SLR Owners: Happy with your SLR? Prices too good to be true?

8 hours to do the plugs is MUCH MUCH better than Mercedes that charges you $10k and over 50 hours!!!

Why would someone need brake work with a low mile SLR? I heard that each rotor is over $10k and a full break job is closer to $50k. Again, completely insane...BUT why did you need brake work. I figured a low mile SLR wouldn't need to worry about brakes for quite a while.....Please do tell

 

I agree. I thought the CCB's would have a LONG life especially on a non tracked car. For comparison I was told a full break job on a CCB Gallardo is 20k.

8 hours to do the plugs is MUCH MUCH better than Mercedes that charges you $10k and over 50 hours!!!

Why would someone need brake work with a low mile SLR? I heard that each rotor is over $10k and a full break job is closer to $50k. Again, completely insane...BUT why did you need brake work. I figured a low mile SLR wouldn't need to worry about brakes for quite a while.....Please do tell

 

Rotors are 16k cdn each,pads 1.5k each and that is before labour and taxes. Bunch of thieves. They only replaced the rears as they were defective and making all sorts of noises.

The CCBs that MB has on the 722 are shit quality . Movit will supply all 4 corners for 27k lifetime warranty.

And the service on a regular slr and a 722 is the same . They are not that much different

Hell, buy the parts and I'll do it for $100:lol: Just the chance to work on them would be awesom

Funny I found this thread. I have a friend right now that is contemplating buying a 2005 SLR for 190,000 or a LP560-4 For around the same price. He says he wants to keep the car for atleast 5 years and thinks the SLR is more timeless and exclusive. what would you guys recommend?

Funny I found this thread. I have a friend right now that is contemplating buying a 2005 SLR for 190,000 or a LP560-4 For around the same price. He says he wants to keep the car for atleast 5 years and thinks the SLR is more timeless and exclusive. what would you guys recommend?

 

 

I've had both like other guys on here (BMWRacer, Allan, VBOXKING, etc.) and the Gallardo is going to be much easier on the pocketbook. Even though they may be the same purchase price they are going to end up costing very different numbers after a few years. Trust me you need deep pockets for an SLR.

SLR is more to maintain, but prices probably have bottomed out on the SLR more than lp560, so I dont know which will cost more to own in the end. Both cars a fantastic, I wouldnt say one is better than another, just different.

Aaron mirrors my thoughts on this. The other thing you have to remember with the SLR vs the LP 560 in regards to service is this, no matter if the car is 455k new or 200k used, you are still servicing a 455k car. Cost of ownership is the biggie. If the G goes down say 30-50k while you own it and the SLR stays static with price, but has higher service costs, you may come out ahead. Just depends on what you like. I love the SLR, great car, but seriously not for everyone.

Aaron mirrors my thoughts on this. The other thing you have to remember with the SLR vs the LP 560 in regards to service is this, no matter if the car is 455k new or 200k used, you are still servicing a 455k car. Cost of ownership is the biggie. If the G goes down say 30-50k while you own it and the SLR stays static with price, but has higher service costs, you may come out ahead. Just depends on what you like. I love the SLR, great car, but seriously not for everyone.

 

Exactly- well said Chris. MSRP was $448,300 on the CGT and $455K {465K silver arrow}as Chris mentioned on the SLR

On another note: Spark plugs just don't foul anymore. It would probably take at least 30k miles for one to even show wear. Many cars have plug changes at 100k miles now. The only reason for a plug change would be to copper paste the threads so they don't seize.

 

I do know of a certified SLR mechanic in the LA area with his own shop, if it something SP Engineering would rather not perform.

I have been so offended by Mercedes pricing on this car I feel the need to post. I have 2 SLR's are rental cars and here is a quick list of prices.

 

Labor to R&R engine ~$10,000 (had to be done 3 times already on my cars, once for gas tank issue (warranty) once for rear O2 sensor replacement (absurd), 3rd time for service spark plugs.

 

While the gas tanks were out they thought that the fuel pumps may be bad. Dealer quoted $15,000 each and the car needed 2 (turned out to be ruptured fuel line in the tank. Now dont get me wrong there is no special fuel delivery that the SLR needs that any TT Gallardo viper supra POS etc doesn't accomplish for $300.

 

Dealer says if you jack the car up there is a chance you can crack the frame and total the car.

 

Front bumper is divided up into 2 pices

$lower bumper $8000

center bumper section $8000

Headlights $8500 each

front bumper alignment piece $13,000

Hood $74,000

clip on plastic marker light $440

and the best part yet,

 

The bumper support to absorb an impact behind the front bumper is $86,000. If that piece gets damaged it can only be repaired by shipping the car back to Europe for this piece to be replaced.

