I'm in my early thirties and looking to dip my toe into the sports/GT market. Through randomly looking at different Merc models, I came across a CLK350 which looks like a decent option, some of which are on the market between 10-15k. No major failures or reliability problems from what I've researched so far.
Just wondering if anyone owns one, has owned one, or has worked on them before, and if so, what your experiences have been?
15 year old European car with a decent chunk of mileage on it for $15k? No thanks. Sounds like a money pit. Saying that if you have cash to burn and are set on this model then go for it - just expect some expensive repairs.
For example this car has 151,000 kms on the clock and the check engine light is flashing and they are asking $15k. Very risky!
https://www.carsales.com.au/cars/details/2008-mercedes-benz-…
Yeah nah.
Save 10k a year for 10 years and buy an amazing Mercedes brand new.
Better still, save $10k a year for 6 years and get a 2-3yo one just out of a lease.
In my opinion older Mercedes look like crap. Something your grandpa would drive. The newer models are so slick and are just awesome. If you are going for an older model prestige car, get an Audi or BMW instead. Better performance and looks by far.
I'm in my early thirties and looking to dip my toe into the sports/GT market.
What exactly is "sports" about a CLK350? Old (for the price you're looking at), pretty slow, heavy (so doesn't handle particularly well), not a particularly comfortable ride for what you're giving up in speed/weight/handling. Fine if you want to "buy a Merc" and can live with its issues, but it's not "sports" in any sense of the word.
What’s that saying, if you can’t afford a new Euro luxury car, you probably can’t afford an old one either.
That said, it’s your $ and as long as you go in knowing that expensive repairs are likely you can do what you want.
German roulette
if you can't afford to get german cars near new, then go for jap.
If you do end up going for any used Euro always 1. find an honest mechanic and 2. compare parts prices from overseas if (when) you need replacement parts. I bought an old (07) Merc just because I always wanted a big V8 at one point in my life and Mercs run in the family; my pre-purchase inspection listed 12 grand's worth of repairs to be done. After speaking to a mechanic I trust (he couldn't do the pre-purchase unfortunately) and a bit of research I realised that roughly 1/3 of the work really didn't need to be done at all, and for that which did I could get the parts for 1/4 to 1/3 of the local price by shopping from US/EU specialist websites.
Do you need 4 seats? If not the clear answer is a MX-5.
It is fun to drive, convertible and you can get a manual.
I’m not a huge fan of that era of CLK. If you want a Euro convertible from that era, a BMW is a much better buy.
Fair question. I've looked at those & 86's/BRZ's, but the covid bubble hasn't done me any favours there.
Any particular model of MX-5?
A couple of weeks late!
I just traded in my 2006 CLK280 Avantarde with 109,000 on the clock for $9,000. 0-100 in 7.2 seconds, it was faultless with a full MB service history.
A great car to drive and only sold due to a change in personal circumstances.
Looks like you're a bit too far across the country anyway haha. What was your ownership experience like? Any nasty surprises?
Be wary of european cars. They're not explicitly bad, just tend to be more complicated that Japanese equivalent cars. Plastics and rubbers will be getting more brittle with age, and can be tricky to source.
I would be leaning more towards an IS350 if you're after something similar.
My view is that once you get into the used car market, a $15k car is the same as any other $15k car, except you are probably paying a little bit more for the badge.