I'm doing this differently: AMAAMC

"JGrabowMSt" (jgrabowmst) 10/15/2014 at 14:37 • Filed to: TAG AMAAMC

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Ask Me Anything About My Cars

1997 Mercedes Benz SL600 Sport - M120 6.0L 48v V12, approx. 400HP when new. 98k miles

2005 Dodge Magnum R/T - 'New HEMI' 5.7L 16v V8, approx 345HP when new. 147k miles

The Magnum is in the shop for some failure in cylinder 1, still waiting for the official diagnosis. Shop is backed up, I told them to take their time.

The SL600 Sport gets driven occasionally, but not too often.

I know both of them fairly well, but have not yet done an Oppo Review for either yet.

Ask me anything you want about either one, and I'll give you my best answer, or find what the interwebs has to say about.

Captain of the Enterprise > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:39

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Why did you choose to buy the Magnum and the Mercedes?

K-Roll-PorscheTamer > Captain of the Enterprise 10/15/2014 at 14:41

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On the Magnum, are there any significant differences between the HEMI model, and the other trim lvls, in terms of transmission, suspension, chassis, interior, and exterior trim?

Captain of the Enterprise > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:43

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Do you wish the magnum had received the charger front end or do you prefer what you have?

Coty > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:44

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Good idea.

dogisbadob > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:45

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Damn, half of your paycheck goes to the gas station :o

Have you done any burnouts in either?

Milky > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:46

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How much do you enjoy big powerful black things?

Turbo666 > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:50

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Nice cars, I love black cars ;)

Which do you enjoy driving more and why?

JGrabowMSt > Captain of the Enterprise 10/15/2014 at 14:51

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The Magnum was the only possible answer when I was looking for my "new to me" car earlier this year. I wanted a wagon, I wanted a V8, and I wanted RWD. My budget extended about as far as any other "part time job" could extend. As much as the CTS-V Wagon was calling my name, I cannot afford the car or any of the costs associated with it (insurance, gas, etc). I found it for sale by someone who simply wasn't interested in it anymore. The previous owner had the car for less than 10k miles. I just had to have it. I consider myself more of a chevy guy than a mopar guy, but brands aside, it was the combination of what I was looking for, and in very good condition for it's age. I get stopped often with people asking how old it is, and the whole slew of other questions because the cars aren't really seen often in my area.

The SL600 Sport belonged to my boss. He owned the car for 15 years, and while he does enjoy it and love the car, he just needed the money for things that are far more important. I've been driving the car for him for the past 4 years, and got to know the car very well. When he began mentioning wanting to sell it, I did everything in my power to get him to wait until I had both graduated college, and knew how much money I had left in my college fund. Since I'm finished with my degree, I'm not returning to school, and needed to pursue my interests and hobbies. At the same time, I have met people interested in buying it prior to my boss even mentioning it to me, but they were all collectors who don't drive their cars, they own them to say they own them. I couldn't do that to this car because of it's history, and it's mileage. It didn't get this far to be permanently parked in a garage and collect dust.

I consider them both my show cars. They both go to car shows, and the SL has a trophy in the trunk from one. It's by no means a trophy car to me, and I don't enter it into trophy shows with the goal of filling a shelf with trophies, but I will gladly accept any trophy that a judge awards the car.

TL;DR: I just had to have the Magnum, and I was just too attached to the SL to let it go.

Doug DeMuro > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 14:52

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Do you worry, when you drive the SL600, that the engine may implode at any moment?

JGrabowMSt > Captain of the Enterprise 10/15/2014 at 14:54

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That's an interesting one. I like the front end how it is, but if I ever had the opportunity to change the whole front end, I would actually want to test fit a Challenger nose. and see how it worked with the car.

If I had to switch over to the Charger specifically, I would want the later generation Chargers, more like this swap, but I wouldn't black out the roof or headlights.:

JGrabowMSt > Doug DeMuro 10/15/2014 at 14:56

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Honestly, no. As strange as it sounds it has always been the most reliable vehicle available for me to use.

I hit a deer in my Neon last November and drove the SL for the whole month. Absolutely frigid temps didn't bother the car one bit. I always take it down to Wildwood for vacation, and it never skips a beat.

I'm far more concerned about the hydraulic, self-leveling suspension failing than anything else on that car. The dash lights have begun to go out on it, but I hope to find the time to take the dash out next spring and fix that problem. The soft top hydraulics did fail one afternoon a couple years ago, but have since been flawless.