Just read into that a bit. Definately need the engine in out for $10,000, the labor to install this piece probably $20,000 the support piece and bumper pieces themselves and the shipping to and from Eurpoe.

 

So you take a $190-$220k car crash it in a 30 mph accidental crash and you could be facing a $240,000 repair.

 

In contrast the same accident on a viper / POS would be $8,000-10,000 on a lambo / ferrar likely $20,000 - $40,000

You sure about the figure on the viper. I know their hoods, at least on the Gen 1 and Gen 2 cars are an obscene price to fix because of the 1 piece. I could be wrong, just curious.

 

And I love the fact that the Hood and the support piece behind the bumper cost over 30% of the car brand new to replace. Gotta love the SLR tax.....what a joke.

If those costs are legit, I wouldn't spend anything near asking price for a used SLR. Way better cars that are way less and will likely cost way less.

 

How come no one is in the SLR part replica business? Surely someone could dupe these parts for a fraction of the price.

The SLR is still a 400-500K car. Just because you can get one for less, doesn't mean Mclaren/Mercedes should charge less for parts. No car company works that way. If you buy a G550 for 510 million, do you expect Gulfstream to sell your replacement parts for less because the plane is no longer worth 50 million?

 

Also some of the SLR costs just follow Mercedes proportional pricing scheme. That is headlights on a 50K E class cost 2% of the MSRP, headlights on the SLR cost 2%, etc. Some parts are expensive because the materials, manufacturing, and R&D are expensive compared to lesser cars.

The SLR is still a 400-500K car. Just because you can get one for less, doesn't mean Mclaren/Mercedes should charge less for parts. No car company works that way. If you buy a G550 for 510 million, do you expect Gulfstream to sell your replacement parts for less because the plane is no longer worth 50 million?

 

Also some of the SLR costs just follow Mercedes proportional pricing scheme. That is headlights on a 50K E class cost 2% of the MSRP, headlights on the SLR cost 2%, etc. Some parts are expensive because the materials, manufacturing, and R&D are expensive compared to lesser cars.

 

A parts price should have nothing to do with the sticker price of the car. It should be based off of the cost of producing the part + a mark up Vehicle purchase price should be irrelevant. Should a LP670 SV oil filter be $1000?

 

As far as viper go, they changed the design of the hood in 2002 because of the parts cost of the hood on the 1st Gen vipers. The new ones are much more reasonable.

A parts price should have nothing to do with the sticker price of the car. It should be based off of the cost of producing the part + a mark up Vehicle purchase price should be irrelevant. Should a LP670 SV oil filter be $1000?

 

As far as viper go, they changed the design of the hood in 2002 because of the parts cost of the hood on the 1st Gen vipers. The new ones are much more reasonable.

 

 

A specialized part has EVERYTHING to do with the sticker price of a car like the SLR. I'm not talking about parts like the A/C/Nav unit that were on all the MB cars of that era, but SLR only components.

 

 

The SLR, and the parts on it, are expensive because of R&D, certification, and manufacturing costs that one deals with when using certain materials.

 

 

The people who design the components cost more, the computers and software they use cost more, the tools to build the parts cost more, the people who design those tools cost more, the tools cost more to operate, then once they finally build prototypes those (which cost more than the production models) have to go and get certified....which costs more on a car like the SLR because of the materials used. Then we need tools to connect the parts to make the car and those tools cost more too, and now that it’s a production run we need more people to operate the tools that turn a pile of parts into a car.....

 

Then if you damage the car and need a part, the part is going to cost even more because all of those factors cost even more for low volume production batches.

 

You can really only compare the SLR only part costs to the CGT, Enzo, F1, Veryon etc.....and those are all equally expensive for a reason, they share more in common with the 787 than they do with most cars.

no matter how you spell it out no hood of a car should cost $74k full stop.

 

an average Chinese factory worker makes around $200/month @ $74k that's 32.25 YEARS of labour.

 

a friend of mine works for Mercedes in Germany in their commercial vehicles export division, factory worker, they are paying him Euro 1,800/month.

 

US$74,000 = Euro 55,500 = my friends wages for 2.54 years

 

When I had my Lambo at the dealer I noticed under the front hood the electric harness had a tag on it that said Made in Romania I was very curious and I tracked down the factory, their workers are paid $300/month following that I found out that Hella manufactures their lights in the same city in Romania, take a wild guess at how much they get paid?

 

I also found out that most of the S class wiring harness along with the harness for a bunch of other models, is made in Romania, we have a subcontractor here that we use from time to time, he told me that he worked in that factory as the quality control person, this guy is an electrical engineer, guess how much he got paid a month, 10% more than I pay him here in a day.

 

Please don't buy into the bullcrap marketing machine, you have no idea whom, where and how they make these parts and at what cost, I agree they cost more than the junk for your average car but do not be fooled.

