Thirsty Thursday: Rusto Edition

"JGrabowMSt" (jgrabowmst)
11/21/2013 at 19:10 • Filed to: gasprices, thirstythursday, benz

98 dollars of gas in the tank
98 dollars of gas
Get me more work, let me stay home,
Just dont let me put another 98 dollars of gas in the tank!

The gorgeous 1997 SL600 I've been using as a DD since the 6th of November. I have put 1058 miles miles on it so far, and about $98 in the tank each week, filling up twice a week for about $49 each time, every 3-4 days.

Beauty comes at a very large price. Sorry for the potato shot, Ill get a much nicer one over the weekend for you all.

DISCUSSION (37)

505Turbeaux > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 19:13

I lust for the one with half that engine. I see more 600's than 320's on the market though

Chase > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 19:21

I want dis one

Kinja'd!!!

Nighthawkwill7, Hoon Depot Manager > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 19:28

Kinja'd!!!

There's yer problem.

Jonathan Harper > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 19:30

Aw man I'm really jealous. That might be my favorite generation SL. So boxy, so good, and I LOVE the dishy wheels.

Deal Killer - Powered by Focus > Nighthawkwill7, Hoon Depot Manager
11/21/2013 at 19:38

Just pull the wires off 1/2 the spark plugs and you get six cylinder efficiency, right?

My92SSEisn'taTardis > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 19:53

Save this for when the time is right.

Kinja'd!!!

It actually works out for me to replace my Bonneville with a Tacoma. And I have been searching/obssessing like crazy for whats available. For the same amount of gas burned ( the 4 Cylinder) goes two hundred miles further than my car, and in the winter....forget about it. Damnit, I wants me a Tacoma!

JGrabowMSt > Deal Killer - Powered by Focus
11/21/2013 at 19:58

Haha, unplug injector #1. The injectors work in two banks, if a single one goes on either bank, the entire set stops.

Dont want it running rough though, that surge of power is quite the rush.

JGrabowMSt > Jonathan Harper
11/21/2013 at 20:06

Those deep dishes are the only giveaway to the power. This is one of just a handful of AMG models from the 1997 year. No badging other than the wheels and the keychain. In fact, a badged 1997 model would be something the customer did after taking delivery, as to my knowledge, only post 1998 cars were factory badged. I have seen the badge kits, and no, I would never do it.

Engine ratings vary by the source you check, 1997 manual states 389 horse, if you would be lead to believe that.

If you lived in North Jersey, Id totally take you for a spin!

George McNally > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 20:19

Nice car........I put 24 bucks in my gas tank 2 weeks ago. I only have a 4 mile commute with my 14 year old Saturn SL2.

JGrabowMSt > George McNally
11/21/2013 at 20:23

I have a 1.8 mile commute to work, and a 37.5 mile commute to school. School is 5 days a week, work is 4.

Just reset the trip meter so I can get a rough idea of how many tanks to the mile it gets.

Jonathan Harper > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 20:39

Bring it to NYC, I work here:

www.classiccarclubmanhattan.com

Manuél Ferrari > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 21:03

Haha thanks for the shout out!

Man that's a perdy car. You can never go wrong with a high-power Benz in black.

Question - do you have the garage space to buy another car instead of selling the beast? If so that would seem like the best of both worlds to me. I can see how $98 a week would hurt. I moved closer to work this year when my Dad was borrowing my relatively efficient car and my DD was my E90 M3. I was spending almost as much per week until I moved and it was hurting.

If you had a more efficient car to drive some days then your gas bill would be a lot lower and you wouldn't care about the cost of gas on the days you do drive the Benz, because you'd just be so excited to be back in it.

Manuél Ferrari > Chase
11/21/2013 at 21:05

Man that thing looks mean all murdered out like that. I think most cars look tacky blacked out in that fashion. But that specific AMG doesn't look tacky at all. It just looks amazing. It's a mean car to begin with so looking super mean all blacked out suits it well.

syaieya > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 21:25

The first time I ever got a taste of a powerful car was a Renntech tuned one of these.

