This is probably a stupid question, but since the Crossfire is primarily a Mercedes SLK 320 in Chrysler clothing, where is the best place to go for service and to buy parts for the car, a Chrysler dealer or a Mercedes dealer? I realize that many parts are no longer available and that lots of fixes can be done by the owner, but when it comes down to the really "heavy duty" troubleshooting" or maintenance, where would be the best source for such services? I have nothing wrong with my '06 Roadster at this time, and I realize that both sources are expensive if used, but I would like to know who the better source is in case something really scary happens (lol). Thoughts?

 

I have NEVER bought parts from the dealers. All parts have been purchased online from reputable vendors, such as AutohauzAZ, Rockauto, FCP Euro, Needswings, and of course EBAY, which I can emphatically say have saved me many thousands of dollars. Have found valuable used parts from Car-Parts.com and LKQ. Stay as far away from the dealers as you possibly can. Chrysler dealers don't have the personnel to work on our cars, nor do they want to since they are not associated with Diamler any more. All Fiat now. And M/B will never touch a Chrysler product no matter how many M/B parts it has. Besides they both will rip you off blind given the chance. Example: The Steering stabilizer that can be bought all day on ebay and other stores for around $30...Chrysler list it @ $300, M/B list it @ $110. If you must have original parts, always look online for the M/B parts which will be considerably cheaper than the Chrysler equivalent.

As for service, just find you a reputable independent M/B service tech. Will cost far less then the dealers.

 

never go to either steelership find a mechanic that knows something about Mercedes and use him, or always use this forum and if you can't do the repair yourself print the fix and give it to the mechanic,,example if you have not done the sticky key fix then go here read it three times print and take to your guy and fix it now save about $1500. if it sticks when u r on the road. jim
click the link below or search sticky key


https://www.crossfireforum.org/forum...sticky+key+fix

 

Those are the answers I expected, and thanks for confirming my "fears"! Remember, I also have a 2000 Mercedes SL500 with 11K original miles on it, and I refuse to take it to the dealer for any service! They have their A and B service routines for these cars, and the last time I checked, the B service (all fluids including brake and coolant) replaced and a bunch of other stuff cost more than $5000! It just ain't gonna happen for me! There is very little of this type of maintenance that I cannot do myself, and anything else can be done by a private, German car mechanic for about a quarter of the price!
I use the sources for parts that you guys mention, but even there the Crossfire often confuses them. So I guess the best thing to do is keep my tools handy and stay "tuned" to this site!!

 

Exactly!

Out of curiousity, what kind of mileage do you see out of your SL500?

 

Service and parts? Very little need for those, I'm at 100,160 and have only replaced the battery, battery ground cable (both from O'Rielly's) and the EGR valve (from German Auto Supply.com). I had the guys at a local family-owned garage do the EGR valve, one of them owns an SLK320 (with over 150,000 on it) so he knows the car very well.

I had Buckhead Imports flush the cooling system and set the engine fan down 10 degrees C ---- Who the hell needs a dealer for anything?

 

I tried to get a privately owned, German educated mechanics shop (that specialized in M/B) to do my carrier replacement after explaining that once it was on the lift, he'd be right at home. I was still told nein, nicht, kein and probably a couple other negations that I didn't understand.

Had to go to ... yes ... a Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep service dept and luckily they had a Crossfire tech that was well versed in the repair and it didn't cost me an arm and a leg.

So, moral of the story, while most are Stealerships, don't be afraid to ask a few questions and get a quote for some of the things you're not willing to take on yourself - you might be surprised ... your "trusted mechanic" might be at the dealership

 

That is true. Our local 5 Star dealer had a Crossfire Tech. He was also their Viper Tech. Nice guy to talk to and I would have trusted him, but not the service mgr.... He was an idiot. He figured he had me, once I was satisfied with the mechanic's answers, and began to tell me how long and how much. I told him to stick to sticking it to Viper owners. I was done. I have only been back to have an air bag code cleared, and that was a favor from the body shop owner, not the dealership.

 

Concerning the question about fuel mileage on my 2000 SL500, I would say that it is very good considering how heavy that car is and that it is putting out over 300 HP! I bought the car in Sunnyvale, Ca. and drove it home to Idaho (about 700 miles) so got a good feel for the fuel economy. On most of the "open road" driving, the car delivered between 21 and 25 MPG! Not bad for a car that was rarely driven and was not specially tuned-up for the trip. It seems to get around 16 to 20 MPG around town, depending on the trip distance and weather conditions. AND, it really does have some go if urged to provide it! It is a wonderful car!

