

Thanks PJ, as has been said the car has in my opinion more to its history than this dealer is disclosing. I thought that if the seller knows the car has been involved in a serious accident, they must declare it.

I cannot help but suspect this dealer is trying to be clever. The reason it has problems with the roof could well be that it has been rolled!!

Sort of when your son phones and states he has bent the car aerial!! Under severe interrogation you find out the aerial was bent when the car rolled over!!!

It might be as stats007 points out, but........

Regards,
John

 

[marc777]

I've put a bid on but don't expect anything - looks nice but evryone is right about the dubious history. A simple letter from insurance company re details of claim would substantiate the roof thing.

Neighbourhood isn't exactly SL territory - or am I being unfair?


Lets see where it goes

 

[Shude]

Cat C is normally structural damage.

Please read:

http://mbclub.co.uk/forums/showthread.php?t=10871

 

[imadoofus]

Neighbourhood isn't exactly SL territory - or am I being unfair?

I'd like to point out (and I have no loyalty here), that not all of Coventry looks like that

It's possible he just has a lockup in that neighbourhood, and he lives somewhere better (like Berkshire)

pm sent to marc777 about something. Once I get a reply, I'll go and see the car.

PJ

 

[Thmsshaun]

Neighbourhood isn't exactly SL territory - or am I being unfair?

May be a tad unfair. I am by no means in an AMG street / area.

 

[glojo]

I've put a bid on but don't expect anything - looks nice but evryone is right about the dubious history. A simple letter from insurance company re details of claim would substantiate the roof thing.

Neighbourhood isn't exactly SL territory - or am I being unfair?


Lets see where it goes

Good luck Marc but PLEASE remember this man is a salvage recovery dealer. DO NOT take at face value anything he tells you. Contact the previous owner and ask them the reason why the insurance company wrote the car off?

If this dealer does not have the V5 then I would strongly advise you to contact the DVLA and obtain the owners details.

I hope I am not teaching you to suck eggs, as I simply do not want you to buy a car that has been repaired by a garage somewhere that perhaps might not have done a professional repair.

Would your local dealership have any history of the vehicle if you gave them the registration or VIN number?

Good luck,
John

 

[imadoofus]

Neighbourhood isn't exactly SL territory - or am I being unfair?

When I first moved to Coventry, my g/f had a two bed terrace house, at the time worth £30k-ish

Four doors down the road was a bloke in a similar, but shabbier house. He owned a Bentley Mulsanne, which he bought new, and replaced every two years.

PJ

Coventry's not the end of the world... but you can see it from here

 

[janner]

Cat C is normally structural damage.

Agreed, Stolen/recovered with minor roof damage would be CatD (if recorded at all). Cat C implies serious damage.
This car is a dog, period.
Some examples of Cat C damage:
S280 Cat C
C200 Cat C
Even Cat Ds can have fairly nasty damage.
C class Cat D
Especially on expensive cars

 

[marc777]

Good luck Marc but PLEASE remember this man is a salvage recovery dealer. DO NOT take at face value anything he tells you. Contact the previous owner and ask them the reason why the insurance company wrote the car off?

As ever, wise words John. Thank you.

Rest assured that if the bidding gets "serious" then I would do the due diligence....

I take it back about location - you are all quite right of course!

......although I would rather have seen it pictured on Maffs lawn !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[glojo]

......although I would rather have seen it pictured on Maffs lawn !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It's already been over my cliffs

Good luck
John

Edit:
Just noticed the car was previously being sold from Spalding in Lincolnshire. Is this the same seller??? Or has someone bought it and then decided to sell it?

 

[imadoofus]

It turns out the car is about a mile and a half from my office. He's not around until Friday, so I'll get over there then and report back.

PJ

 

[imadoofus]

Ok, I've seen it, and I've driven it (heeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheeheehee!!!!!!! )

Summary: It is what it is.

Note: Sorry, these pictures are a bit big, so you may have to keep scrolling left and right to read this, but I wanted them to show detail, and I don't have time to resize them.

The guy has owned it since 23/03/04, although it's in his wife's name, the address ties up.

Azurite Blue Metallic with colour-coded AMG 3-piece wheels. Grey leather interior. Genuine mileage. 2 stamps in the service book. Both from MB in Blackburn. All the paperwork is there, including some old MOT's.

It has Mobilo, and is fitted with a tracker.

The car was previously stolen with the key, which is how the hardtop was removed. Car was also recovered with the key in it. I know that still leaves some doubt over the Cat C, but the rest of the car is ripple-free, with perfect paint match. The hardtop is apparently 8 grand, plus the hood and frame were missing. Along with water damage, it's easy to see how an insurance company would have costed this at £15k.

