[McSLK]

I love stories and thought we'd all connect with this thread!
Please share how you got turned on to SLKs!

My story is I had seen them but really knew nothing about them and thought they were "out of my range." However last March when we needed another vehicle just for running me back and forth to work (oh and the beach of course!), I stumbled upon a Craigslist ad after going through a lot of disappointment at what was available in my budget for this and found a 2001 SLK 320.

Once in it I immediately realized that I had finally found a roadster that fit me! All 5' of me!! Then I test drove it and that totally sealed my desire and I had the hots for this car! >
The owner loved the fact that I was petite like her and she wanted me to have it despite her husband's desire for a higher price.

During the haggling I had already decided I would hold out as long as it took to find a SLK!

I consider myself a very lucky lady that the deal closed and I own this amazing car and now I am sure I will have the SLK gene in my genetic code turned on forever!!
McSLK
What's your story??

 

[jbanks15]

5'? Do you sit on a phone book?

 

[chubmonkey]

I have always been aware of the AMG brand and it's vehicles. Went to a garage to buy an Audi TTRS but they had sold it. It just so happened that they had a SLK 55 AMG and I was offered a test drive.
Four minutes in and the first mild squirt of the throttle.....Sold. Simple as really, absolutely love the car and have realised what a special little car it is....

 

[dbgrn]

I've ALWAYS loved the sound of a V8!...

My son bought himself a Mazda MX5 (Miata / Eunos) last year, so I figured that if he could have a 2 seater roadster, then why couldn't I? Given my love of V8s, and the fact that my wife won't go in my other V8 (a Westfield SEight), I figured it just had to be the SLK 55 AMG for me!!

There aren't many other V8 roadsters out there, with a folding metal roof, and at the price point I got my AMG for!! :grin:

 

[McSLK]

The SLK 320 is the only vehicle ever that requires no modification or thinking the thought of, "Oh how much more comfortable this car could be if it were sized for an under 13yr old!!
In high school when I was 4'10" & took driver's ed and we had new vehicles that back then looked more like boats, I used TWO telephone directories. Everyone would make such jokes & fill with laughter when I would fall off and need to stop to fix my "booster seat."
I am not kidding at all when I say this car really fits me!! Everything is right at MY fingertips!
When I get the power seat relay repaired I will be able to see how far the seat goes back to fit all you "NORMAL" people! LOL!
In all honesty...it's all about me!! Tee hee!
McSLK

 

[DAVIETHESCAFF]

I was driving a 3 ltr Z3 and looking to buy a customised :bike:. After several months searching, I found "the one" :bannana:, but it sold the day before I could get there :crying:. Whilst trawling the web for another, I came across a clip of a German guy playing in a 55 entitled "awesome sound must hear".


That was the moment! :hail:


Abandoning any plans for a bike, I went searching, eventually finding Mabel :le:, and I'm still smiling 50k.R)miles later. :smile:

 

[Seanhump]

Must admit that I was hankering after a 911, and the good lady wanted an SLK.

We headed off to the local MB dealer and started to talk ... somewhere in the conversation the sales guy asked my what my car plans were, so I told him - a 911.

His exact words were "Try a 55 - you might be surprised"

Was I ever!! - Bought one a few months later and the rest is history (quite a lot of it on these very pages!!) .... the 911 is shelved for now!!

 

[Beekster]

For many years, I had been missing my long lost 190E 2.3-16, which traded its life for mine back in the autumn of 2000. In the fall of 2013, I started looking at them again but found that the ones with reasonable prices were full restoration candidates and the really good ones were going for stupid money, they had well and truly become collectibles. My wife was not enthused about having a restoration project around, since I don't have the skills to tackle that myself and would have had to farm out the vast majority of the work. She foresaw a hole in the garage floor into which I poured money. So, I started looking for alternatives. The criteria were these: One, it had to be a Mercedes-Benz. Two, it had to have a manual transmission. Since we already had a C230 and a Jetta TDI, we ruled out another C-Class sedan as being pointless since we weren't selling or trading the other cars. The W203 Coupe was considered, but ruled out quickly since we reasoned that if we were after two doors, then the top might as well go down, too. I looked at an R129 300SL with the Getrag 5-speed, but the selling dealer didn't want to deal with an out-of-state buyer and in truth, the SL was a heavy car motivated by not enough motor. That left the SLK, and we found our manual transmission SLK280 in February of 2104 and had it shipped from California to Oregon.