They're a great, powerful beast of a car with looks that are just right. But they are such a maintenance hog.

My dad's 500SL, which should be the pride of the fleet, is limping now with a bad ticking and a rough driver's seat. Not to mention a bad soft top.

Good on ya for keeping it on the road though.

Mathias Rios > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 21:26

Majorly jealous.

JGrabowMSt > Manuél Ferrari
11/21/2013 at 23:25

I'll clear this up for you, so it makes more sense..

This isnt my car. This is my bosses car, and I plan to buy it next year. We've settled on a price, and it's reasonable for a 95k mile SL600.

My actual (30mpg) DD is in the shop right now, I hit a deer. My boss's outlook on the car is simple: it's a car. My outlook: yes it is, and its cheaper to keep it on the road than it is to keep it trapped in a garage.

I take it to car shows almost every weekend over the summers, and have been for the past 2 years. It only goes to charity shows. That's something that has come to mean a lot to me over the past 12 months.

I have come to really love the car, and so has my girlfriend. Because of several issues we both have, the car is very therapeutic. I'll go answer some other questions and it'll make more sense as I get there.

JGrabowMSt > Jonathan Harper
11/21/2013 at 23:26

I'll be in touch about a few things then! I'd love to have a reason to drive out there!

Manuél Ferrari > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 23:32

Bummer you hit a deer! Sorry about that. I hit a kangaroo when I lived in Australia. Well I was sleeping and my friend was driving my Holden when we hit it. Very lucky to be alive. Had it jumped out into the road a half second earlier than it did I'd be dead. It was over 6' tall and only it's head hit the windshield. The body hit the side of the car.

If you and your girlfriend love the car you have to find a way to buy it next year and pay for the gas. I am one of those people that get sentimental about specific cars. When you fall for a specific car I feel like it won't be the same if you buy one of the same cars at a later point. Right now it would be much better for me financially to let my 997 go when the lease is up at the end of the year. I could always get another one later. I could get a better one later since I have a base C2 and could get a C2S or even a GT3 if I could swing it. But I have good memories in this car and am sentimental about it...

Good luck with whatever you decide and do. Your car looks really sharp.

JGrabowMSt > syaieya
11/21/2013 at 23:36

Kinja'd!!!

Renntech cars are just batshit insane. This is an SL65 thats in the area, spotted it at Mountain Creek last fall.

The soft top issues are hell. There's a company in Washinton State that sells the hydraulic locks for cheaper than Benz, and they're much higher quality. I'll dig around for the link, I should have it somewhere.

If you aren't going to tackle any maintenance yourself, shop around for a mechanic with 30+ years experience with Benz cars. They'll cost a pretty penny, but they will also tell you if something isn't worth it.

This car is not in my family at all, my dad actually hates it, and can't stand looking at it. I'd say it would be worth a weekend project to get that 500SL back running. It's a special car, still having the number first.

syaieya > JGrabowMSt
11/21/2013 at 23:50

Well, my dad is the guy with 20 years experiences. he worked on these things from warrenty and even put the second engine in this car from when it was owned and serviced from the dealership.

Unfortunately though, parts are a killer. it's going to take nearly 4k in parts alone to get this 135k mile 21 year old example back to fighting form.

And because of that amount of cubic dollars, the W123 he has took priority on getting back to drivability.

JGrabowMSt > Manuél Ferrari
11/21/2013 at 23:58

Kinja'd!!!

That kangaroo must be a distant cousin of the deer that hit me. The cop and tow truck driver both said that the damage was insanely minimal. Had the deer been any further in the road, and I would have been in serious trouble. There were other things going terribly wrong that night, but all things considered, I got very lucky considering the size of the deer, and it was female. Had I hit a buck the same way, and those antlers would have done a number on the radiator.

I completely agree about falling for the car. I didn't necessarily fall for any SL600, I fell for this one. I know the full history of the car, from the original buyer to my boss, and hopefully I'll be able to add many years to that. To start off, the car will likely go on collector insurance (when it was bought new, it was put on that, so getting it back shouldn't be very hard) and I'll take a couple years to really take care of the major potential issues before they become issues.

