1999 Mercedes-Benz SLK 230 Compressor from UK and Ireland - Comments

The most common problem is the roof. It has a tendency to stick when folding, or worse still, when you try to put it up. According to the main dealer, this is a common problem with the SLK, but only in 'summer'! Apparently the heat effects the sensor controlling the roof.

The interior paint work is paper thin and started to peel after 6,000 miles.

You must also be aware of the usual Mercedes "excessive" front tyer wear. The dealers will refuse to admit this exists, until you talk to other Mercedes owners.

Mercedes built quality is the worst of any car I have ever owned.

I will also give you a word of caution about the Mercedes dealers. Service charges are very reasonable, however, based on my personal experience I can assure you that you will probably pay for the work that is not carried out, or, pay for new part only to discover second hand parts have been used (becareful if the dealer has a second hand car forecort aswell, as you are probably servicing them as well!)

I would dispute these comments about build quality.

The build quality and materials on the Mercedes SLK are of a high standard. I have owned VW's, a Vauxhall Calibra and Astra, a Toyota Celica, a Peugeot 406, and 205 GTI plus a Renault 5 (Gordini)!! The only cars that come close to the build quality on the Mercedes SLK are my VW Golf, and my old Toyota Celica.

What you have siad about merc dealers is pure *ullshit. I have had mercs form aound twenty years ago and keep them serviced at merc dealers. I have never even considered that they would put seconhand parts into my car. I have vast mechanical knowledge and thorally check the work done when I get the car home. I have to say that they are expensive, but then agian try to sell the car without a full dealer service history, then youl be sorry. their service is allways 100% first class and they treat me like a king when I'm there. I allways have around 3 mercs so am at the dealership about 6 times every year. they have allways used brand new genuine merc parts, and I have never had any problems whatsoever with the cars. what you siad about servicing the pother cars on the forecourt, cannot be possible as you will find that merc dealers wouldnt touch a merc with a ten foot barge pole if it didnt have a full and complete dealer only service history!

I worked for 15 years in the vehicle leasing industry and as a result have experienced just about every vehicle manufacturer on the road. My recent experiences of Merc have been that the build quality has definitely got worse, I have driven a 2 1/2 year old CLK with average miles that had more rattles than Mothercare, and recently a SLK 320 that has done less than 6K miles in 3 years that likes breaking down every time it goes out! (7 times so far, 6 times stuck in park). The dealers close to us in Herts are utterly useless - I get far better service from our local Honda garage (and even Alfa is not this bad!). Anyone buying an A class needs a head examination, the build is dreadful - a Honda Jazz is both better built, better to drive and cheaper - and no I don't work for Honda!

I just sold my SLK230. The top kept sticking and the dealer couldn't fix it permanently. It acted like it was underpowered and, if not used all the time, acted like the grease turned to glue (which is not possible). Another problem is the rubber skirt below the front bumper. It kept breaking or tearing where the "V" came together. Once the new one broke in half when they were taking it out of the box. The dealer finally fixed it by "gluing" a rubber piece onto both halves. This lasted about two months.