How expensive was it to own a 1991 Mercedes 500 SL? Total Cost of Ownership [TCO]
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- Опубліковано 15 чер 2024
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How much does it cost to own a Mercedes 500 SL (or SL 500) of the R129 generation? How expensive is it to own a Mercedes SL 500?
Let's try to answer that.
I owned a 1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL from 2012 to 2016 and I kept all the receipts. So here is a total cost of ownership tally and some anecdotes on that car.
With its silky smooth M119 V8 engine, the 500 SL is the sweet spot in the entire R129-lineup: powerful, reasonably economic and easy to work on.
In 4 years, 2 months and 10 days of ownership and 14,379 km driven, the Mercedes cost me CHF 19,825 to own (~ USD 21,808; EUR 15,860; GBP 13'878).
Playlist with all my cost of ownership videos: • How expensive was it t...
Table of Contents
00:00 Intro
00:47 500 SL vs SL 500
01:29 Early 500 SL are the best
03:14 Why not a 600 SL / SL 600?
03:57 ADS
05:02 Buying the SL... in Winter
07:18 Maintenance & Repairs
19:25 Total Maintenance & Repairs
19:44 Upgrades
23:44 Total Upgrades
24:13 Running Costs
26:08 Cost of Ownership
27:00 Total Cost of Ownership
28:30 Why did I buy a 500 SL?
29:57 What was it like to own?
32:50 Wrapping up - Авто та транспорт
![How expensive is it to own a Nissan GT-R? Total cost of ownership [TCO]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/SXZorglMWis/mqdefault.jpg)
What would you rather have, a Mercedes 500 SL or an Alfa Spider?
I would take the 500 SL
Mercedes, no doubt.
As a daily/weekly driver definitely the 500 SL. If one already has a nice car to drive on daily basis then the Alfa.
would have rather not watched this video
@@damienstrollo9083 Thanks anyway!
I bought my 1998 SL500 last summer and love it. I replaced all of the convertible top hydraulic cylinders myself, 11 total, not difficult at all and also had the canvas top replaced with a color that complimented the body color. Purchase price was $8,500 US, all repairs and upgrades brought that to $13,200 all in, that included $1,400 shipping car from Atlanta, Ga. to Buffalo, N.Y. and installing a rare 6 disc CD changer in the trunk. I love my Mercedes !
Where did you order the hydraulics?
Finally! Great video. I've been waiting for this one
These SL-s have nicely appreciated in recent years.
I have owed a 1999 SL320 for 7 years and I am thankful I never saw your video before I bought it, because I never would have and I would have missed out on the best drive of my life! I still have it and apart from replacing the ECU when the roof decided to stop working and replacing the soft top plastic windows the car has cost me nothing but general servicing, road tax and insurance and since I retired the insurance now is negligible! I wanted a 500, but never saw one with a clean interior so when I saw my immaculate 320 that had only been owned by one lady from new until she passed away I had to have it. Cost me £7k and I have been offered £14k for it recently so it should actually cost me nothing if and when I get around to selling it!
Fascinating video Mario. A real history lesson. Merry Christmas and Happy Motoring in 2022 :-)
Very good commentary! Well done.
Very informative video. Thanks!
Very good sum-up, and nice to listen to. I didn't know you owned an R129 SL, in fact you owned plenty and only interesting cars. I was aware about the R230 SL 55 because I watched this video a very long time ago. I kind of expected the results because with your other cars costs in mind, I couldn't stop thinking through the video "still surprisingly cheap!" "Wow there we are and still no catastrophic unavoidable repair??"
I like this generation SL a lot, my favorite being the 600. It is just impressive how this car was high-end and yet, today it still is, but looks very understated. And when you climb inside, you realize everything is beautifully crafted, it is super quiet and rides like a carpet. But obviously that comes at higher owning costs, and the adaptive suspension is standard, probably to support the weight of the engine.
While being an objectively good and a very respected engine among the Mercedes community, I agree on the M113. It's a shame it only has 3 valves per cylinder and it lost power compared to the M119. However, in 55 AMG cars with the supercharger, it rocked. 470 hp is crazy even today. And it managed to stay ultra reliable.
Helpful. Thanks. I own a '14 MB e550a cab with 65k miles. Only replaced a parking brake release and tightened some body bolts so far.