Naturally, I've had conflicting thoughts about whether that money should be spent on something more "practical" like health insurance or a mortgage, but in all honesty, those things couldn't replace this car. Money can't buy health or happiness, just a tool to get you there. The car has about 6000 miles on it that I put on. In those 6000 miles, I've learned a lot about the car and myself. I may not keep the car forever, but that's not for me to decide now. I still have about 7 months to change my mind on all this, but I don't think I will. I've seen 2 other SL600's in person. One was a 1998, non sport version, the other was a Sport model like the one I get to drive, but it was in terrible condition. Rust everywhere, entire body panels with peeling/scratched paint. That was sad to see, though at least the car was running and driving (it was cruising on the highway).

It definitely wont be a DD, it's far too expensive to keep this up, but that said, it's well worth owning as an investment to preserve the car by keeping it in good shape and running well, but also in the hopes that it can become a collector, and when I can no longer fully enjoy it, hopefully I could find someone else who can.

Manuél Ferrari > JGrabowMSt
11/22/2013 at 00:03

It probably was a distant cousin! Man it sucks to hit one. We had no idea what happened at first because it was nighttime. It ripped up the whole side of the car and the windshield looked like a brick hit it.

True that money is only a tool to happiness. Homeownership has it's pros and cons so no rush to get into a mortgage. Health insurance is kind of important though... I would probably get it first before the car, cause next time the deer might hurt you!

JGrabowMSt > syaieya
11/22/2013 at 00:06

I would most definitely have some questions for your dad then about even this car! (assuming he doesn't mind some mind bending questions)..

I completely understand about the parts though. My boss is not a mechanic, so he'll tackle some projects, but leave other ones to the Benz service center around here. For what the car is, it's understandable. I've done work on cars with my dad since I was old enough to safely help him with the family cars. Because of his age though, he's given up on most jobs though, but his health also isn't what it was 5 years ago, and 46 years of factory work catches up on you.

That 500 will certainly wait for it's turn, I'm sure it hasn't forgotten how to be awesome.

Jonathan Harper > JGrabowMSt
11/22/2013 at 00:12

You can email me jon@classiccarclub.com

JGrabowMSt > Manuél Ferrari
11/22/2013 at 00:26

I hit the deer just before 10pm, but being an unforgettable experience, I remember seeing the whole thing. The deer was running when I hit it, and because of where I hit it on the road and with the car, there was no avoiding it. Pushed the fender back almost 1.5 inches.

I'm graduating collect in May, and given how I've managed to be pretty frugal, I'm going to have a lot of extra money (no student loans here). Health insurance is obviously important, but I'm not looking at houses at all right now, I want to travel with the girlfriend (possibly fiancee by the time this happens) and enjoy life. I want to move out and establish myself, the rest is all speculation for now.

Manuél Ferrari > JGrabowMSt
11/22/2013 at 01:46

Good plan! Travel as much as you can before the future mortgage and other responsibilities make it hard to travel. I never get to travel. Last real trip I took was 4 years ago. Driving cars around town is my main source of relaxation.

When you do buy a condo or house follow this rule (I wish I had thought of it before I bought the last place that I got hosed on) - compare the total annual cost of owning it, including the misc expenses and tax write off to the cost of renting a similar property. If the cost of owning is more than 25% the cost of renting the same type of property then wait because the market is overpriced.

Had I followed this simple rule in early 2005 I would not have gotten bit by the housing bubble. I could have rented my last house for 50% less than renting the same type of place. Which should have made it obvious that buying was a bad idea...

Chase > Manuél Ferrari
11/22/2013 at 02:14

what about all flatted-out?

Kinja'd!!!

I, personally, love it. maybe with some p-51 mustang teeth? XD

Manuél Ferrari > Chase
11/22/2013 at 02:15

I would prefer black but this one is cool too. It looks like a Benz that an ex-military private mercenary would drive. And that's pretty badass

Chase > Manuél Ferrari
11/22/2013 at 02:47

ooh. just found a new pic of it (to me anyway)

Kinja'd!!!

