Lexxy_703

i seem to be switching from excited to slightly sad at the moment! :D

the big day is getting close & i will be very sad to see my beloved go...but after a very happy & trouble free 4 years & 3 months, it was time for a change.

a brand new Mercedes CLK 280 Sport Cabriolet will be sitting proudly on my drive come Friday night

i think there may even be the last of the sunshine predicted for Saturday, just in time for a bit of showing off!

thanks for all the help over the years, LOC are a great bunch of guys n girls & i hope to be back in the fold in a few years time when there's something to tempt me back (& i'm sure there will be by then! :winky: ).

best wishes

Abbie

x

i haven't read all the way thru this old thread again but can somebody remind me - was something mentioned about a security gizmo that cuts the power so it can't be jacked like this?

seriously considering it for the new car but wanted some info before i went ahead (a bit difficult to search when i couldn't remember the name of the darn thing! ;))

After my car was stolen in a car jacking not long after Ahmets, I considered getting this for a while:

Autowatch 68hi

Quite an effective device where you have to go through a "certain procedure" each time you start the car or otherwise the car will immobilise itself after about 30 seconds - gives a car-jacker time to drive away from you so you can find safety before it shuts itself down.

I never actually got it fitted in the end, but I remember Mike (Mr Morse) had it and was pleased with it.

The other option is I think there's an optional extra with Clifford alarms (Black Jax i think) which does the same thing, but involves replacing the car's alarm and immobiliser as well and you'll need another key fob so I didn't look into this one much.

ta chuck :D just the sort of thing i was looking for...

i haven't read all the way thru this old thread again but can somebody remind me - was something mentioned about a security gizmo that cuts the power so it can't be jacked like this?

seriously considering it for the new car but wanted some info before i went ahead (a bit difficult to search when i couldn't remember the name of the darn thing! ;))

very interesting comments Ian - thanks.

it's a Merc we're going for - actually did the deal yesterday. exactly the colour combination (which had proved to be difficult, unless we were willing to wait up to 3 months) & a bit more on the extras we originally wanted. all done for 8% discount on the original OTR price - matching at least 2 online broker/middleman type places.

Gord - because i thought we might be selling, i didn't bother renewing my Gold the BMW stealer offered me £9,000 (just managed to stop myself laughing at him! :D)

i have had a couple of enquiries, so fingers crossed!

Do you lend your wife out Ian? i'd love to go on a shopping trip with her :winky:

i think the discount is fair on this Merc, it just about matches what i can get online with buyacar.co.uk (inc p.x.) & is cheaper than broadspeed (no p.x.).

supposedly, 8% = what they get the car 'at cost' for, according to info from an 'insider' on the MBForums (probably just a dealer to make us think we're all getting a good price! as if they would do anything like that ).

yep, completely understand & agree with what your saying guys :D

i was just a little ruffled with the big diff in price from the info we have access to. hey ho!

the nearly agreed 'to change price' is pretty much what we'd budgeted for, we're off to seal (or not ;)) the deal later today.

us being picky with what we wanted AND choosing a Merc CLK Cabrio, i don't think just under 8% off OTR list price is too bad a deal is it?

i know they're in it for the money etc & it is a business after all...

i think what annoys me most is the fact that the info that IS available to poor old muggins like us to look at is so wrong. if it's known that the stealers use CAP, why don't the sites offering the info adjust their prices accordingly for p.x. when we haven't got a hope in heck of getting what they quote at the moment! (deep breaths, must calm down :D time for that friday night bottle of plonk i think...)

i know selling private is the way to go but i'd want hubby with me when it came down to any test drive etc & he's snowed under with work at the moment - i might have someone interested & i'll go further on that over the next couple of weeks if the guy does want a look.

it's just the thought of advertising it & then having to arrange something around the other half & who ever may be interested - bit of a minefield (so i suppose i shouldn't complain about px if i can't be bothered to put the effort in with a private sale?! ).