This helps me set my repair expectations at $10k -$20k for the next 100k miles. Much higher plans than I have spent on other new Japanese sedans getting them to 250,000 mi.
Entertaining and so meticulous. Well done!!
Great summary of a MB all time classic
Amazing info, keep up....
Love those kind of videos.
Wish I could do more.
The thing about the stop light switch and ABS light might help, thanks! I love my 300SL r129. I get the rotation on cornering, seems quite sporty, maybe less weight? I don't know. Great video!
That's the reason I boughgt me a used Mercedes E500 4matic S211 from 2003 this year. It also adds practicality.
Thanks for the summary.
Merry Christmas to you Mario! by the way, that camera is super crisp - is it a new setup? and in case we don´t get another video before dec 31st: 2022 is going to be YOUR UA-cam year, this channel deserves more attention and I believe we will soon see a significant rise in subscribers
Thanks Stefan, you're just too kind. I actually got a different camera as I was really fed up with the weird auto-focus glitches on my old Sony a7 III. So I switched to the new a7 IV ( I still have the old one 🤷🏻♂️). I know, way overkill for my channel. But what can I say? I just love gear. 😅
Thanks for your support and some (hopefully interesting) stuff should be coming in 2022... Happy holidays!
@@swisscarguy thank you! I actually smiled when you mentioned all the parts and bills you kept, because I do the same. By now I must have the thickest repair and maintenance stack of all Audi A4 B6 owners :D I mean, we could sell all the parts we don´t need and convert it into some cash, but let´s be honest: it is outside our comfort zone :D
Love this video. I have a 2015 R231 SL550 in a Designo Graphite Metallic and have been wanted to add another SL, likely a R129 in a different color - perhaps Irridium Silver. I had a 2002 G500 in Techtite Grey Metallic which appears to be similar to your 91 500SL.
You are a great youtuber :)
nice breakdown, man service is expensive .. kudos for doing some jobs yourself ! I do liquids and minor to medium jobs myself and man am I glad ))
@Swiss Car Guy great video. How about fuel consumption on this ke jetronic version? I imagine you have an objective idea after 4 years of ownership and more than 10.000 km driven. Thank you. By the way, much is a good 500sl worth nowadays? Cheers
Hi. Congrats for video. What about a real fuel consumption on this kejtronic model? Thank you
Great video!! I own a 1991 500 SL. Bought it in 1999. I live in Florida which is a great place for convertibles. It now has 89,000 miles (143,000 km). I keep it in immaculate condition and only drive it occasionally in nice weather. It is kept under cover in my garage. I love this car and like working on it myself if something needs to be fixed. I am intrigued by the mod you did (wire cut) to allow soft top operation while driving. Do you have a video covering this modification? If not can you provide the info on this?
The mod is very easy, as it's just two wires that need to be cut. The control unit is under the rear right interior storage box ('back seat').
On the large connector you would have to cut the green/black cable and the black/yellow (attention, there is also a yellow/black one that you must not cut). Just tape up the loose cable ends and you're done.
1996 to 1998 are model year SL 500’s to buy. They have the 119 engine and the 5 speed. They also have modern fuel injection instead of mechanical injection which is very problematic. It is worth the minor loss of power for the improved gas mileage and reliability.
Oh man, You have paid nearly 3k for service😢
I live in Ireland and it is not as bad but I can feel your pain.
That is why I do my servicing by myself.
Transmission is a bit of a pain but you do on half of Saturday.
Cost around €140 for 7 litres of MB fluid plus €100 for a Pan filter
I found plugs to be really time consumming.16 sparks on M113 tool my almost a day.
Anyways just saying if you have an old car and you are willing to work on it you will Save yourself a lot of money
Hi, great video! I have a 500sl 1992 and have the same issue as you did in traffic having to fully stop in order to open or close the convertible top. Wondering if you remember which is the speed sensor wire and where is located, the one to cut and enable retraction of the soft top while rolling? Thanks :)
The mod is very easy, as it's just two wires that need to be cut. The control unit is under the rear right interior storage box ('back seat').
On the large connector you would have to cut the green/black cable and the black/yellow (attention, there is also a yellow/black one that you must not cut). Just tape up the loose cable ends and you're done.
1996 1997 1998 were the best years of this classic.
Ciao fratello super video bravo!