 

[simplyslk]

For 18 years I drove 3 conversion vans due to having triplets. I taxied my kids and their friends and many times their moms everywhere. They all loved the vans because they had TVs, PlayStation, head phones, etc., all the fun stuff kids like AND it kept them quiet during the majority of the ride (excellent on vacations)! When they graduated high school I swore I was never going to be a chauffeur to anyone ever again.

All the vans were awful on gas, they sucked down between 5 to 10 mpg in the city and maybe 12 to 15 highway depending on how I drove. I wanted something good on gas.

Also, a boss (back in the day) let me drive his 450SL (?) and I loved it!

Here's a pic of my last van:

 

[fastdawg1]

For me, it was just one of 4 cars, a 95 vette, or Opel GT (69-73), SLK, or a Mustang convertible. The real target car was an Opel GT, it's hard to find a non disaster car. I never looked hard at the Mustang. The 95 vette didn't fit right even though I liked the style. I saw a R171 (white) online, but stumbled across an R170 (1999) at a dealer while looking at that 95 vette. Wife talked me into the Silver 1999 SLK230 (Lawnmower), but after a few months, my heart really was into the White R171. Found one (fastdawg) in Cincinnati, put a deposit on it over the phone, and then went down to the BMW dealer that had it, test drove and then bought it! The rest is history!!!!!

 

[Just1MoreDave]

My wife was driving a Miata that was starting to age a little. It needed a new top, new leather on the seats, some other stuff, but only 50,000 miles so certainly driveable for a while. I wanted to go to the annual auto show just to take pictures and see the cars, no intention to buy, and she decided to come along. We walked around an SLK250 and casually asked the salesperson if it came with a manual transmission. Both of us were thinking of the W113 230SL through 280SL. She thought about it for a while and test-drove an automatic to check out the size. I did lots of research but I don't think it mattered - I couldn't even get her to drive a Z4. She ordered the same color combination we saw at the show.

 

[McSLK]

SimplySLK,
You had me rolling with laughter on the "I'll never chauffeur anyone again!"
Your van would have been heaven but I toted kids, moms & dads, scouts, kids, animals, poultry, teams, cheer & dance squads, sports equipment, hay & feed,swimming pool chemicals, etc. 50 miles in and out of the dessert. My vehicles were always big trucks.
Sounds like we are on the same page when it comes to trading in for an SLK...only 1 passenger and no heavy payloads!! LOL!
McSLK

 

[Buster]

Hello I'm Buster and I'm new to the forum.

As I'm typing this I am 30 years old. When I was 18-25 I've been riding streetbikes as a hobby. From the very beginning I enjoyed having the feeling of openess that the bikes provided. As time passed, I started to get bored with them so I started to learn how to stunt (doing wheelies, stoppies, etc.). There had been many close calls. I had a few friends that got into major accidents and I quickly reflected on what the hell I was doing. I ended up selling my bikes because I was fearing for my life. The bikes I went through were; Yamaha R6, Kawasaki 750rr(older bike), and a Ninja 636.

Drove a old beat up Dodge Neon for a few years. The jobs I landed didn't pay very well so I had to settle for a 2004 Dodge Neon. I had a mortgage and other bills that were more important than toys. Luckily around the time I turned 28 I was recommended a job from a good friend of mine and I ended up getting it.

