Used car advice: '98 Mercedes-Benz CLK 230K

Soldie

I went to view this car today. There was only a service history up until 70,000km despite the ad saying full service history. The car looks to be really well maintained and in great condition. It ran well on the short test drive I took it on. There is a tiny bit of rust around the boot's keyhole and a negligible amount around a couple of the wheel arches, but it's pretty cosmetic. I didn't notice anything out of the ordinary. Next week I might take it into the TÜV (Germany's NCT) for an independent inspection to see that it's mechanically sound, but I know that doesn't make up for the big gap in the service history. What are people's thoughts on this? Also, more general advice on what to expect from a car like this would be welcome.

Sobanek

If in doubt, avoid. Plenty of them in Germany.

visual

Inspect for more rust what you seen top side will be a fraction of whats on underside

Phil_Lives

first point:
you are in Germany; why not look for a 320 or something with a bigger engine that is only slightly less economic and slightly more expensive to tax or insure.
second point:
The further north you go in Germany the rustier the cars will be as the winters are harsher and more salt is spread.

Soldie

Thanks for the replies so far, guys. Any input on the service history?

visual

Its a big gap in history but not uncommon in older cars.

Previous owner might have kept up with servicing and replacing worn brake discs all fluids changed on time but its more likely it got minimum done and only faults fixed and oil changes

Without proof you need to budget for items than may not have been done coolant flush timing belt all oils changed brake clutch engine transmission etc..

A good mechanical inspection for worn bushes ball joints and check over engine gear box

you can check all the electrics work yourself.

Most owners stop with dealer servicing after car is a few years old so that would not be a show stopper but it would require a mechanic or someone who knows these cars well to check it over.

Soldie

Thanks for the advice. I'm leaning towards giving it a miss based on the significant gap in the history. Going to view this one later. Less extras but only one owner, a complete BMW service history and it's six cylinder.

ShadowHearth

I think you guys little bit over reacting with service history. It's a 98 car. Not a 08 car. Most likely looked after some indy garage. My car is 05 now and it has no service history as all work is done in my good friends garage, he is a very good mechanic and I am looking after my car too. I can ask him ro write me a bunch of receipts if anyone desires. Same way any service history cam be done.
So in short: lack of service history not a sign of bad car.

As for clk230 Itself. I owned clk200 00' and it is a fantastic machine. I was way too young for it as I had it when I was 22-23, so it was too boring for me. Now I would love to have it again as I understand what it offered.
Good looking, big fat boat, which feels nice and drives nice. Biggest issue with clk was suspension as it does not like horrible irish roads. It being in Germany, you won't have that issue op.

Lovely car, try to look up one more if you can. E36 beemer is completely different animal.

kermitpwee

That Bmw looks in amazing condition

Phil_Lives

there are thousands of CLKs on kleinanzeigen.ebay.de
you'll find something in better condition and cheaper than the one you linked to.

fmcg_scribe

As someone who owned for three years a UK BMW 740i (E38) from the same year, I have to advise caution about buying a big German premium/luxury car from that era.

Leaving aside condition, mileage, spec, and service history, Audi, BMW, and Mercedes cars from the 1990s were packed with lots of electronics and many of these gadgets can cause problems that are difficult and costly to resolve - pixelated dashboard displays, battery drains and other annoyances are not uncommon and just the tip of the iceberg. Equally, it's becoming harder and harder to get certain replacement parts for Audi, BMW, and Mercedes cars from that period - you might have to "live" with certain things as they are. Further, the wiring and other electronics infrastructure Audi, BMW, and Mercedes cars from that period is usually not amenable to additional or different communications, navigation, or entertainment gadgets being attached - you would have more luck with cars built in the 2000s and 2010s.

In the case of the first generation Mercedes CLK, I seem to recall that it was built mainly from C class and E class parts. The period 1995-2006 was not a golden era for Mercedes reliability (that's well documented). In particular, the E class cars built during that period suffered from the effects of cost cutting. Therefore, I wonder about the build quality and reliability of CLK cars from the same era.

Finally, although there are bargains in the used premium/luxury car markets in many countries, never forget the price when new of a user luxury car because that will give you a sense of the money you can expect to pay to get it on the road - the passage of time does not diminish the cost of replacement parts.

noelf

Soldie wrote: »

Thanks for the advice. I'm leaning towards giving it a miss based on the significant gap in the history. Going to view this one later. Less extras but only one owner, a complete BMW service history and it's six cylinder.