Deine "cost of ownership" Videos sind sehr interessant, aber noch beeindruckender ist Dein technisches Wissen und die Fähigkeit selber Reparaturen oder Verbesserungen an den Fahrzeugen vorzunehmen. Selber besitze ich den SL65 AMG (R230/2004) seit vielen Jahren und mache mir etwas in die Hosen wegen möglichen Reparaturen die einmal kommen könnten - wo der Wurm drin ist weiss ich ja jetzt (ABC, SBC). Vielleicht kennst Du eine Garage bzw. eine Person die sich wirklich gut auskennt mit dem R230 und wo man mal unverbindlich vorbei gehen könnte um das Auto zu checken. Übrigens, auch ich habe eine ZH Nummer an den Autos ...
Danke. Leider kenne ich keine R230 Spezialisten. Denke, dass sich Mercedes Händler (vor allem im Raum Zürich!) gut mit den Autos auskennen.
Die SBC-Einheit muss früher oder später ersetzt werden - darauf muss man sich halt vorbereiten, aber es ist noch einigermassen zu verkraften (und sind wir ehrlich: der SL65 ist es locker wert).
Was ABC angeht, ist sicher Spülen und Filter Wechseln keine schlechte Idee. Dafür braucht es eigentlich noch nicht mal eine Werkstatt. Ein paar Meter PVC-Schlauch vom Jumbo und ein Kanister für das alte Pentosin sind schon alles. Der Filter kostet bei Mercedes nicht die Welt. Es kann zwar hilfreich sein, ein StarDiagnosis zu haben, um den Rodeo-Modus zu aktivieren und das System hardcore zu entlüften, aber auch alleine mit Auto hoch- und herunterfahren kriegt man das Pentosin wirklich gut durchgespült.
@@swisscarguy Melde mich!
love the R129
hello. thanks for the video I watched the movie out of curiosity and you inspired me to open the roof. I will do this cool mod in my only on the switch so that you can activate it at any time. greetings from Poland, SL 500 99
On the 99 it's not supposed to work by cutting a wire. You will need to install an auxiliary control unit for that. But that is not a big job, as I've done it on my R230 that I had later. It just costs more money than just cutting a cable.
@@swisscarguy If I find some time I will check it. Thanks for the information. I will write if I do anything.
11 hydraulic actuat.ors for hard top. chain that may stretch if not replaced. degrading wiring harness hoses and clamps. possible multiple oil leaks ... flex disk replacement.. engine management computer failure. .... after about 10K or more you may have it sorted out
I have a 98 SL500 I love the car almost completely the power top TERRIBLE the rest of the car I love I live in California so I would cycle the top daily but I can’t afford to do that it’s $1000 USD to repair oh well like you said it sure beats a car payment looking and feeling like a million bucks on the daily!!!!
Thank you for the detailed report and reference for your car. I am extremely interested to buying an almost exactly same car. A 500SL with 105.000km with all the repairs you mentioned and more like both of the fuel pumps and the 12 pumps of the roof. All these for 18.000 euro approximately.I got a bit skeptical about the drivers seat and the sense of the steering wheel... I think that it’s important to give you a proper sense in order to enjoy it as much as possible. Totally is it worth buying it or should I search for a Honda S2000, which is a convertible also but a totally different car. Thank you in advance, greetings from Greece
18k Euro is pretty serious money. The car should be pretty good for that.
The SL and the Honda could not be more different (while still being 2-seater roadsters). The SL is a cruiser, while the S2000 is a much more active driving machine. The steering alone will make for a completely different driving experience.
I think a R230 generation SL500 (or SL350 as the don't come standard with ABC) might be somewhere in between the R129 and the S2000. You don't have the classic look (and old-school solidity) of the R129 but much more driveability (and interior space).
The 500 SL is more akin to driving a classic car while the S2000 feels much more like a modern sports car.
Before you make any decision, make sure to have a nice extended test-drive in any of the cars you consider. Only after having driven all of them you will know which one you really like best.
@@swisscarguy it seems like it is properly maintained...so that's why I'm thinking about it. The good about this case is that it's not so easy to be sold. So that's why im taking my time. Soon after the chief mechanic of a Mercedes Benz official retailer, who I am trying to convince him to check the car, because he works at another location but i trust him a lot, tells me his opinion about it i would let you know
@@swisscarguy thanks a lot for the advice
@@user-yl2sq5pi9q i import cars from greece to albania and italy.
