OWN OR THINKING ABOUT BUYING A CL500 - W215 MODEL?? Hi, Mark here... I own a 2000 model year CL500 and decided to set up a little VLOG for sharing info about running a W215 model Mercedes CL500 as an everyday driver. Just purely for a bit of fun and also to talk about running costs or typical problems, as well as share the fun side of ownership of these complicated cars. Please feel free to comment or make suggestions about other videos if you also own a CL or are thinking about buying one. Cheers for now! Mark
Dear Marc, thank you very much for your thoughts and your inspiration. After lurking around the car for two years, this post four years ago was the trigger for me to finally take heart and buy the car. Even though I drive it far too rarely, I still enjoy every kilometer. I followed your stance and now call it the Mario car. In memory of Mario Draghi's phrase “Whatever It Takes.”, I will hopefully be able to enjoy it for many years to come. As I said, thank you again for your inspiration. I hope You are fine. Best regards, Stefan
I drove past a black CL500 that was parked in a driveway with a for sale sign. I had no time to stop and check it out, instead I called the owner and the car is a 2006 with only 11 ,000 miles on it. I'll pull a vid when I go inspect it, The asking price is 3k.
Hi my rear quater window won't open all I can hear is a click on that side everytime I try to open it what can it be? Btw the same switch controls the front which works
Sounds like the motor is not working if the switch is clicking. Have you tried to help it down with a hand on each side of the glass while someone holds the switch? Could also be a relay in the fuse box if there is a clicking. Best get an auto electrician to have a look tbh bud
Awesome video, great content, I have a 04 cl500 my cars doing the exactly the same, do you think a w220 window module may work if they even have or it specific for only w215 chassis?
Might be a long shot especially since this has been a while… I have a 2003 CL 500. already replaced the offside regulator and that window works as intended again. However the driver side for RHD rear window won’t move at all. I hear clicking in the control module for the rear offside window however the rear driver side window won’t make a noise at all not even from the module. It is my understanding headrests work over this module as well and mine don’t move but I hear the module switching or clicking when pressing the headrest button - just window for that drivers side won’t make a click! Figure I should just order a module or could it be the wiring itself? Cheers and thanks
@@lethalhype1931 before I put my new module on the rear windows didn't budge. They were totally dead! I wasn't sure whether the module would fix it but for a £80 it was worth the gamble!
Hey , no not the coupe although I just sold my S500 W221, which I had for 2 years. Lovely car and would defo get another but I'm not a fan of the 216 shape tbh. The 217 I would consider at some point but I've recently bought an E350 212/207 cabriolet for some fun!
Mark How you doing and how’s the CL? You got me into the CL and I’m on my 2nd now. Just coming back from a week in Estepona driving down the coast and recognising some of the scenery of your videos. Hope your well, Martin
Just bought one yesterday, very happy with the purchase, i just have a question. Have you ever had an oil leak around the engine on the right side? I saw another video which shows a bit of moisture on yours, just wondered what's that about, maybe a head hasket or a valve cover gasket?
Hi Mark thank you for the vlog I really learned a lot from your trip series I recently bought the 2002 cl500 had a leak on the roof but managed to sort it out the fuel consumption was exceptional as I took it around South African provinces thank you again I wouldn't have bought this car if it wasn't for videos
Does anyone have a link to replacing lower control arms on an 05 CL500? NOT the "thrust" arms, (already replaced those and the lower ball joints), the lower control arms. Appreciate the help!!
Can someonehelp me with my cl500 its stuck in limp mode the code reads (The signal of the transmission output speed sensor is implausible compared to that of the wheel rpm)
Hi, have just come across your latest video. I have a cl500 and would be interested if you could let me know what mb specialist you are using as I am hoping it is the same one I use in Paignton. Thanks.
Hi, the guys I know in Paignton are Mark and Craig, down near The Range. They haven't worked on my CL yet but they have looked at some stuff on my S500. Same guys?