JGrabowMSt > Milky 10/15/2014 at 14:58

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Ha, I enjoy them quite a bit.

While I really like the Black Pearl finish of the Magnum, if I could have found one in red, I would be equally happy (and would have called it the Lil' Red Express Wagon).

JGrabowMSt > Turbo666 10/15/2014 at 15:00

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They both have their pros and cons, but honestly, there's no comparison to the SL600 Sport. It's a genuine sleeper when you want to shut someone down, but it turns heads all week long.

The Magnum is brutish, and definitely American Muscle, which is a ton of fun, because it can get up and go a lot faster than people expect, but the SL is pure class.

I enjoy both equally, but I'd be lying if I said the SL600 could be replaced by anything else.

JGrabowMSt > dogisbadob 10/15/2014 at 15:04

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Not yet. The plan was to re-vamp the rear end in the Magnum with a wavetrac unit and then do some burnout videos, but since the cylinder 1 issue, it's sitting at a shop. Provided the cost is not ridiculous, the car will be fixed, and there will eventually be a burnout video posted. I have only had the car since May, so I have plenty of time to fix the lack of a burnout video, and much more so after the motor gets the blessing from the shop that it will withstand it.

The SL600 Sport is German, so the traction control is never off. That said, I can get it to break loose in a turn, but not a dead stop, so in an effort to not break it, I don't see myself bothering to do a burnout with it.

Captain of the Enterprise > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 15:06

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Very interesting

you sir have good taste.

Turbo666 > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 15:07

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Ah, this is sort of what I expected. I would definitely imagine the SL being more fun.

sm70- why not Duesenberg? > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 15:17

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How is the reliability/maintenance costs of the Merc? And how is it to drive?

JGrabowMSt > Turbo666 10/15/2014 at 15:39

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I don't look like the type of person who even belongs in it, which I find amusing. When I go out to cruise alone, I have to admit the best faces I get are from girls who are with their boyfriends, and they look over to see me.

I look over and smile, because sometimes they laugh, and usually they turn bright red and look all embarrassed. I don't claim to be some lady killer in the looks department, but I try to do a little more dress casual when I take the car out, just for appearances.

I don't know why, but I remember one time driving home from a show. It was still fairly early, because it was still light out, I had the top down, I had some jazz playing (Michael Buble's It's Time album), and I was just enjoying the drive when this Scion TC pulls up next to me, and it's this punkish looking squirrelly guy at the wheel, and this fairly attractive lady next to him, and I was in two lanes over, but there were no cars between us, we were about to go completely different directions when the light changed, and this girl looks over at me. She turned completely red, and totally had the "I wish I was in the other car right now" face. I gave a little wave, and drove off (into the sunset.... not really), but that moment has stuck with me forever.

I get stopped often in weird places, the DMV, gas stations, etc with people who want to know if it really has a V12, or how I can afford it, or why I got it, how long I've had it, etc etc. In the end, I wanted it because I really like it. I had 4 years of test driving it to really learn whether I liked it enough. The SL is a heartbreaker. On occasion my boss would mention selling it, and my heart would drop, it's not just a car for me, so it was hard, but I got lucky and was able to buy it.

JGrabowMSt > sm70- why not Duesenberg? 10/15/2014 at 15:46

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If you take the car to Mercedes for work, it's a similar experience to leaving a blank signed check on the sidewalk in NYC.

I do work on it myself, and as AMGtech pointed out earlier today, it's an exercise in masochism.

I've been tackling the smaller, simpler things like the trim pieces or buttons that need to be fixed around the car first, to get my confidence up about taking apart some of the larger parts, but when I get to doing the spark plugs, I will be posting a lot about that, and likely doing it with the help of Mathias.

The last major service was over $2500 and included front brakes, dry rotted hoses and the water pump. I will say that the price, and the broken plastic trim around the engine bay reinforces my theory that even the Mercedes techs hate seeing this car roll in for work.

It's an absolute dream to drive. 17 years old and it's never been on a tow truck, it's never overheated, broken down, or left me stranded for any reason. If I'm desperate for a reliable car to drive, I can look at this and know I'll be able to get there without a problem.

It's begun to develop rattles in the soft top, but overall, it's been used well, and kept kindly. I just hope I can continue to show it the care it deserves. It is, after all, the grand daddy of the Pagani Zonda.

JGrabowMSt > K-Roll-PorscheTamer 10/15/2014 at 16:02

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Yes, very big differences.

The rear suspension on RTs and SRTs is typically Sachs Nivomats, which are self-leveling struts. You could put 100lbs in the back, you could put 400lbs in the back. No sag.

