To convert or not to convert

[Roadie]

Hi all, i'm currently toying with the idea of upgrading from my CLK 320 coupe pre facelift to a facelift convertible, but.... having never owned or even driven a convertible I would appreciate peoples thoughts on them good or bad. Obviously with the current weather one would be lots of fun but of course we don't get weather like this very often so how reliable are they in the wet? Friends have all said that all convertibles leak and its just something you put up with and also that they are noisy at speed and so on so I would like to hear from anyone who's driven or owned one and what you thought of them.

 

[sweeney]

most modern convertibles don't leak in my experience. Sure they rattle a bit more than a tintop, and at speed the noise is greater, but never so much as to be a major discomfort or distraction.

You do ( well I do) tend to drive them more sedately, more cruising than hard driving.

A wind deflector will cut down alot of in car turbulence esp at high motorway speeds, but I don't do long m'way trips top down... not many folks do.

Ir depends what you want, to me they are an uplifting mode of transport that all year round offers you the chance to feel the elements.

It is like having two cars in one, as even in cold cold days they are snug.

Heated seats are great for those fine clear autumn/winter days, roof down.

I could never go back to the claustrophobic feel on a conventional car ( had 5 cabrios now)... but they are not everyone's taste.

Test drive a demostrator for 24 hours. ideally on a mixed day weather wise.

 

[Howard]

No leaks in mine either ....

It goes well , the convertibles are about 200kg heavier than the coupes. I have a 320 cabrio and as Sweeney says , while it does pick up its skirt and go when you want it to ( and very well at that ) i get more pleasure out of just cruising in it , you know full well that you can toast the Garys at the lights if you want to , but you just don't feel the need.

A lot of cabrios had the deflector nicked at the PDI stage ( they were standard ) so you will have to trawl Ebay if yours is missing (£150 ish) .

I find the interior of mine only a little bit noisier than the coupe with the hood up. Not found too much scuttle shake either although it is a bit ' looser ' than the coupe.

I like it. Just wish the gearbox was working at the moment

Cycle the roof once a week ( even in the winter ) because if it seizes up , its a lot of money to repair !

 

[aka$h]

The CLK roof has a glass window, and a 1piece canvas, they are very quite for a rag top. I used to have a r129 and a CLK at the same time, and in terms of noise the clk was FAR more refnied.

 

[Roadie]

you know full well that you can toast the Garys at the lights if you want to , but you just don't feel the need.

So true.

Thank you for that info, I think that after my test drive I will be upgrading, I've already found the car that meets the exact specs i'm after and have already confirmed the deal with the garage, so I will keep you all posted.

Lets just hope this lovely weather stays around for a wee while longer.

 

[Roadie]

Oh one other thing, when I was discussing the new car with the garage I asked if the cam belt had been changed. He said that the CLK has a 'chain' which is never changed, not being much of a mechanic is this true?

 

[Will]

Oh one other thing, when I was discussing the new car with the garage I asked if the cam belt had been changed. He said that the CLK has a 'chain' which is never changed, not being much of a mechanic is this true?

Yes, they do use a chain, and generally they'll never need changing.

If you were keeping it 20+ years or doing say 150-200K+ miles it might be worth considering. Otherwise, if it's quiet and there's no other issues, you're unlikely to have any problems.

I bet the majority of these engines that have even covered very high mileages are still running on the original chains.

There are however 12 spark plugs to change, which makes for a fairly expensive service bill - probably a good bet to have done at an indi garage

Will

 

[Gucci]

Never seen a "slashed roof" either - another gem people like to use! I had a ..ahem....Z3.....ok ok, and I actually really enjoyed it. The only water leak I had was when I pushed hard against the seal while cleaning it. Otherwise, no rain water ever. It was quiet and cosy in winter - not noisy at all. The only thing that bothered me was the look of the roof over time. I treated it etc, but of course it's never as slick looking as the rest of the car. Creases, dust and some discolouration will form over time.

 

[Dragon]

Have two cars, one for the summer and one for the winter just like you have lighter clothing in summer than in winter.

Have a hard folded roof like the slk because it costs you dear if someone slit your softtop, to repair and replace. Cabriolet are not fun to drive in winter with the roof unfolded unless it the expensive one like the SL. It never too hot with the roof unfolded because you enjoy the wind in your hair unless to you have to tail a smelly diesel for miles.

 

[Beetnik]

SLK - best of both worlds.

 

[Geezer]

But no rear seats!

 

[Beetnik]

Even better - no kids!

 

[Mark300SL]

Have two cars, one for the summer and one for the winter just like you have lighter clothing in summer than in winter.

Have a hard folded roof like the slk because it costs you dear if someone slit your softtop, to repair and replace. -

R129 with a hardtop is a dream to drive in winter unless its actually snowing,
but then most auto RWd cars with wide rear tyres are the same
It has a lightweight but very effective hardtop with Glass windows and heated rear screen - it also somehow totally transforms the look of the car

 

[comports]

Just to add to this. I can quite comfortably (although I have only done it once) travel at speeds in excess of the limit on a motorway with the roof down and wind deflector up and it absolutely lovely. Hardly any wind in the cabin and quite comfortably chat with passenger so low noise levels as well.

Mine certainly does not leak and is not particularyly noisy with the top up on the motorway. Best of both worlds I say. - Summer car and winter car with heated rear screen..!!

My 2p worth anyhow.

 

[SilverSaloon]

i never had any leak issues with my W208 CLK cabrio.

Great car, good looks. However living in scotland, i hardly ever got the roof down. Depends if you are happy driving with a cold face or not....