Engine: Very clean, silent, smoke free, VERY fast ( etc)
Bodywork: Other than the insurance damage, it's not that bad. It's low mileage, but it's also 7 years old, and the bodywork is consistent.

Flitch panel has lost paint on the left hand edge. There is a residue of masking tape on the top of the front bumper, normally hidden when the bonnet is closed.

The base of the offside A-post has lost paint. It looks like the back of the bonnet may have rubbed it when opening. It doesn't seem to do it now.

Towing eye covers on front spoiler are missing, as are the covers on the nearside sill. Nearside plastic lower door cover makes contact with plastic cover behind the front wheelarch, and has caused a blemish.

Small amount of condensation inside NSF indiicator.

There is a hardtop, which is the same colour, but not the same chassis number. It is panoramic, with a blind, and the same colour interior trim. Looks good, but for a 5mm x 3mm stone chip on the offside C-pillar. I have not seen it on the car.

The soft top looks watertight. Initially, it doesn't go down. However, if you apply some pressure on the spanner inserted into the header rail on the passenger side, and then operate the hood, the back half of it works, but it doesn't unclip from the header rail. If you then raise the roll-bar, and operate the hood again, it does unclip ( ), and then it goes away behind the rear deck just fine. Hood is black, and has a repair on the nearside, just behind the door glass. There is no lining.

Wheels are AMG 3-piece. Colour-coded. Not kerbed, but suffering from the odd chip (one on OSR wheel badly touched-in). Tyre are P-Zeros with 2 - 3mm tread. NSF is soft.

Previous owners (apparently) have faintly scratched the bodywork removing and replacing the hardtop (this owner has only had one for a month). This has been blown in, and barely shows.

Interior: Needs a clean. Rear seats fitted. Condition is consistent with mileage. The leather trim on the drivers A-post has distorted, apparently due to water damage when the hood was off. This trim has been secured with a self-tapping screw. Wood trim on driver's door badly scratched. Sensors for alarm are hanging down from both A-posts.

This is what the Russian thingy says about the options fitted.

Electric memory seats (2)
automatically dipping inside rear view mirror
cassette compartment in centre console
center console below instrument panel with cassette compartment
glass roof
instrument with mileage reading and english lettering
outside mirrors le/ri with memory
front and rear speakers - without radio
rear seats used on sl models
folding top fabric5010 dark blue
amg styling package - front spoiler, side skirts and rear apron
Shell modification for AMG-wheels
7.5 x 16 et37 fr. axle 205/55, rear axle 225/50, 1-piece
Change of year of model, last figure shows new model year
AMG technology package
extension tube on the roof, front left
elimination of ownership certificate but with coc papers

Engine number is correct.

This guy also owns an Alpina B12 (which I reckon is a bona-fide classic. I think there were only ever half a dozen of them in RHD). Which is also on Ebay. He only wants to sell one car, and would prefer it to be the SL. If he sells the Alpina, he'll put the money into the SL and keep it. He needs the money for some building work which is ongoing.

My conclusion is that this is a genuine car. He was very honest, and keen to point out bad points that he thought I may not have spotted. Yes, there's a question mark over the costs of putting the car right, but what there is is straight. It's in Autotrader tomorrow at £17.5k. First £15k gets it, he says.

If it's a good offer, he says he'll also throw in the three Goodyear Eagle F1's he has. They are nearly new, but have been standing outside, without wheels for a while, and are full of water. I wouldn't put them on a SL60.

If I've missed anything, just holler.

PJ

 

[glojo]

Hi PJ,
An excellent write-up with excellent pictures. A big thank you for taking the time and effort to do it.

What is the connection between this gentleman and the salvage person in Lincolnshire, as per the previous advert?

Thanks again,
John

 

[imadoofus]

Dunno John, and TBH, I forgot to ask.

However, when I was there, a mate of the owner turned up, and I think his name was Surjit (Ebay seller's ID was 'surj_salvage')

The owner bought the car from a salvager, in other words the theft was before he owned it. Maybe the salvager was his mate, and he had tried to sell it through the same guy, knowing that it's not easy to sell a Cat C car)

PJ

 

[glojo]

Dunno John, and TBH, I forgot to ask.

However, when I was there, a mate of the owner turned up, and I think his name was Surjit (Ebay sleer's ID was 'surj_salvage')

The owner bought the car from a salvager, in other words the theft was before he owned it. Maybe the salvager was his mate, and he had tried to sell it through the same guy, knowing that it's not easy to sell a Cat C car)

PJ

Your head must have been spinning with all the different questions you clearly have asked (well done) :bannana: :bannana:

It is so easy to be overly suspicious of any private sale and I think you have summed up this car for what it is.

Regards,
John

Edit:
Just tried to give you a rep point