StarPower
Active LVC Member
Hello everyone. I figured I'd give you a little background on how I got my car. If you're not big on reading, you can just look at the pictures (both my old and new car).
Until very recently I had a 2004 Mercedes-Benz CL55 AMG that I bought in 2009:
I drove it up to New Hampshire from Virginia on new years eve to visit my family. Within 15 minutes of being parked it was hit by a Durango. I didn't know about this when I saw the slip of paper under the windshield wiper the next morning.
At first I was angry, thinking I had gotten a parking ticket when the meters are supposed to be free at night. After I read the slip, I wished it had been a parking ticket. I looked at the driver's side rear and saw this:
I said a few choice words but thought, "at least the car's still driveable."
Then I looked at the passenger's side and saw this:
The Durango pushed the car into the curb, damaging the rear tire and suspension. From the angle of the trunk lid, I could tell the frame was also bent pretty badly. The estimate was well over $20,000, so the car was totalled.
I wasn't really sure what I wanted for my next car. I wanted something nice, but I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I've always had a thing for Mark VIII's, but those are getting to the age where it takes a lot of searching to find one in good condition, and I didn't have a lot of time to drive long distances in my search. I started looking at LS's, and I found one close that had was in good shape, one owner, dealer maintained, with all of the options (nav/THX audio, HID's).
So far I'm loving the LS. It's a very interesting color that looks either dark brown or grey depending on the light with a dark brown and light beige interior (Chargoal Gray Clearcoat Metallic and Espresso/Medium Light Stone maybe?). It doesn't have quite as much power as the CL55 (493 HP/517 ft-lb supercharged V8), but it's still pretty quick. I drove it back from the dealer this afternoon (about 50 mi of highway driving) and it was nice and smooth. I can't comment on the handling yet. I haven't had much chance to take it out on a good winding road, and the roads were covered with melting snow when I did my test drive so I wasn't going to fling it around too hard.
The LS actually cost less than what I put into maintaining the CL55 just months before my trip. There was nothing catastrophically wrong with the CL, it was all just routine maintenance, wear and tear items, and new tires. That was pretty much normal every year. I'd go in for my routine service about once every year (includng rear tires). Two weeks and several thousand dollars later, I'd get my car back with all of the little problems fixed. It was an amazing car outside of those two weeks.
About my name: My CL55's first owner was an actor, and the car had a star on the grill and a lot of power. Coincidentally, my LS also has a star on the grille and a good amount of power, so the name still fits.
Until very recently I had a 2004 Mercedes-Benz CL55 AMG that I bought in 2009:
I drove it up to New Hampshire from Virginia on new years eve to visit my family. Within 15 minutes of being parked it was hit by a Durango. I didn't know about this when I saw the slip of paper under the windshield wiper the next morning.
At first I was angry, thinking I had gotten a parking ticket when the meters are supposed to be free at night. After I read the slip, I wished it had been a parking ticket. I looked at the driver's side rear and saw this:
I said a few choice words but thought, "at least the car's still driveable."
Then I looked at the passenger's side and saw this:
The Durango pushed the car into the curb, damaging the rear tire and suspension. From the angle of the trunk lid, I could tell the frame was also bent pretty badly. The estimate was well over $20,000, so the car was totalled.
I wasn't really sure what I wanted for my next car. I wanted something nice, but I didn't want to spend a lot of money. I've always had a thing for Mark VIII's, but those are getting to the age where it takes a lot of searching to find one in good condition, and I didn't have a lot of time to drive long distances in my search. I started looking at LS's, and I found one close that had was in good shape, one owner, dealer maintained, with all of the options (nav/THX audio, HID's).
So far I'm loving the LS. It's a very interesting color that looks either dark brown or grey depending on the light with a dark brown and light beige interior (Chargoal Gray Clearcoat Metallic and Espresso/Medium Light Stone maybe?). It doesn't have quite as much power as the CL55 (493 HP/517 ft-lb supercharged V8), but it's still pretty quick. I drove it back from the dealer this afternoon (about 50 mi of highway driving) and it was nice and smooth. I can't comment on the handling yet. I haven't had much chance to take it out on a good winding road, and the roads were covered with melting snow when I did my test drive so I wasn't going to fling it around too hard.
The LS actually cost less than what I put into maintaining the CL55 just months before my trip. There was nothing catastrophically wrong with the CL, it was all just routine maintenance, wear and tear items, and new tires. That was pretty much normal every year. I'd go in for my routine service about once every year (includng rear tires). Two weeks and several thousand dollars later, I'd get my car back with all of the little problems fixed. It was an amazing car outside of those two weeks.
About my name: My CL55's first owner was an actor, and the car had a star on the grill and a lot of power. Coincidentally, my LS also has a star on the grille and a good amount of power, so the name still fits.
. Cars come and go. Makes life fun trying a bit of everything!!!