I had a 323 used more oil than petrol .. Google bmw 323 nikasil .. bmw might have repaired that car .. mine wasnt ;(

fmcg_scribe

noelf wrote: »

I had a 323 used more oil than petrol .. Google bmw 323 nikasil .. bmw might have repaired that car .. mine wasnt ;(

Was that an E36 323i? I had an E46 323i from 1999. By 1998/1999, BMW was rolling out the M52TU engine, which addressed the Nikasil issue. The Nikasil issue was a big issue in the UK and Ireland because of the petrol grade differences across different European countries. That said, I reckon that it might have affected more E39 5 series than other BMW models. To some extent, it killed the residual values of 1996-1999 E39 6-cylinder petrol cars.

noelf

fmcg_scribe wrote: »

Was that an E36 323i? I had an E46 323i from 1999. By 1998/1999, BMW was rolling out the M52TU engine, which addressed the Nikasil issue. The Nikasil issue was a big issue in the UK and Ireland because of the petrol grade differences across different European countries. That said, I reckon that it might have affected more E39 5 series than other BMW models. To some extent, it killed the residual values of 1996-1999 E39 6-cylinder petrol cars.

yes E36 bought it in newry 1996 model was in brilliant condition apart from engine . I think it was the high sulphur content in petrol that was doing the damage ..

fmcg_scribe

noelf wrote: »

yes E36 bought it in newry 1996 model was in brilliant condition apart from engine . I think it was the high sulphur content in petrol that was doing the damage ..

Yes, differing sulphur levels in petrol was the underlying issue.

pcardin

fmcg_scribe wrote: »

As someone who owned for three years a UK BMW 740i (E38) from the same year, I have to advise caution about buying a big German premium/luxury car from that era.

Leaving aside condition, mileage, spec, and service history, Audi, BMW, and Mercedes cars from the 1990s were packed with lots of electronics and many of these gadgets can cause problems that are difficult and costly to resolve - pixelated dashboard displays, battery drains and other annoyances are not uncommon and just the tip of the iceberg. Equally, it's becoming harder and harder to get certain replacement parts for Audi, BMW, and Mercedes cars from that period - you might have to "live" with certain things as they are. Further, the wiring and other electronics infrastructure Audi, BMW, and Mercedes cars from that period is usually not amenable to additional or different communications, navigation, or entertainment gadgets being attached - you would have more luck with cars built in the 2000s and 2010s.

In the case of the first generation Mercedes CLK, I seem to recall that it was built mainly from C class and E class parts. The period 1995-2006 was not a golden era for Mercedes reliability (that's well documented). In particular, the E class cars built during that period suffered from the effects of cost cutting. Therefore, I wonder about the build quality and reliability of CLK cars from the same era.

Finally, although there are bargains in the used premium/luxury car markets in many countries, never forget the price when new of a user luxury car because that will give you a sense of the money you can expect to pay to get it on the road - the passage of time does not diminish the cost of replacement parts.

I agree in general with most you said there except being hard to get parts (certain). It may be a case with some rare cars like my Lancia Kappa was but mercs and bmw are not on that list. There is so much stuff for them to get, OEM, aftermarket or even china-made-market. You can fix most stuff easily, you can even retrofit a lot of stuff. I drive 10-20 year old cars all my life (mostly old luxury cars) and never really encountered any significant problems.

As for CLK, I have on in family (her car), 1999 CLK 200 and it is a great car, absolutely fantastic apart from being manual (my own stupidity, merc shouldnt be manual). It may be old but it still looks great and classy. And as for service history, well...I always have my cars in perfect working condition but never kept any history. just too lazy too keep all these receipts and records. Not interested much in service history when buying cars myself either. I'm not a mechanic but know some stuff about them so if the car pass my checks then its fine.

fmcg_scribe

pcardin wrote: »

I agree in general with most you said there except being hard to get parts (certain). It may be a case with some rare cars like my Lancia Kappa was but mercs and bmw are not on that list. There is so much stuff for them to get, OEM, aftermarket or even china-made-market. You can fix most stuff easily, you can even retrofit a lot of stuff. I drive 10-20 year old cars all my life (mostly old luxury cars) and never really encountered any significant problems.

As for CLK, I have on in family (her car), 1999 CLK 200 and it is a great car, absolutely fantastic apart from being manual (my own stupidity, merc shouldnt be manual). It may be old but it still looks great and classy. And as for service history, well...I always have my cars in perfect working condition but never kept any history. just too lazy too keep all these receipts and records. Not interested much in service history when buying cars myself either. I'm not a mechanic but know some stuff about them so if the car pass my checks then its fine.

You've been lucky - and good for you. :-)

I can't claim deep knowledge of the spare parts situation with Audi and Mercedes cars from earlier decades but I know a lot about BMW spare parts. Consider the following two examples:
- The Pioneer CD changer that was put into a lot of 7 and 8 series and at least some 5 series in the 1990s was eventually changed by to an Alpine CD changer. However, if you have the Pioneer unit, you cannot replace it with an Alpine unit because the bus and other related infrastructure were designed only for the Pioneer unit. If you want to replace a broken/defective Pioneer unit with another Pioneer unit, BMW Germany still has about a dozen of them in stock but they will not supply one to you unless you can prove that your Pioneer failed within the warranty period (three years, I think).
- BMW wheel style 37 (as popularised by the E38 7 series featured in the Bond film "Tomorrow Never Dies") was fitted (both factory and after-market) to a large number of 5, 7, and 8 series in the 1990s. Obviously, at a certain point, BMW stopped making that wheel style. If you want to buy a set of four of those wheels new, you will no longer be able to buy the front wheels (the wheels are staggered) from BMW dealers. I'd be surprised if you could buy a genuine set of four of those wheels brand new from anyone else. If you want to replace one or two of those wheels because they are cracked and can't be repaired, you will have some luck with breakers' yards but as times go on, the supply of intact replacement wheels will diminish.