i know it only really comes down to the 'price to change' amount, but i had a good nosey around a few sites to get a rough idea of what i'd be offered px & worked out an average.

i might of well not bothered as three dealers have offered me way less than i was hoping! :shutit:

so, really there isn't any point checking up as the general public don't have access to CAP info that the dealers use anyway?

when i first bought my 300, i never used the pwr button, but now i have it on all the time...notice no differnece in fuel consumption....prefer it in pwr mode to be honest.

shows what a big wimp i am then doesn't it! i was convinced MPG would fall thru the fall with it on all the time... mind you, when i first had a tumble dryer - the elec meter whizzing around so fast nearly gave me a bad turn, soon got over that tho!

definitely notice the difference in my IS300 when PWR button on, very handy for a swift take off at a busy roundabout! :D

I never have the PWR button off to be honest

i think i'm just a bit averse to the fuel gauge moving as fast as the speedo!

Mr Skelton! i do believe comments like that deserve at LEAST a slap on the legs, now be a good boy & bend over!! :winky:

the new SC is due next spring isn't it?

PLEASE don't tell me a cabrio IS is due when i'm just about to jump ship to a Merc! don't the dealers realise it will be affecting buying decisions NOW, not just next year! :(

definitely notice the difference in my IS300 when PWR button on, very handy for a swift take off at a busy roundabout! :D

i've been on the sky £5 monthly BB plan since Feb 07 & it's only gone offline once, was fixed again within a day.

good sites for info -

skyuser

dslzone

To be honest - a car thats *just* in band G will be very hard to sell.

If I was you, I'd go for the 350 or even a AMG version - cos hell, if your in the top band you may as well be well into it ;)

Ahhh, i do like it when somebody else says it too - i keep thinking this, then my head quickly jumps in & tells my heart not to be so damn silly!

got our test drive booked tonight & i have absolutely no idea what so ever what i'm going to do...

i've also had the nagging doubt that even if we do go for the variant that is band F, when it comes to re-sale/p.x., will it just be lumped together in value with the band G car anyway? after all, we're talking about the spec of a car NOT the engine size that's causing the bloomin difference?! :tsktsk:

to be honest, on a luxury motor, depreciation, petrol, insurance and reliability are my main items to focus on when looking on "Can I afford it?".

If the additional road tax bill isn't going to affect your ability to put food and water on the table, then go for it!

erm, i've already said its NOT the extra £100-£200 per year but the possible depreciation black-hole potential...

i can only concur gents, 'tis a flippin complicated world we live in these days! :shutit:

i'm just about to do my facts & figures spreadsheet (i'm sure i was an accountant in a previous life! :D), but the info i've just got on the Merc personal contract scheme all seems very positive at the mo', so it will be "who cares about band G, i've got a guaranteed future value & i'll have the car i originally wanted thank you very much!"

good luck with new car - mercedes have dipped a little in recent years with quality/service, but from what i've read of the current cars, they're back on top form again (if still a touch behind good ol' Lex! ). i'll be joining you soon on the 'dark side', a CLK cabrio has nearly got my name on it!

Try and look at it this way....I could be wrong....(it has been known!)

If I was buying a car which had its VED in band G and I was paying circa £40k (if I remember rightly from your old posts), this wouldn't be an issue for me, because if I can afford to spend £40k on a car, then I should be able to afford the road tax, regardless of its road tax band.

completely agree - NOW, the extra on road tax doesn't really matter when spending that much

However, as all cars loose value, and the fact is that this £40k car maybe be worth, say for example, £1k-£2k 10/15 years from now, then I would have an issue with its road tax band, as from my point of view, its not worth paying the band G road tax price on a car which isn't worth a lot.

THIS is the biggy that i just can't decide on! if it's a G & G is still the top whack band when we come to sell, it's going to limit the potential buyers & obviously reduce value...

i'm going to another merc dealer in a bit to have another look at the CLK (without trying to drool too much!) & also ask about their private contract purchase thing. perhaps that may be an option this time around if i'm this concerned about what happens when we come to change?