I got one 😁 05 horizon blue paint code 347, grey n walnut amg wheels, cleanest xenon headlamps auto boot, but sunroof playing up n sometimes parking sensors on n off, will get that looked at next week. It's a smoother cruiser otherwise
Hello - first time I've seen you. I'm here in Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia. Only last night I spotted a 2000 CL500 with 177xxx kms in exc cond for a good price. She is such a stylish car. Wondering whether I should buy one? Already own a 2001 CLK 55 AMG & 2006 SLK 280. Love your easy-going, conversational style. Very personable. Tony.
I suppose it depends on the luck of the draw,old chap. Me personally I'll do the exact same thing again no problem. The smiles per Mile in these cars far outweigh the risk. I've spent very little on mine,vacuum pump for suspension 500 euros the rest is regular maintenance that goes with any car,that's my two cents worth.
Messaging from Warrnambool, Victoria, Australia. My philosophy is that we only live once and we should seize the day, Carpe Diem! Do what gives us motoring pleasure!
Hello, i am a cl fan and i was wondering if there are any standard suspension mods for this c215 model, im interested in buying one and i would be very thankful if you could let me know about all the costs for the car so far, fuel, fluids, rolls etc. Will be very appreciated thank you in advance!
Hi, thanks for the comment and for checking out the video! As far as "mods" go, there's a big split in the CL camp about keeping the ABC system which is the standard factory set-up and going coilovers - as in regular springs and shocks. There's only one real modification you can make to the ABC and that's to fit lowering links, which make the car sit lower in its rest position. I'd recommend joining the 2 Facebook CL GROUPS and seeing some of the previous threads... hope that all makes. As for costs, well, it depends what you need to do. ABC system is not as problematic as many people fear but, you need to remember.... the youngest CL is now a 15 yr old car. Mine is 21!
Hi Mark, Good to see you back on You Tube. It looks like you have a plan going with getting your CL500 back on the road soon. My search for one in Spain continues, but I now have a trustworthy dealer helping me, so I hope to avoid buying a lemon. I have also kept in the forefront your advice to avoid cars which have stood for too long. Also on the plus side, the weather has warmed up nicely now and here in Eastern Andalucia, it is in the high twenties every day and no clouds to be seen...All the best, Jonathan.
@@HampshireHooker yes, there are a few that seem determined to pimp their ride lol.. black bodywork, black wheels, black trim, black windows... yawnnnnn 😴🤣 But there are a few proper owners. If I was gonna do it all again, I'd go for an 05 or 06 CL55K...
My CL500 is in the garage having the Aircon compressor replaced. ABC is at its best when the car is active say every ten days. They don't respond well to being left.
Hi Mark. Mark from Kyiv here. Great to see you back again and that your CL fired straight back up. I still have my one here in Kyiv and just got the AC working again after about 9 years. Changed the condenser (AC radiator) and drier - which was a bit of a faff because I did not do it by the book to save removing the front bumper and inner wheel arch liners. Instead I managed it by managing to prise out the crossmember and going from there. It seems to be perfect now. Before I drove it to Ukraine I had had the car in the UK for about 10 years and only used it about once a year and the car always dropped to its haunches in the interim. Rather than raising the suspension with the button I just stuck it in reverse and moved the car back about a foot and then the suspension rose back up immediately. I got rid of the other lights by turning the wheel from lock to lock a couple of times. They always seemed to come on about leaving the car for months on end before starts. I also used to disconnect the battery too so that it did not get drained by the CANBUS system after a couple of weeks or less. I still haven't changed the many suspension bushes that should be done because even though I know they are shot, the car is so good you really don't feel it much when driving except for the occasional shinny coming out of a bumpy corner and bad front tyre wear. By the way, the humming type of sound I had which I thought might be the accumulator problem that you had, turned out to be tyres. As soon as I changed my tyres to a lightly used set of winter tyres the noise went away! FYI, I also bought some second hand AMG lookalike 19 inch 8.5J rims with a 44mm offset and fitted 255/40 summer tyres and they look fantastic. One tyre slightly rubs on its wheel arch liner on absolutely full lock but I have only noticed it twice in the month that I have had them fitted because one so rarely uses full lock. I did have to buy a set of shorter and fully threaded wheel bolts to mount them though, as the standard ones were about 10mm tool long and needed more thread up the length of the bolt so I did not shorten the original ones. I kept the old rims with the winter tyres on them anyway, so I will need the bolts for them next winter. Take care. Mark.
