Merc SL300/350/500?

bonzos

Hi guys,had a soft spot for one these for years. im getting brave now and see a good few for sale around the €10k mark(91-95). it would only be used as a 2nd/weekend car...would it be likely to become a future classic?any views on which model or pitfalls when buying

Tommyboy40

Beautiful car, i waited 20 years to own one.
First off forget the SL320, underpowered with known head gasket issues and only 1 - 2 mpg difference between it and the 500.
Now the 500 is a beast! eyepoppingly quick and eyeturning. I'd try to buy a 96 at least, 91 - 95 had issues with a biodegradeable wiring loom that will need replacing if it's not already done. there was a facelift in 96, giving a tidier interior, a 5 speed auto making it more economical. Pre 96 cars start in 2nd gear so no burning people at the lights. Service history is critical as parts can be expensive. The cars biggest weakness is the hydraulic roof mechanism, the seals wear and are mad money to replace at a main dealer, watch out for fluid leaks at the sunvisors, the first hydraulic cylinders to go are there

bonzos

Tommyboy40 wrote: »

Beautiful car, i waited 20 years to own one.
First off forget the SL320, underpowered with known head gasket issues and only 1 - 2 mpg difference between it and the 500.
Now the 500 is a beast! eyepoppingly quick and eyeturning. I'd try to buy a 96 at least, 91 - 95 had issues with a biodegradeable wiring loom that will need replacing if it's not already done. there was a facelift in 96, giving a tidier interior, a 5 speed auto making it more economical. Pre 96 cars start in 2nd gear so no burning people at the lights. Service history is critical as parts can be expensive. The cars biggest weakness is the hydraulic roof mechanism, the seals wear and are mad money to replace at a main dealer, watch out for fluid leaks at the sunvisors, the first hydraulic cylinders to go are there

Most of the cars for sale on the irish market are 280/300/320's .....is there much difference in tax on a 500?are there many owners clubs for such cars or are they a bit to "young" for for these groups?if i follow up on this i will probabally only use it 6 months of the year,i just dont think that a car of this quality would loose too much money in years to come.

Dades

bonzos wrote: »

.....is there much difference in tax on a 500?

Everything above 3.0 litres is taxed at €1,566, so unless one of the 129 engines dropped under 3.0 that's what you'd be paying.

That said some the "3.0 litre" engines probably fall into the next bracket down: 2,901cc -3,000cc is €1,293 pa.

Tommyboy40

If you are going to buy one why not get the V8? the tax is the same as are the running costs, that 320Bhp engine is only ticking over at 80mph. Try test driving a similar aged s class, the 280 wouldn't pull socks off a dead man

Tommyboy40

also the reason you don't see the 500 here is the huge price jump between the 320 (€125,000) and the 500 (€175,000) and our inherent meanness wouldn't let us buy the big ones

74merc

A lot of people reckon that the SL320 is the best compromise of all the models and are powerful enough for effortless cruising. There are 2 versions, the earlier straight 6 and the later V6. The earlier engine does have engine wiring loom issues, the V6 is probably more reliable although not as nice an engine. I'd say the most important consideration is the condition of the car and in particular the hood. The later cars have the 5 speed gearbox which is not as reliable as the old 4 speed but a lot smoother. The later gearbox was designed to be sealed for life but experience has found that it needs a fluid change every 40K miles. There are lots of horror stories about 722.6 (5 speed) failures. All in all, they're pretty bullet proof though and don't seem to suffer from the dreaded tin-worm to the degree of other MBs from the time.

MercMad

The early vs late cars are difcferent ends of the spectrum. Late model, low mileage cars with good spec are still worth a lot of money.

I think its the early 300SL 24V that was the bad engine the rest are fine. As said a late model V8 is the one to go for but a post '96 SL500 would be off your budget, or at least one IN your budget would require more spent whether you know it at the time or not.

Just make sure everything works, check ex-UK cars for rust, false service histories and aviod non metallics.

If you can find decent early SL500's or late SL280/300/320's in your budget best bet is to try them for size !!

By the way we run a very active Mercedes Club in Ireland, all areas, and there are plenty of W129 owners you could talk too !

Tommyboy40

The wiring loom issues affect all the V8's from 90 up to 95, i think that the V6's are strained to pull these heavy cars about

bonzos

I just think people have bought a lot worse for €10k in recent times

MercMad

Early cars are straight 6's, I think the V6 is 98> roughly, and from the various Mercs I have seen over the years I would look at all the wrining loom.Whilst there are know typical problems I have seen the insulation breaking down in many areas on may cars !

Obvious;y the V8 has all the power but sometime the smaller motor is all you need.Depends on what you are after.Personally I would take a mint, good spec smaller engined car over a less than perfect V8.

Tommyboy40

If you are on a budget and want value for your money, I think it is best to go with an early '90s SL. Model years '93-'95 have issues with the wiring harness insulation which are well-documented, so you may as well look at '90-'92. Not sure which specific years, but mid-90s cars have the additional problem of faulty evaporators which develop leaks in the A/C system.

The '96 and newer cars have advanced diagnostics, but a drawback is that most independent mechanics don't have the necessary tools, and these cars must go to the dealer for many simple repairs. But on the earlier models all you need is a $2 LED to read and clear codes.