Originally Posted by
allemoney
If purchased, I will be putting about $1500 down leaving me with about $3000 in savings reserved for anything the car might need soon after purchase.
A few questions:
1. How good is this deal really?
2. When viewing/driving the car, what are somethings I should be looking/listening for?
3. What should I be asking the dealer about the car?
4. Who should I trust to check it out (I don't have a go-to mechanic)?
Thanks in advance and I hope to be a fellow owner and a good member of the Xfire Forums community.
It may be a little premature, but WELCOME to the club! You will not regret it. These are great cars.
I'm in Tuscaloosa and own a 2002 SLK32 (same basic car, I just payed more for the star
and the Vario-Roof!).
When driving, make sure the supercharger is kicking in correctly. You should get immediate, consistent response. Punch it several times to see if the SC performs as expected each time. If it seems to go into "limp" mode, you've got a lot of negotiating leverage. The dealer won't have a clue as to whats wrong. And unless the SC itself is bad, you can probably fix just about any issue for under $500. As mentioned, the IC pump may be on the way out. Also the SC pulley bearing has a tendency to fail. Any unusual noise from that area of the engine should be investigated.
Because these cars are a bit rare, look for any mechanical repair that may have been performed by some ham-fisted yokel (stripped bolt heads, signs of over-torquing). BTW, most Chrysler dealers DO NOT have a decent XF mechanic...even a lot of MB dealers don't. You will want to investigate a good indie MB shop. These cars are not especially hard to wrench on, especially with all the help you will find here.
Ask for any and all service records. Since the car is in B'ham, there are several good shops there that could give it once-over, for a fee, I'm sure.
The transmission TCU connector tends to leak, not a big deal, but may give you some negotiating room.
Take it for a decent interstate drive. One thing I didn't find out about mine was a slight engine surging problem when cruising the interstate at a "constant" speed. Again, not a hard fix, but... a $100 here and $200 there begins to add up.
I hope I haven't scared you off!!
Most importantly, USE THIS FORUM. The people here (for the most part) are very knowledgeable and helpful. There are many great DIY threads that will hold your hand through most repairs or at least give you the knowledge necessary to speak to your mechanic.