Ultimately, running a luxury German car from that era will probably mean compromises on your part and "living" with some aspects of the car as they are. It's easy for a large repair job on such a car to match or even exceed the car's market value, so you need to make rational not emotional decisions if things start to close in on you while owning such a car.

Guy:Incognito

fmcg_scribe wrote: »

You've been lucky - and good for you. :-)

I can't claim deep knowledge of the spare parts situation with Audi and Mercedes cars from earlier decades but I know a lot about BMW spare parts. Consider the following two examples:
- The Pioneer CD changer that was put into a lot of 7 and 8 series and at least some 5 series in the 1990s was eventually changed by to an Alpine CD changer. However, if you have the Pioneer unit, you cannot replace it with an Alpine unit because the bus and other related infrastructure were designed only for the Pioneer unit. If you want to replace a broken/defective Pioneer unit with another Pioneer unit, BMW Germany still has about a dozen of them in stock but they will not supply one to you unless you can prove that your Pioneer failed within the warranty period (three years, I think).
- BMW wheel style 37 (as popularised by the E38 7 series featured in the Bond film "Tomorrow Never Dies") was fitted (both factory and after-market) to a large number of 5, 7, and 8 series in the 1990s. Obviously, at a certain point, BMW stopped making that wheel style. If you want to buy a set of four of those wheels new, you will no longer be able to buy the front wheels (the wheels are staggered) from BMW dealers. I'd be surprised if you could buy a genuine set of four of those wheels brand new from anyone else. If you want to replace one or two of those wheels because they are cracked and can't be repaired, you will have some luck with breakers' yards but as times go on, the supply of intact replacement wheels will diminish.

Ultimately, running a luxury German car from that era will probably mean compromises on your part and "living" with some aspects of the car as they are. It's easy for a large repair job on such a car to match or even exceed the car's market value, so you need to make rational not emotional decisions if things start to close in on you while owning such a car.

Your going to have serious problems getting original parts like radios and wheels new for any 15+ year old car, luxury or not.

pcardin

fmcg_scribe wrote: »

You've been lucky - and good for you. :-)

I can't claim deep knowledge of the spare parts situation with Audi and Mercedes cars from earlier decades but I know a lot about BMW spare parts. Consider the following two examples:
- The Pioneer CD changer that was put into a lot of 7 and 8 series and at least some 5 series in the 1990s was eventually changed by to an Alpine CD changer. However, if you have the Pioneer unit, you cannot replace it with an Alpine unit because the bus and other related infrastructure were designed only for the Pioneer unit. If you want to replace a broken/defective Pioneer unit with another Pioneer unit, BMW Germany still has about a dozen of them in stock but they will not supply one to you unless you can prove that your Pioneer failed within the warranty period (three years, I think).
- BMW wheel style 37 (as popularised by the E38 7 series featured in the Bond film "Tomorrow Never Dies") was fitted (both factory and after-market) to a large number of 5, 7, and 8 series in the 1990s. Obviously, at a certain point, BMW stopped making that wheel style. If you want to buy a set of four of those wheels new, you will no longer be able to buy the front wheels (the wheels are staggered) from BMW dealers. I'd be surprised if you could buy a genuine set of four of those wheels brand new from anyone else. If you want to replace one or two of those wheels because they are cracked and can't be repaired, you will have some luck with breakers' yards but as times go on, the supply of intact replacement wheels will diminish.

Ultimately, running a luxury German car from that era will probably mean compromises on your part and "living" with some aspects of the car as they are. It's easy for a large repair job on such a car to match or even exceed the car's market value, so you need to make rational not emotional decisions if things start to close in on you while owning such a car.

I agree, but the parts you mentioned I wouldnt be looking to renew tbh. A CD changer is a history stuff nowdays to me anyway and on the e38 I recently aquired I replaced original CD changer with a SD/USB card reader that plugs straight into orginal wiring and displays stuff and is controled same way as original CD changer. Except it can now handle thousands more songs and no gimmics with keeping hundered CDs in the car and CD changer skipping tracks etc. As for alloys, style 37 is M-Parallels I guess (althought not sure), wouldnt replace them either. If they are gone they are gone as I can see at least 3-4 other designs from original BMW Felge catalog I like and that suits nicely. As for the rest, german cars are so popular worldwide that a market for replacement parts/tuning parts etc. is still huge.

Soldie

Ended up going for the BMW. Bought it this morning.

Thanks for the input guys.

unkel

Well wear

Hard to beat that sweet straight 6