Why ONE STAR rating? Because the dealer's dishonesty and exaggerations about the 2005 SLK 350's actual condition betrayed my trust and made me feel disappointed.
Also only ONE STAR for his apprentice salesman/detailer acting sexist and treating me like I don't know SLKs; for telling me that if there was a leak, I would see it because the Mobile 1 motor oil they recently put in it is "blue;" for never answering my question, "Was it synthetic oil, and what weight was that BLUE Mobile 1 oil?" But mostly for discounting each of my voiced maintenance concerns by insisting, "That door noise is normal," "The LCD screen DOES work." "That's not leaking oil. It's the silicone based protectant I detailed the engine with. It has no leaks," "The AC works fine," and the list goes on...
The primary salesman is personable and polite and he praised the CarFax Report and claimed the 2005 SLK 350 vehicle is in 'great' condition, so I drove 90 miles from Arlington, VA only to discover this is untrue. Only the car's BODY, trunk interior, and tires are in great condition. So the car takes beautiful pictures, but as of 6/15/2017, this car is 650 miles overdue for its Schedule D services, the LCD display is not visible and the screen needs to be replaced, the AC makes a loud humming noise like the motor is about to die, and the dealer claimed to have recently added a whole can of Freon to the system, but the AC is dysfunctional and no air blows from the fixed air vents - only from the manual vents. The driver's side door pops loudly when opening and closing it, the cup holder is stuck shut, there are two windshield dings on the passenger's side windshield, and there is moderate leather damage on the entry side of the driver's seat. Most noteworthy is that the Carfax reveals no valves or gaskets have been replaced for the life of this vehicle, and because the detailer applied a shiny "protectant" to the engine and its parts, and potential buyers cannot see if there are engine leaks. I have driven SLK 300 series cars for the past 16 years, and it is normal wear for Mercedes-Benz V6 valves and gaskets to be replaced sometime around 100K miles and is expensive maintenance. It appears this car has been neglected beyond the last service listed on the CarFax and the previous owner likely traded it in because the maintenance costs are in the thousands and it was no longer cost-effective for him/her to own this car.
"Buyer beware." read more