I'm sort of with you on the flat black, i just think it tends to get (way) over done. Maybe a deeper green than this. upside of not being flat black, it that all the blacked out emblems and such are visible

Manuél Ferrari > Chase
11/22/2013 at 02:53

Whoa now it really looks like a mercenary's car in that pic. It is awesome. It's the Benz you'd want in a Mad Max style wasteland. With an extra gas tax and guns in the trunk

syaieya > JGrabowMSt
11/22/2013 at 17:12

If you wanna ask just go ahead and post it here. He revived a customer's SL600 not too long ago and he's pretty well versed.

JGrabowMSt > syaieya
11/22/2013 at 18:11

Alright, well, the water pump was changed recently. After that job, the car started running warmer than it did beforehand. Not dangerously hot, but I noticed it right away. The car ran just a blip above 80C no matter what, you could be flogging it, or just highway cruising. Now, it will edge closer to 90+. It's never overheated or gotten quite that warm, but I'm wary of the car despite that.

I know the V12 is nothing easy to work with, but I'm wondering what I should look at first. I don't want to take it to Benz and get the shaft on service, but I want to make sure there's no problem lurking just down the road. Obviously, I've been DDing it, and it drives well, no power loss at all, gas mileage does not seem to be suffering, but I don't want a problem with it (especially having plans to purchase it). Any advice?

Outside of that specifically, the car is in remarkable condition. There's minor body work that's needed, and I want to get the edges of the wheels fixed to get rid of the curb rash it's gotten over the years (I have never curbed this, and hopefully never do) but that water pump thing is the only thing I want to make sure doesn't get bigger. Beyond that, once I get it, I plan to take apart parts of it a little at a time, and replace some little things (rearview mirror doesn't stay in place, center arm rest button is broken, etc) but I just want to get the car running well. All the other cosmetic things aside.

Thanks in advanced!

syaieya > JGrabowMSt
11/22/2013 at 20:02

My dad says that as long as it's not topping 100 it should be alright. But if you're concerned the thermostat would be the first thing to investigate. If memory serves the part isn't really that expensive either.

JGrabowMSt > syaieya
11/22/2013 at 20:47

Ah, good to know. Though I drive it hard, to my knowledge, it has not topped 100 at all, I'm pretty wary.

The thermostat is what I mentioned to my boss, it's just down to getting the time to work on it. Does your dad have any suggestion about what type of coolant to run? I'm really tempted to flush and refill the system, but before going for that, I want to make sure I get the right coolant for the car. Also curious if he has any tips to test the thermostat, or something to look for that would lead me to believe it's failing?

Thanks very much for passing this along!

JGrabowMSt > syaieya
11/22/2013 at 20:47

Ah, good to know. Though I drive it hard, to my knowledge, it has not topped 100 at all, I'm pretty wary.

Thanks very much for passing this along!

syaieya > JGrabowMSt
11/22/2013 at 22:04

By driving it slowly you are putting that car through it's hardest work. Those engines are designed to run at temperature at a brisk pace with few stops. As for the cooling, Really he just uses the standard prestone and mixes it accordingly. As for testing the thermostat, there's really no way but the key way to tell if it's failing is if the car is having difficulty holding regular operating temperature. But as he said before, if it's not above 100 C it shouldn't have a serious problem.

On a side note, I kinda found it funny that the car he brought home for the night to test for problems was a 1993 600 SEL

JGrabowMSt > syaieya
11/22/2013 at 22:21

I've been avoiding traffic as possible, by leaving earlier or later than I normally would, and taking the highway more than I otherwise would be. I also changed my route to/from my girlfriends house so that I take higher speed limits with less traffic and less cops, so I can drive it to what it wants. Best mileage seems to be between 55 and 85mph, the car is pretty lazy any slower than that. Thanks for the advice, it's hugely appreciated, and nice to know that it's probably fine, I'm just worried about keeping it maintained.