I had a meeting with the owner of the company at a bar. As we talked about work related things, he later asked "if you had a choice, what car would you want to get?" I told my boss I wanted an SLK. I always wanted one but I never had the good credit to be able to afford a load. It was a strange question to ask, I thought to myself. But whatever...

Now I had some extra money flowing around. I missed the openess feeling of riding a bike. I talked myself out of it, because knowing me, I would end up stunting again. So I decided to get a Honda S2000. I loved it a lot. It was a fun car to drive. I enjoyed taking it out on my days off to just cruise. The gear box is the most perfect thing I've ever shifted. The car was lowered to where the rears were cambered. Expensive xxr rims, $3k j's racing exhaust, and some N/A engine mods.

I've had the s2000 for over a year. It was a 2000 model and had 115k miles on it and i started to see light stress on the top canopy. I thought to myself, this thing is going to rip soon. I should sell this and start saving up for an SLK because that metal roof is the tits.

After I sold the s2000, I get a call from my boss and asks me if I wanted to get rid of the Dodge Neon. I said sure, and he offered to give me a 1998 Lexus gs400. I think it's a beautiful car and it drove very well. I've had this for a little over a year and it was lovely to not have to pay a monthly bill.

Just a few days ago, I get a text message from my boss saying, "I found a 2005 Blk/Blk SLK 350 with 30k miles, interested or too old?". I replied, "haha, that's the gen that I wanted!". Boss replies, "awesome, ok going to close on the car".

I am blessed that things happened the way they did. I still can't believe it. The car drives like a dream and I can't stop thinking about it. (I only drove it twice).

tl;dr The S2000 and street bikes made me fall in love with the SLK.

 

[Nickb7035]

How I ended up with my SLK.

So, after years of working for other people, I started up my own company in early 2014. As it involves driving all over the UK, I looked for a comfortable car that I would enjoy driving, but had to be something different! I ended up with a 2007 Honda Legend, 3.5 VTEC with four wheel drive. Wow, what a car. A real stealth saloon, with lots of power on tap and great handling. However, I always wanted a SLK, having fallen in love with the car when they first came out years ago. So, company doing well and the Mrs says "Why don't you look for a newer car?" as the Honda was starting to gain some serious mileage and also is not the cheapest car to run (25 mpg average). Started looking, drove past a garage with a couple of SLK's, stopped to take a look, had a test drive of two, agreed on a price for the 250 CDI and that was that! One week later picked the car up and had a wide smile on my face ever since. Love the car, and being a diesel is perfect for me as I am currently averaging 48 mpg, with a top mpg of 58.8 (147 mile run up the M25 and M40).

Only regret is not getting a car with airscarf and dipping rear view mirror! Maybe next one....

 

[cnovack]

3-4 years ago I was looking for a convertible and my wife was looking for a hardtop. I started looking at what was available: miatas, SLs SLKs. I test drove an SLK which impressed me with its sporty feel but the interior had a huge spill stain that the seller (a Honda dealer) didnt bother to deal with ("buy it and we will take care of it"). I test drove a 2004 SL-500 and fell in love with it so I bought it. Due to its age the car started developing intermittent issues so it was time to trade. And I am very impulsive when it comes to car shopping.
I started looking at SL55 AMGs and the one I test drove (off another Honda shop) was in garbage condition (outside temp gauge said -30 degrees, Way past its scheduled maintenance, a lot of broken hinges in the interior). As -55s are hard to come by (and I am impulsive) I started researching SLKs as my memory of the car I drove was good. I found that the SLK350 was .5 secs faster than my SL500 (that is my biggest thrill, sprinting off the line) so it seemed a logical choice to test drive again.
I researched on autotrader.com and cargurus.com and on the latter site I found the 2012 with the features I wanted at a used car lot an hour away. Test drove and fell in love with it. I got what I felt was a great deal from the broker.

The more I drive it the more I realize how much I love the tight feel on curves, acceleration, top down, playing my music. I love running errands!

