Should I buy this 2003 SL500

[pentoman]

Hi all,

Wonder if I can borrow the collective mbclub brain for opinions on this R230 SL? It's nearly the cheapest on the market and I'm wary about the age and mileage. However condition looks good.

I actually wanted a newer one with fewer miles, I hope to have for 1-2 years then sell it on, hopefully without losing stacks on depreciation or repairs. Hence my worries about the age/mileage. It does however have Bose, distronic, massage seats, fans in seats, all of which appeal to me. Shame about the colour and wheels, not too bad but could be better for resale...

2003 SL500
92,000 miles
Full service history but not main dealer (anyone heard of the garage in the service book in the photo??)
Advertised at £11.5k but not sure what to offer if anything

Pics to follow in one second:

 

[pentoman]

 

[pentoman]

Thanks for your wisdom,

Russ

 

[RichardM]

Looks lovely!

 

[Wilsonuk]

Looks like an enormous amount of car for the money to me - I lost £36k in depreciation on my SL in 4 yrs of ownership, it was loved and treasured and someone has picked up a steal when they bought that! IMHO with big Mercs the kind of mileage on that isn't a worry but servicing on these is v expensive in my experience.

 

[crockers]

Are you buying or selling? Never seen so many photos unless in an advert.

Looks nice.

Why is the service book in German?

 

[timk]

Seems like value to me, if you're buying through a dealer make sure you get a good warranty with it though.

I remember when my old C55 went in for some warranty work at MB in B'ham they had an SL55 in which had suffered water ingress into the boot area, and the owner was presented with a bill somewhere around the £7k mark. Don't know whether water ingress is a known issue with these but might be something to check for?

 

[mirras]

Water in the boot and ABC problems are the biggest thing I'm aware of on these. Mine was a 2003 car which had minor water ingress, I didn't go the dealer route but instead used seal lubricant which kept the water at bay. The ABC had a new pump, valve block and two front struts replaced under warranty at a total of around £3500.

I would question the dirty spare wheel, if it's been used fair enough, if not then could that be water in the boot?

Other than those, lovely lovely car, very well spec'd and nice on the eye....

I really miss mine...

 

[4n0y-merc]

What a nice car, love the color, it looks great condition in the pictures, the light colored interia is not my choice but looks good.

 

[vincenz]

Why is the service book in German?

This

When I was looking for my CLK a garage said FMBSH but when I got there they showed me a service book for a C-class (w203 VIN on it).

Could be an innocent mistake, but the stamps in it do look a bit suspect.

 

[WOODYTHEWISE]

Looks very nice,however,apart from the service book being in German,the V5 states under 'engine number' 'not known' just had a look at my V5s and they both have the engine number? might be worth asking why.

 

[pentoman]

Thanks all, good to have experiences from some people comparatively in the know.

Aware of potential ABC and boot leak issues. What I'm not aware of is how you can really check for problems in these areas? If i go to see the car Then I can try to make the suspension go up and down, maybe check the suspension struts for leaks (but how easy is that to actually do?) but that's about it that comes to mind?

The boot - good spot about the spare tyre. I'll review the pic and have a look. Is it me or does the left side of the boot lid sit a bit high, and how can I check this isn't going to turn out to be significant?

The service history - yes, why is it in German? Suspicious? If I get serious then I can ring the dealers in the photos to confirm. Perhaps it's a simple as the early cars being sold before the factory had got round to printing English manuals so they all came with German ones? Possible. Anyway I can check if it's been serviced properly. I would like to use an independent garage (my family's, no less) to service this - is there anything particularly specialist and abnormal to pay attention to when servicing one of these?

 

[vincenz]

Knowing how Mercedes sequence their cars i know lit packs are market specific and even at this cars birth it wouldnt of been shipped with german items.

I would do some digging into it, i'd ring the original selling dealers service department and ask what history they know, a google of that concorde garage yields: Prestige Servicing - in Stockton-On-Tees TS18 3RB - 192.com not the most prestige place to get your SL serviced, but like wise it could be nothing to worry about.

Lovely motor though.

 

[MicB]

Nothing wrong with the colour nor the wheels......I think the 17'' Homans suit the car better than any other......especially if you want a decent drive. Mileage does not matter so far as the power unit is concerned......you are aware of most of the other issues and provided everything works and there is currently no water getting into the boot you can exact preventative measures very cheaply once you own the car. Struts and ABC pump.....who knows when..... but at the price you will be paying even if you were unlucky enough to have to do the lot it would still not have been an expensive car.
Look after the storm water drains. Needs a bit of tidying but nothing drastic.


Mic

 

[dokalj]

The vehicle could be a parallel import, this could explain the service book being in German.

Do you know who the supplying dealer was?

As stated above it could have been a factory order, that was collected.

If you ask MB, they should confirm. Bare in mind, they will be difficult if the vehicle is not in your name. May be you have a good contact at your local MB dealer?

I like the car! Also, a car of that age, you can not expect it to be perfect i.e. no blemishes.

dokalj

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Drivers side headlight looks full of condensation?

 

[pentoman]

Drivers side headlight looks full of condensation?

Yes, yes it does. This might be something I would have to live with - or can it be dealt with? Presumably a xenon headlight is ££££ so a new one is out of the question really.

 

[Deleted member 6183]

Do you have any pictures?

 

[Colin_b]

Do you have any pictures?

Same car on Pistonheads....



Should I - This SL500 (photos inside)

 

[bing]

Hmmm..Aside from being a german version, Service book has 2years gap, first service at 7k then at 36k?? Or did you just missed a page? A good history should have all the Invoices/bills/work and not just a stamped book.!

Well, an incomplete V5, as mentioned in other posts, indicates that it maybe a an import of some sort. If bought new from the EU it should have or had a "Certificate of Conformity" and based on this a complete V5 should then be issued. This one doesn't even show the model, which is basic.

Nice car as everyone here noted but I would be cautious and have a thorough check.