Hey Mark, great to hear from you and for the comprehensive update! So good to hear you've been using and enjoying your CL so much, as I don't think I realised you'd owned it so long! Funnily enough I just had to change all the wheelbolts on my S500 as one snapped when having new rear tyres. The mechanics took one hour to change the front wheel bolts!!! They were so badly fitted, stretched etc and... They were shorter than the original MB bolts, as it has a set of AMG lookalike rims. It seems this is an issue for quite a few people as lots of others since started commenting when I posted about this on the 221 Facebook group lol. Anyway, thanks for your update and for taking the time to comment here. Keep in touch and look after yourself!! All the best dude, Mark
You don't hang around mark love the videos, have a 2005 cl 500 with only 59000 miles, just replace the 2 rear abc struts with new one's and subframe bushes, 4 new tyres and so on, mite do a trip to France next year,
Wholly share your view. Properly maintained a CL500 is a remarkable car. I regularly drive 300 miles in a day from the North York Moors to Chelsea. It is utterly effortless. The ABC is incredible if the car is hurried around country lanes. And mine is a 2002 CL500 with 140,000 miles. As you point out you need to be fastidious about staying on top of jobs and fluids. It runs better the more it's used. A competent Mercedes specialist garage is crucial, and probably much better than a main dealer.
Hi Mark, I am looking to buy a CL500 in Spain (I am in Almería). Do you think there is a limit to the Km I should consider? Obviously I am fairly fussy about spec and colour and the condition of any car, but wondered if the mileage had a bearing on the amount of major work to be done, such as timing chain etc. I realise the ABC is a major issue too, but I dont want one with regular springs. Thanks for your help and advice. JP
@@MercedesCL500W215VLOG Thank you very much for your reply Mark. It's very helpful. I think you are right about avoiding cars laid up for some time. I travelled 2 hours last week to see a CL600 which it turned out had been outside in a lot for a year or so. They couldn't even get it to start, and so I couldn't test any of the electrics. The paint had totally dulled and the lights clouded. And this was from a respectable dealer, so Spanish! Do you know the timeframe for changing the timing chain on the V8? I read something about 300,000 but not sure if that's miles or km? I really enjoy your videos and they have been very helpful in helping me decide to go CL over SL.
@@HampshireHooker hi again, I'm not sure on the intervals, I'd have to check my owners service manual but I'm sure that info is freely available online too. As for the way the Spanish do stuff, well... it's something that needs factoring in lol. I would also recommend you join the Facebook group for the CL 500/600. There's an active group of very knowledgeable people from literally all over the world. Might even be worth considering a car from elsewhere in Europe, as your matriculation costs could be relatively low and offset the cost against a better value car which suits you better and allows kore choice. In any case, thanks for the comments and I hope to be getting some fresh videos done soon, as work and other stuff has kept me occupied! Take care, Mark
Hi, I have a cl55 with driver's rear shock starting to weep/sweat, I have a spare to put on but not sure if that's the same! What's you're thoughts on the remanufactured struts from China? They look well made and are gaurenteed for 2yrs, and can get a pair for £500 I think arnotts will set you back about £1500
Hi Christopher, this is what happened to mine ! I'm not sure where is the best source tbh as I'm looking at this for mine too. There is also a place n the Netherlands that rebuilds them according to some guys in the CL Facebook group.. have you checked that out? I'm holding off doing mine yet as I also want to change all the suspension rubbers and blocks, as well as some other parts, so I'm saving up lol.
@@MercedesCL500W215VLOG hi, yes I’ve seen the Dutch ones, it’s ‘abc specialists’ still very expensive, I may take my chance with the Chinese one, as for all the bushes etc, I’ll be doing that myself, would be nice to do a full resto in her but imagine the cost!
