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W208 CLK 320 (OEM+ Restoration)

Chris499

New Member
Joined
Nov 30, 2024
Messages
9
Location
Crewe
Car
CLK320
Hello,

Picked up a 2001 CLK 320 last month, thought I would share as it progresses.
My intention is to make this turnkey, and OEM+ with some tasteful upgrades.
Genuine 43k miles on the clock and totally standard. I am the 3rd owner.
Brilliant silver with mint black leather interior.

Couple of scrapes and scratches to be sorted out, but only 1 small area of rust on the front driver wing.. other than this looks really good and underneath very clean. Interior mint bar a small tear on the driver seat bolster which I'll get repaired asap and the electric mirror button is missing, cheap fix.

Other bits to fix quickly.. steering is vague/unresponsive, drivers electric seat will only move forwards and folding rear seats don't fold (nothing happens when the lever is pulled).

First set of upgrades I'll be doing:

- Install cheap touchscreen carplay unit in place of stock CD player (install better one later)
- Source, paint and fit genuine CLK55 front and rear bumpers and side skirts
- Decide on what wheels to replace the 16 inch wheels its currently on (I'm thinking 18" monoblocks from the E55 with low profile tyres will fit without any messing about?)


In the meantime, here's some pictures of the car at the dealer just before it was delivered:

pre-purchase1.jpg


Pre-Purchase2.jpg
Pre-Purchase1.jpg

Pre-Purchase5.jpg
 
First thing was install of an Android auto unit - and I went for the Eonon X3 which had some good reviews, and was cheap at £120. It also included a microphone and rear view camera unit. This mod isn't for everyone (OEM purists will of course prefer the stock setup) but for daily usability having android auto/carplay and being able to make bluetooth calls is a game changer.

To do this upgrade I needed to order radio removal keys from Ebay (£3), an ISO plug adapter from Amazon (£8), and then tap into the cigarette lighter for switched power (already had a roll of electrical wire and electrical tape). Also had to cut out the plastic shelf to make room for the double DIN unit (used cutting pliers and a file!)

Lost the steering wheel controls (which I'll fix later) and need to install the microphone... but unit is in and fully functional. Took about 90 mins. At some point I'll also have a go at the rear camera, which should be interesting. Pics below.

TS1.jpg

TS2.jpg
 
I scoured Ebay trying to find a genuine AMG kit and eventually managed to find a chap who had all the bits and was willing to deliver.

Paid £550 for the parts and £100 for delivery which felt like a really decent price (given there are listing on Ebay for £300+ for a single side skirt!).

That said, all the panels were bare (missing covers and peripherals) and the front bumper was damaged and had been repaired previously, plus was missing the centre grille.

Below are a couple of images showing the front bumper and damage circled, and second showing side skirts and rear bumper:

Front Bumper 1.jpg

Rear Bumper.jpg




Next was trying to source the missing peripherals, before looking to get the front bumper fixed, and the whole lot painted.

- Headlight washing system covers for front bumper x2 = £50 (Mercedes)
- AMG specific fog lamp units for front bumper x2 = £191 (Mercedes)
- AMG specific jacking point covers for side skirts x4 = £48 (Aftermarket... NLA from Merc)
- Centre grille piece specific for AMG bumper = £72 (Aftermarket... NLA from Merc)

Just waiting for the jacking covers en route from Poland, but rest of parts below:

3.jpg

1.jpg

2.jpg




Bodykit booked in for repairs and paint 6th Jan 2025.

If anyone has retrofitted one of these onto the standard (Elegance) car... let me know if there's anything to be aware of.
I'm hoping the front and rear bumpers will be bolt on using the existing fixings..
Side skirts I'm going to order new set of clips. The skirts I have are from a convertible and look to have a slightly different configuration to the coupe which I'll figure out.

I'll post an update once the work is done!
 
Looking forward to seeing the car with the AMG kit and the wheels. It will transform the look of the car 100%.
I’ve had two CLK’s this shape, one was a 320 with 18k on the clock and another one was a 230K with 20k on the clock.
 
Nice car and look forward to the updates. I sold my 208 320 coupe last year and do miss it.

Wheel choice is a personal thing of course, but I would steer clear of 202/210 monoblocks just because I feel they suit the saloons and estates best.

