1999 Mercedes-Benz SLK230 Kompressor (R170)

Backstory 

October 17, 2018: With the odometer reading 59,505 miles (average 3,131 miles/year) Jeff Miller and a partner liberated the SLK from Larry Hansen's estate. Of course, a few things needed sorting, so the following week, the first service and detailing began.

Photo 1. The supercharged SLK roadster being serviced and detailed.
Courtesy: Jeff Miller / October 26, 2018 / iPhone 7

Service Update

• Replaced pneumatic trunk support struts (one per side)
• Replaced driver's door sill plate (missing one of the circular trim inserts)
• Replaced wheel center caps (two were mismatched)
• Removed Pioneer CD changer (behind right seat) and control head (in cubbyhole under radio)

All fluids, filters, and plugs were replaced, as well as the windshield wipers, and the right side fog lamp bulb. Also ordered the datacard, a second master key fob, and valet key (by Huf) from the M-B Classic Center (MBCC) in Irvine, California. Obtained a full set of glove box manuals from eBay. The SLK's exterior was washed, buffed, and waxed, and the interior was detailed, and the carpets cleaned. Finally, in an effort to restore the original appearance, two grille badges (MBCA and Stuttgart) and two trunk stickers (Deutschland and Denmark) were removed. Fortunately, the original tool kit was found stowed in the trunk.

Photo 2. Top down for demonstration purposes only. Waiting for warmer weather.
Courtesy: Jeff Miller / November 4, 2018 / iPhone 7

The roof takes about 25 seconds to retract into the trunk. Example (1/18 scale): Maisto 31838 – 1996 SLK230

---

08-nov-2018: Got the OEM Alpine "CM1910" radio working again. Car Toys (Avon) found the antenna lead disconnected from what appeared to be a loading coil in the trunk. Gets AM, FM, and weather.

09-nov-2018: Took car to Monro (Avon) and they corrected the right side fog light (Molye used the wrong bulb). Regarding the performance (hesitation), they found no fault codes or warning lights. Suspect bad gas from not being used. Use premium non-ethanol fuel. Advised to replace two serpentine engine belts that were cracked and dried out (preventative), which was done. The parts came in late Friday, so the car ended up staying until Sunday (11-nov-2018).

14-nov-2018: Took car to "Scotties Detail Auto Body" (Avon) to address minor paint touch-up work, and fix loose door panels. Texted and emailed Scottie a link to a YouTube video describing how to remove a door panel (on the presenter's 2002 SLK230). Also created and emailed Scottie two annotated still captures from the door panel video detailing where the panels may have come unglued. Each door has five "plaques" to which glue is applied, and then affixed to the inside of the door panels. Suspect the glue has dried and come loose. Car was returned to the home garage until Scottie had time to handle the work or the weather got better, whichever came first.

16-apr-2019: After a long winter, took car to Scotties to address paint chips and fixing loose door panels.

---

Photo 3. Tool Kit for 1999 SLK230 Kompressor
Courtesy: Jeff Miller / December 6, 2018 / iPhone 7

The basic tool kit was ordered through the MBCC and came from Germany. Photo 3 includes several additional tools (the tow hook, five short wheel bolts, and a 6 mm hex key) – also ordered through the MBCC, but not included with the basic kit.

Part / Description	Photo	Part Number	Source	Quantity	Cost	Date
Basic Tool Kit Blue canvas pouch Screw driver w/ reversible tip (Phillips/flat) Wheel lug mounting tool Adjustable pliers Combination 13 mm / 17 mm open-end wrench Combination 8 mm / 10 mm open-end wrench Fuse pliers (000-581-06-54)		170-580-00-03	MBCC / Germany	1	$68.40	12-nov-2018
Tow Hook		220-628-01-35-64	MBCC / USA	1	$23.56	12-nov-2018
Short Wheel Bolt		000-990-45-07	MBCC / USA	5	$4.18  each	12-nov-2018
Hex (Allen) key (6 mm) 1 To manually operate roof (remove circular trim cap near rear-view mirror)		000000-001938	MBCC / USA	1	$2.20	20-nov-2018

¹ Keep a 6 mm hex key in the center console of the cabin in case the roof is stuck in the down position, which would make getting the tool kit a challenge. In the event of rain, any trunk contents (stored under the roof) would first need to be removed (and potentially placed on wet ground) before gaining access to the spare tire area where the tool kit is normally stowed.

---

Punch List (to do)

• Rearview mirror (auto-dimming fluid leaked internally) / MBCC ($351.12 / 05-nov-2018) – one day lead
• Obtain/install OEM six CD changer (trunk mounted) / Becker has rebuilt CD units ($275 / 25-oct-2018)

References

• Owner's Manual
• Rear view mirror removal (description with photos): https://tinyurl.com/ybksngh8 (Pelican Parts)
• Door panel removal (video): https://tinyurl.com/y9puulsc (YouTube)
• How to manually operate the roof (description with photos): https://tinyurl.com/y9ktcp3p (Pelican Parts) – note the description incorrectly identifies the hex (Allen) key as 5 mm. The correct size hex key to manually operate the roof is 6 mm.
  

c o n t a c t / h o m e