Additional width on the tyres increases friction and therefore increases fuel consumption. More fuel burn = more CO2 out the back. I'd also guess that the higher spec car weighs more, which also increases consumption.

Point taken. I'll shut up then shall I?!!

we all learn something new everyday!! :winky:

I thought VED bands were based on emissions. Why does the choice of wheels push you up the band? Or do the Avantgarde and Sport models have higher emissions?

they are BUT because the wheels/tyres on those options are presumably lower profile, they change the emissions from -

CLK280 Elegance standard sizes 16", 205/55 front & 225/50 rear - 222 CO2, band F

CLK280 Avantgarde standard 17", 225/45 front & 245/50 rear - 227 CO2, band G

it's the size on the rear that makes the difference, see VED info here

your replies have pretty much confirmed what i thought, it does make a difference! it's a flamin minefield out there & i don't know what to do now...

part of me thinks, stuff it - if it's going to be band G, i'll have a nearly new CLK350 with loads of toys that someone else has paid for (which are already cheaper than an equivalent nearly new 280) & have a bit of extra fun while i'm paying the higher road tax etc!!

had a look at a couple of cars over the weekend, not Lexus unfortunately as nothing grabs me in their current line-up

we didn't like the BM 3 convertible, nice drive but felt a bit 'cheap' inside & was pretty cramped for space too. we have taken a liking to the Merc CLK 280 cabrio tho

i'd done a bit of research before hand, be prepared & all that!, but was a bit miffed to discover the wheels that come with the avantgarde or sport choices take the car into tax band G. i'd ruled out the CLK 350 for this reason already.

when we go back to Merc in the week, i'll be asking specific questions as the salesman, altho very helpful, didn't mention anything about this even tho i'd already said about the different tax bands i THINK there is an option to choose 8.5j x 18(225/35) wheels for the rear (at an extra cost of £760!) which would put the car back into band F, but i need to check up on this.

it's not the £100-£200 extra road tax per year but the depreciation factor when we come to change in probably 4-5 years time that worries me. it's a private purchase & a hefty chunk of £££'s to be spending!

even tho i'm not London based, i think congestion charges will probably be rolled out to all major cities soon & surely this will have an effect on future values?

any thoughts guys?

cheers

Abbie

bum! :tsktsk: that's me out of the running then. i thought i'd read they were going to undercut the new M3 by £10k or so, but obviously not...

thanks for the replies guys :D

very good info from both of you & my head is now spinning! i definitely wouldn't pay £39k for the car i've seen, perhaps £35-36k? BUT, i think i've been put off as it's not got sat nav anyway... :shutit:

that's a nice looking car you've found there Parthiban - well spotted! is that search on the standard merc site as i don't think i've seen anything about 'directors' cars?

i think i do best having a proper look around on the net before we go looking/driving on sunday. at the moment, unless i spy something that gives me a huge buzz when i get in & drive it, i feel like i'd be changing the 300 just for the sake of it & would be better off keeping her & looking again after xmas.

decisions, decisions! oh well, at least the sun is shining :D

p.s. any thoughts on the new Audi A5? i've seen a couple of those recently & they look pretty drop dead gorgeous!

it's a bit mis-leading from the dealer info as he seems to have duplicated some extras, but i think the new price for the car would be around £41,235 (£36,730 basic plus 620 metallic, 575 bi-xenon lights, 605 parktronic & 1010 for the sports pack - he states nappa leather & a tracker too but i couldn't see a £ for those when i tried to configure the same car on the Merc site??)

so, perhaps if i said it should be £42k new - 6 months old for £39k??? doesn't seem too much of a fair price now i suppose, but like i said before, it's a 'starting' point at least!

p.s. i'd mistakenly thought 'on board computer' meant the comand sat nav, so thanks Parthiban for the nudge on that one! :D why they can't just call it sat nav, i don't know