I always was on the look out for C55 18s (some on eBay now - typical) as think they suit the fresher coupe lines better. Also I understood they go on with just longer wheel nuts.
 
Few updates to the CLK.

Couldn't get the side skirt jacking covers from Merc so ordered these 3D printed pieces from Poland. They're not perfect but sit flush enough and once painted should do the job. Full kit now ready to go to the painters first week in Jan, hopefully will have back and fitted week or so later.

Side skirt covers 2.jpg

Side skirt covers 3.jpg





Landed on a set of genuine early W211 E55 wheels for £550 delivered including nearly new tyres (budget but good enough for now). Tim from Raceways American wheels sorted me out with a set of hybrid 12mm bolts with R13 seat to fit the wheels properly (closest I could get)... but once on, realised the rears would need spacers as fouling the inner arch. Somehow managed to order 1x spacer (d'oh!) so waiting for the other one but thankfully the kind folks at Demon Tweeks have posted me out the second one at unit price only. Will then have to see about ordering more bolts.

Wheels going in locally w/c 6th Jan to get powder coated, and I'll then think about polishing the lip... some pictures below, will post better one's once I've finished.

New wheels on:

New wheels side view.jpg


Forgot to take before pictures so a quick spot the difference from the Ring camera:

Before and after.jpg

Bolts:

New bolts.jpg


Spacer (singular :fail: ):

Spacer 1.jpg




Whilst I had the jack out, quickly swapped over the old damper for a new Sachs unit I'd picked up. Old unit was shot.
Have ordered a Meyle drag link assembly to change out in the new year which I'm figuring combined with the new damper should fix the vague steering.


Damper 1.jpg

Damper 2.jpg


Finally, every little counts... replaced the missing mirror button (£3.99 from ebay).

Before:

Mirror button before.jpg

After:

Mirror button after.jpg


Next update should hopefully have the AMG kit painted and fitted, wheels painted and fitted and drag link swapped over.

Merry Christmas!
 
Hi all - alloys came back from the powder coaters on Wednesday, a before and after shot below, with a picture of the wheels on the car. Once the bumpers and respray are done, I'll look to get the lips polished.


Before on the left, after on the right.
Wheels before and after comparison.jpg


Powder Coated Wheels.jpg






First pictures of the bumpers being prepped at the painters.

Front bumper:

Front Bumper - Combined Prep.jpg



Rear bumper:

Rear Bumper - Combined Prep.jpg



Car currently in bits awaiting re-spray. More updates to follow.
 
Evening all,

Got the car back last week from the painters.... had a total strip down, every inconsistency made good, then primed and painted. Really happy with the paint job (although they did fit the front grille centre piece upside down which I had to fix!) Missing the rear Merc badge as you can see (on order), few clips here and there and needs a really good detail... but here's a couple of early pictures, starting to take shape now and looking good on the road. Will post some more once I've found a few hours to spend on it.

Did my first lengthy journey in the car yesterday to pick my daughter up - pretty impressed with it, but did notice it doesn't like sitting in traffic much, temperature needle was twitching between halfway and 3 quarters.... is that normal in these?? I'm guessing not.... quickly goes back down to dead centre once driving again but will take a look unless someone tells me not to!


Day 2 - Rear.png

Day 1 - Front.png
 
Good stuff.

Crying out for a wood and leather steering wheel.

The W220 wheel bolts straight on and comes with the leather stitched air bag, which is lovely.
 
Congrats on this beast, she's stunning and a great choice.
Welcome to the family, here's mine.

20230910_203317.jpg
Your car came up a few times when I was looking for ideas on what to do for for mine... it's a stunner and the standard I'm looking top get mine to! Love those monoblock wheels
 
Your car came up a few times when I was looking for ideas on what to do for for mine... it's a stunner and the standard I'm looking top get mine to! Love those monoblock wheels
Contrary to common belief, the wheels on my car are 2 piece wheels. Lots of people refer to them as Monoblocks, but they are far from it. Definitely not a "Mono" block cast wheels.
They are officially known as the AMG SL-Type (Two Piece) wheels manufactured by BBS.

They were specific to the R129 and were offered on several other AMG models as standard.
 
What a difference the AMG kit has made!
I love the new look...... Car looks great now :)
 

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