18.000 on car.gr for any 500sl is an excellent price and it isnt going to get lower than that.
On the other hand the s2000s are going for 13-14 thousand on the cheapest side and they all are dilapidated and destroyed from being drifted, too many burnt clutches and bad engine mounts.
my dream car,because it was the car i saw in the posters and on the street,i understand
So complete…and funny 😂
The TCO of the Phaeton is just craazy... 🤑🤑🤑 already saw the numbers in the original video... just mindblowing considering it wanted to be a Bentley but it looks sooo boring in comparison... imho...
Shame you sold it when you did. I got a strong feeling the next 5 years is going to be very kind to the R129.
I have a friend willing to sell me his for 300 due to relocation. What you recommend I do to find out the issues on the vehicle?
Look it over carefully and drive it. Push all the buttons, try everything and make sure everything works. A wire harness that is failing can be seen with the naked eye. And there should be no rust. The R129 were well built in that regard.
@@swisscarguy great video. How about fuel consumption on this ke jetronic version? I imagine you have an objective idea after 4 years of ownership and more than 10.000 km driven. Thank you. By the way, much is a good 500sl worth nowadays? Cheers
Just found a flawless 1991 75k miles one owner garage kept $8000 us. I'm kinda scared to buy now after hearing this.
How expensive would it be to replace the top on a R129 ??
The soft tops themselves can be bought starting at around 500 $ / Euro but it's the labor that adds up. It will take something like 8 man hours. The soft top pope in Germany - a guy who used to work at the Mercedes factory in Bremen where he did nothing but install soft tops - can do it in about 4 hours. But nobody's more skilled than him with these tops.
Just bought one with 49000 miles, curious how much its gonnna be
79000 km
I bet if you added up all the parts you have sitting around for the R129, and anything else, you might be surprised with how much you mug the be able to get for all of it in aggregate.
I wish! Most of it is fairly worhtless. I reckon it's less than CHF 200 combined.
Just bought my sl500 3k 140k miles nothing wrong with it
9:45 I hope the humbled mechanic was not the brand name dealer. 28:00 I wonder what TCO would be for using brand name dealers where possible. I have not much experience but hope TCO would average ~10% new purchase price for typical ~13k km annual mileage as a guideline compared ~3% DIY not driving much you experienced, else ~6% with typical mileage. Though ~10% might still be possible even if not using main dealers, if driving the unmentionable!
Correction - I managed to watch the horror film again and you were not doing much of it DIY so maybe the ~10% it cost was to be expected - now we know
My unmentionable was CHF 220'000 new. 10% would have been 22k per year. Even I managed to do better than that (otherwise I would have gone broke 😢). But leaving out the options and looking at a base W12, it might be right on 10%. Of course, if you can DIY more the costs will be lower. But yes, great observation!
Well at least you weren't Gilligan on your journey home after purchasing the car.
If I was swiss I would just buy all your old cars
you sell them way better than you get them
Might be more of Mario-thing than a Swiss thing. 😅
Love the Phaeton scary effects lol
The person who got the car at the auction for 7000 got the real deal, if he makes a video he will have totally different figures
Man, oh, man, oh, man...I should be purchasing cars from you Mario. Fully loaded and upgraded! When's next on sale?? Comforting thing is that you're not spending money on hookers & blow.
Wait for my next Video: *How much did hookers & blow cost? Total cost of ownership [TCO]*
@@swisscarguy that would be inlightining and a cautionary tale for all of us!
Mercedes Benz the best or nothing!
yea dont be the pedantic.. but sell your car for 7000 and ONE franks.
VW v12... yuck...Nice vide!!
Hah! If you want to live with great car tax come to Turkey...
If you have 93 corolla with 1300cc engine you pay like 9 euro for whole year.
If you have something not older than 3 years and has more than 2000cc, you need to pat more than 1000 euro.
Yeah.. some third world country problems..
If you spent half the time you did making this video researching the car's history, maybe this wouldn't be such an embarrassment. About everything you said was just because you found your 92 for cheaper than a post 96-97 because they're worth more and more reliable. And ask any real Mercedes enthusiast if they go off of Mercedes factory horsepower specs, and you think 6hp means anything. I guarantee you post 96-97's are faster. This whole video is such a joke of you making yourself feel better about a car you know nothing about.
Interesting, I always assume that the audience listens to and understands what I say in my videos. Thanks for pointing out my misconception!