Chris

 

[ponia003]

I wanted a car as a present to myself after graduating from college debt free and moving to California. I originally thought I wanted a new Camaro after hearing my dad's stories about having one when he was younger. I knew very little about German cars at the time and stopped by a used Mercedes lot in Anaheim to look at what was available in my price range. I drove a diamond silver 280 with a black interior and a red 350 with a beige interior. I loved the throttle response, handling, hardtop, looks and precision of the car even as a tall person comparing it to CLKs and E classes.

The debate between the Camaro and SLK initially went in favor of an order for a new dark blue Camaro due to outside peer pressure about the maintenance cost of MB, used condition, image and the small size of the SLK. The two SLKs I was looking at sold in the meantime. Apparently still unsure about my decision, I kept looking at SLKs and found a caspian blue car for sale in Buena Park, which sold before I could get financing lined up. I kept in contact with the dealer and they called me when a Iridium Silver 280 (my eventual car) came to the lot. I was running out of time to get a car to get to my new job, the 280 had all the options except lighting and electric seats (which I didn't want anyway) so I bought it before anyone else could and cancelled the Camaro order.

I should have been smarter right off the bat, ignored everyone else and gone with the (obviously) better car, but I was a total novice with no idea what I wanted. No one could believe I was cross shopping those two cars. Everything worked out in the end as the car is in better shape then when I bought it, I have my go to brand for cars and I have a made lot of great friends from this forum. At this point, it's hard to believe there was ever any debate.

 

[Crank081]

About 4 years ago I decided I needed a hobby to keep me busy. I had reduced my work schedule somewhat, and found myself looking for things to do. The kids are now adults and the house is pretty much the way I want it. Started to research mid 1990s Corvette convertibles as they were in the price range agreed to by the Mrs. Under 10K. Almost pulled the trigger on a beautiful 94 Vette with low miles, but I kept thinking about the lack of comfort and moved on to looking at the SLK. Loved the idea of a hardtop convertible due to the unpleasant winters in NY. Found my 1st SLK in May 2012. At 53 I was driving a convertible :grin: Bought a 1998 SLK230 with 130K on the speedo. Drove it on summer weekends and had fun, also learned ALOT about MBs. Last spring started to look for an SLK350. After 4 months of searching, found my current 2006, and armed with 15K in cash ( having sold my slk230 and dipping into savings) and some persistent negotiating, closed a great deal! Then I stumbled onto this unbelievable forum!! I can honestly say that I check the forum almost daily, and I have learned more about these beautiful cars in the past year, than I had known in my lifetime.
Thank you Jeff! Woolly, John, MaryKay,Berliner and all the wonderful people who turned a dummy (ME) into something much more!!

 

[Crank081]

Didn't mean to leave out Dan and Curro!! You guys are awesome too!

 

[fordszoo]

Moss, Fangio and the Silver Arrows

When I was 9 yrs old I was lucky enough to be taken by my Dad to the British Grand Prix at Aintree near Liverpool - we went on a (steam)train excursion from Sheffield.
The race was dominated by the Mercedes W196's which came 1st (Stirling Moss), 2nd (Fangio), 3rd and 4th. I had never seen a Merc. of any sort before and fell in love with these magnificent machines which were dubbed the Silver Arrows. The drivers had bare arms (easily visible), loose goggles and bags of courage.Moss finished 0.2 seconds ahead to become the 1st British driver to win his home GP - it was also his 1st GP win. At the end he looked like a panda with an oily face except where the goggles had shielded his eyes. Mercedes withdrew from formula 1 that year after one of their prototype sports cars was involved in the Le Mans disaster and did not return to F1 as a team for 55 years.
I dreamt that one day I would own a silver Merc. and now, at last, I do. The SLK still bears a family resemblance to those cars even after 60 years!

 

[McSLK]

Keep those stories coming! I'm loving them and hope others are enjoying them as well!
Its so wonderful to get to know so many of you and how you came to fall in love with SLKs!!
TY!
McSLK