They charge what they charge because they can.

 

no matter how you spell it out no hood of a car should cost $74k full stop.

 

an average Chinese factory worker makes around $200/month @ $74k that's 32.25 YEARS of labour.

 

a friend of mine works for Mercedes in Germany in their commercial vehicles export division, factory worker, they are paying him Euro 1,800/month.

 

US$74,000 = Euro 55,500 = my friends wages for 2.54 years

 

When I had my Lambo at the dealer I noticed under the front hood the electric harness had a tag on it that said Made in Romania I was very curious and I tracked down the factory, their workers are paid $300/month following that I found out that Hella manufactures their lights in the same city in Romania, take a wild guess at how much they get paid?

 

I also found out that most of the S class wiring harness along with the harness for a bunch of other models, is made in Romania, we have a subcontractor here that we use from time to time, he told me that he worked in that factory as the quality control person, this guy is an electrical engineer, guess how much he got paid a month, 10% more than I pay him here in a day.

 

Please don't buy into the bullcrap marketing machine, you have no idea whom, where and how they make these parts and at what cost, I agree they cost more than the junk for your average car but do not be fooled.

They charge what they charge because they can.

 

 

 

You are correct. I can tell you that there are many vehicle factories in Mexico, My own family produces armored cars for the worldwide market. Even an SLR headlamp or whatever other piece they charge ridiculous amounts for can be produces and usually is for cheap. The only reason theres a mark up is because its an SLR headlight and not a s class headlight for example. Same as the most expensive regular Jeans to make cost is about 20 Dollars. Yet companies like True Religion etc. sell them for ten times their production costs. Great business. Its a shame that the SLR has such high operating costs.

A specialized part has EVERYTHING to do with the sticker price of a car like the SLR. I'm not talking about parts like the A/C/Nav unit that were on all the MB cars of that era, but SLR only components.

 

 

The SLR, and the parts on it, are expensive because of R&D, certification, and manufacturing costs that one deals with when using certain materials.

 

You are wrong. R&D costs can be factored into the production cost for a sticker or sale price,they dont design a part saying ok we'll need 100 owners to crash and need this part at $xxx.xx. I guarantee you there are many shared parts with other benzs or other cars. You would fall over if you knew how many parts on current lambos are stamped with audi logos and parts numbers. And yes this includes the $1.5 M reventon. Not just accories either internal engine compnoents (rods, pistons, etc.)

You are wrong. R&D costs can be factored into the production cost for a sticker or sale price,they dont design a part saying ok we'll need 100 owners to crash and need this part at $xxx.xx. I guarantee you there are many shared parts with other benzs or other cars. You would fall over if you knew how many parts on current lambos are stamped with audi logos and parts numbers. And yes this includes the $1.5 M reventon. Not just accories either internal engine compnoents (rods, pistons, etc.)

 

Sorry if it sounds like that is what I was saying, it’s not what I meant. No way am I trying to say bean counters at MB are saying well if we get lucky and 100 owners crash we need this part to be $xxx.x I should mention when I am talking about expensive parts, I am including both R&D and Manufacturing expenses as the reasons for the parts being so costly.

 

The SLR was a “State of the art” car in 2003. Because of this everything is more expensive than your car composed primarily from aluminum or steel. These expensive parts do influence the sticker price of the car. There is a reason why the Gallardo, F430, Murcie are not made in a similar fashion as the CGT and SLR. The carbon fiber tubs in those two are most definitely the most expensive parts.

 

The specialized,expensive parts on the SLR are so costly because they use state of the art materials. I am talking about the hood, chassis, etc. To the best of my knowledge no other car in the MB family uses the SLR hood, headlights, bumper alignment pieces, etc. Sure they use the same electronics and smaller parts, and I fully agree that there is price gouging with parts that are on all the other MB cars, but those pieces aren’t what make the SLR such an expensive vehicle in the first place.

 

But do you really think you can build the hood on the SLR for cheap? It is a fairly complex shape made out of an expensive material.

 

 

If expensive parts didn’t impact the price of a manufactured item 747s would cost a million dollars instead of 230 million.

ts640 all I can say to you, I am and have been involved in a number of businesses, cost of production is very different from RRP, in some instances you would be shocked to learn what certain things cost.

 

I know you think that the hood of the SLR due to its complexity is worth the $70k asking price but I bet you that it costs nowhere near that to produce.

 

Look at after market carbon parts, if there is enough volume to justify the investment small manufactures have the capability and the know how to produce similar quality parts and sell them at a fraction of the cost of the RRP for that particular part and still make profits and I am willing to bet that those small manufactures pay a lot more for the raw material than companies that "mass" produce for car manufacturers.

 

I like the way you think because that's what keeps us all in the business and to a certain extent makes the world go round and round.