 

It must be my gearing and my heavy foot then. I have the M113 E50 (5.0L) engine in my crossfire and I have been stuck at 13 mpg in town but when I went out of town I averaged 28... Makes no sense since I was still flooring it to 120+ to pass people constantly lol.

 

13.... I have owned a lot of cars with that around town mileage. You sure you are getting 13? How many miles do you get on a rear set of tires? It should be proportionate with the 13 around town. Just sayin'!

 

LOL, well so far so good on the tires. 2K miles on the swap so far and new tires went on immediately and they were used with ~90% tread (still a ton left now). I guess we'll see how they hold up, but yeah, 13 LOL. I thought it was a fluke at first, the whole cam sensor crank sensor thing but nope. I do have old intake filters with no tubes from the box to the radiator so DHAI and my bay gets insanely hot with that V8 in it. In a month or so my SS tubes and K&N filters should be on in which case I'm sure the mileage will be a bit better.

 

I'm still curious about what the actual P/N is that a dealer would use for a new, original RCM....can anyone tell me what that part number would be? Is it the same # for a Crossfire as it is for a Mercedes SLK320? Is there a difference in the required part number for different years of XF's? Is the Chrysler P/N different than the Mercedes P/N? I'm really not looking to buy one, but the "paradox" that is created by the XF's "hybrid" construction seems to have set-up a very confused dealership/parts supplier network. I'm using this number to do some "research". What is the number on our factory RCM's? Thanks.

 

I don't remember the P/N off the top of my head but let's put the Crossfire to you this way... The body panels, the front and rear emblems, the rims and the top part of the frame, are "Chrysler" I guess you could say. In all technicality they (everything but the emblems) are branded R193, which is a mercedes specific chassis code for the Crossfire.

Everything else... SLK320 or SLK320 derived.

Chrysler has influence on programming of certain modules but it isn't anything you should ever have to deal with.

Bottom line, damn near everything you buy (like 99%) for this car should be from an SLK... Doesn't even need to be a 320 per se. Most of the time any R170 part will work.

 

So if a part like this RCM as listed as being correct for Mercedes Benz SLK 320, 2001 - 2004, convertible, naturally aspirated, it would likely be correct for the Crossfire? There is one on ebay right now under P/N 170540305, which they say is right for the above vehicles, but they have no way of cross referencing it. Is this the "accepted" P/N for a Crossfire RCM? So how would any dealers or parts outfits know any of this? I guess I'm trying to sort through what seems like an "impossible" parts supply situation for a Crossfire.

 

Yes, SLK320 RCM will work.

The part number wont cross reference to a Crossfire part, because Chysler came up with their own part numbers for everything... Where those part numbers are on the actual part, the world will never know.

 

So, in other words, the Mercedes SLK 320 part numbers really "rule" on everything except body parts? I suppose, then, that if you ordered a part from Chrysler under Chrysler's part number, they would just cross-reference it to a Mercedes part number, order it from Mercedes, and then sell it as a Chrysler part? Man what a mess.....I wonder if anybody thought this out when they were designing this car or ever thought this far ahead. Oh, and since Mercedes discontinued the SLK320 in 2004, it gets even more confusing to parts suppliers since Crossfire went until 2008. Where did Chrysler get those parts in 2005 through 2008? Hurts your head if you really think about it!!

 

Chrysler thought of it ahead of time... They saw, money lol. "Their" parts for the crossfire are like twice as expensive... now that make's you think. I wish I was in on it. They didn't sell well but all the suckers that go/went to Chrysler for parts made them RICH.

There is a ton more to it as far as the production goes... The motor was in production Mercedes model's until 2005. The parts on the motor kept getting changed throughout Crossfire production as well. Look at the 07-08 Crossfire. They have the updated Crank bolt pattern that went with the newer MB cars.

The transmission is still used to this day. The 2012 Charger SRT8 has the 5-speed that the SRT's have.

Some of the other stuff be taken from other models as well. There is a ton to it, and everyday I learn more and more. Jim over in PA knows quite a lot about MB since he works on them and it's crazy talking to him. He can tell you part numbers of damn near everything without even having to think about it. He can change his clutch in 2 hours!!! Still find that crazy lol.

I'm ranting, but you get the point. If you ever need a part, 98-2004 slk320.

 

Mercedes Part Number: 170-545-03-05-05 / 170545030505

Genuine MOPAR Part Number: 05099007AA


RCM.jpg