 

 

ts640 all I can say to you, I am and have been involved in a number of businesses, cost of production is very different from RRP, in some instances you would be shocked to learn what certain things cost.

 

I know you think that the hood of the SLR due to its complexity is worth the $70k asking price but I bet you that it costs nowhere near that to produce.

 

Look at after market carbon parts, if there is enough volume to justify the investment small manufactures have the capability and the know how to produce similar quality parts and sell them at a fraction of the cost of the RRP for that particular part and still make profits and I am willing to bet that those small manufactures pay a lot more for the raw material than companies that "mass" produce for car manufacturers.

 

I like the way you think because that's what keeps us all in the business and to a certain extent makes the world go round and round.

 

You mean like how it costs 70 dollars to make an iPhone but sells for 500? Or how a Macbook pro costs 1200 to manufacture but sells for 2500?

 

I'm sure a third party could whip up a faux SLR hood. But I'm fairly confident that third party wouldn't go through the development Mercedes did.

 

I'm sure it only costs them a few thousand to make. I just don't see a problem with MB trying to get 70K from a hood .But thats because if I went through what MB had to go through to bring the SLR to market I would charge 70k too.

You mean like how it costs 70 dollars to make an iPhone but sells for 500? Or how a Macbook pro costs 1200 to manufacture but sells for 2500?

 

I'm sure a third party could whip up a faux SLR hood. But I'm fairly confident that third party wouldn't go through the development Mercedes did.

 

I'm sure it only costs them a few thousand to make. I just don't see a problem with MB trying to get 70K from a hood .But thats because if I went through what MB had to go through to bring the SLR to market I would charge 70k too.

 

I am on the same page with you, I would also charge $70k for it but not because it costs that and not because of what I went trough to get it I would charge it because I can.

 

I am on the same page with you, I would also charge $70k for it but not because it costs that and not because of what I went trough to get it I would charge it because I can.

 

 

Good, lets go sell some hoods

 

I hope I didn't come off as rude. My apologies!

You mean like how it costs 70 dollars to make an iPhone but sells for 500? Or how a Macbook pro costs 1200 to manufacture but sells for 2500?

 

I'm sure a third party could whip up a faux SLR hood. But I'm fairly confident that third party wouldn't go through the development Mercedes did.

 

I'm sure it only costs them a few thousand to make. I just don't see a problem with MB trying to get 70K from a hood .But thats because if I went through what MB had to go through to bring the SLR to market I would charge 70k too.

 

We are allowed to disagree. You are saying that SLR parts are priced according to the perceived value of the part. I am suggesting they are just sticking it to people in the after sales to offset a failed program

 

$15k per intank fuel pump ? What is it pumping unicorns??

what drives the price is the rarity of the peice.

 

yes you can say that a mac book only cost $1200 to produce and sells for $2500...but what do you think it would sell for if they were only going to make 1500 of them instead of 150,000+ of them...and it was the best on the market the year it came out.

 

I remember reading that the hood for my GTS was an insurance companies nightmare when it came to replacement...walk into a dodge dealer and they'll hit you with a $14,000 bill for a GTS hood. Now if dodge sold the viper the way Chevy sells camaros, (61,000 this year), and probably another 50,000+ of them ever year for the next 5-7 years before its next redesign for a total of 300,000+ camaro hoods...well then the cost of designing, r&ding, wind tunnel testing, crash testing, assembly line machines, workers, transport, blah blah blah for that hood gets spread out over 300,000+ hoods...plus extras for parts later...well that hood probably only cost $2000ish (a guess).

 

but when Mclaren makes an SLR or porsche makes a CGT or ford makes a FGT all of those costs (design, r&D, wind tunnel testing, materials, manu, yada yada) only gets spread over around 1500 cars. thats a lot less than 300,000. thus those specialized parts even if they dont seem that special must come at a huge premium to make any sense at all.

 

Havent we all heard that Bugatti looses money on every veyron they sell??? (despite the almost $2mill price tag) most flag ship cars for manufacturers are not cash cows...they loose money on every one of them. If there was huge profits in super rare low production number cars companies like pagani, bugatii, kaonigsegg, Gumpert...hell even lambo...would all be rolling in cash. but they arent...they are all usually flirting with bankruptcy all the time. so obvisouly they arent making huge profit margins on every little part in the car.

 

You only have to look at the HUGE r&D cost for a formula one team to realize that designing the cutting edge of super car technology cost a fortune.

We are allowed to disagree. You are saying that SLR parts are priced according to the perceived value of the part. I am suggesting they are just sticking it to people in the after sales to offset a failed program

 

$15k per intank fuel pump ? What is it pumping unicorns??

 

 

Hopefully it pumps the same stuff the person at MB got high off of when they came up with their price for oil changes