There's the 4 speed dodge slushbox which is a total POS, and there's a 5 speed mercedes trans (called the NAG1, for New Automatic Generation 1). The NAG1 is the better trans to get, and can handle roughly 650ish HP before you have to upgrade any internals. The 4 speed Dodge is impressive to handle any power at all, honestly.

Just about everything under the hood except for I think the brake booster and cabin air filter is totally different. I have seen a very small number of people do full swaps from SXT to RT cars, and you almost can't really list all the parts required, as soon as you think you're set, you need something else.

The SXT exhaust is completely different, and single pipe at the back, the RT and SRT exhaust has an X pipe, a suitcase muffler and resonators in the rear at the exit. RT cars are 2.25" at the rear tip, SRTs are 2.5" I believe.

The differences go on and on, but between all the cars, the dashboard is interchangeable. Most desirable would be the dash with the EVIC system, which is on-board diagnostics for the whole car, above and beyond pulling P Codes.

The frame/chassis however is identical to the best of my knowledge. As it's an LX platform car, it shares many parts or can accommodate parts from other LX cars (Charger/Challenger/300/Magnum) without much trouble or modification.

area man > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 16:24

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How heavy does the SL feel?

JGrabowMSt > area man 10/15/2014 at 16:29

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The SL actually doesn't feel heavy at all. It lumbers around parking lots like it doesn't want to get out of bed in the morning, but it has tons of low end torque that motivates it quite well.

On the highway, if you have to do anything to avoid a pothole or debris on the road, it can change lanes quite quickly, and it doesn't feel lazy or unstable doing it.

The steering has a very loose feel to it, but firms up a lot once you're cruising.

Impressive, considering the car weighs a couple tons and some extra on the side.

area man > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 16:32

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Sounds like it!

RickyD > JGrabowMSt 10/15/2014 at 18:55

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I have been dd'ing my s600, I also recently started depositing my check directly to Shell gas pumps. How do you like yours?

JGrabowMSt > RickyD 10/15/2014 at 21:41

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I honestly love the car. I mean, being young, I can't say I've driven tons and tons of cars and can compare it to many, but coming from the cars I've seen, sat in, or otherwise had some experience with, the SL600 Sport is one of the few cars that is truly understated.

I mean, sure, anyone can find some luxury car and say it's the best thing in the world. Look at Maybach for example. Those things are rolling luxury apartments. When you look at the SL600 Sport, it's not really that high up on the luxury scale, but it's got a laundry list of features that are difficult to find on most cars today. Funny because the car is 17 years old.

Fully automatic soft top is the biggest thing to me. Sure, the hard top is separate, but to have a soft top that 1) folds down at the touch of a button and 2) folds into a separate compartment that doesn't effect trunk space is something you aren't going to find much today. The car just feels totally solid. I really can't say that about anything else I've driven. It has a sentimental value that I couldn't give a dollar amount to, definitely. It's just a beautiful car as well. I do very much like my Magnum (I wouldn't be planning to fix it if I didn't), but the SL is on a completely different level. If I had to choose one car to keep and had to sell the other, I would keep the SL. I wouldn't want to have to make that decision, but it's what I would say, I know it. There are people that love their little commuter cars and wouldn't trade them for the world, this car is no different. I want to get it back to a mechanical state where it's very much well kept with no problems, and I want to keep it there. Financially, if I ever hit a hard spot, I'd take the car off insurance, put it on jack stands, and cover it until I could afford it.

As a whole though, I honestly wouldn't give it up for a long time. If the value goes back up and I get an offer for it that I really can't turn down, I would consider it, but it wont be for several years unless it becomes impossible for me to continue owning it. I've said before in other posts here that the car is a bit of a therapy device for my girlfriend and I, and that holds very true. It's a big reason why I simply cannot let go of it. It has a big meaning to someone other than myself, and it's owned outright, and in the worst of times, we can take it out and things feel okay. That's important to have, and part of why I like it so much.

It's still very much a funny feeling to call the car mine, because I've been driving it and keeping it running for my boss for the past four years. Now that I'm doing that and it's all mine, it's no different, but there's even more pride in the car. So in the end, how do I like it? I don't like it. I absolutely love it.

Aya, Almost Has A Cosmo With Toyota Engine Owned by a BMW. > JGrabowMSt 10/17/2014 at 06:44

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You're my hero. My Role Model.

Well, your car choices at least. I always want a SL600 since i was a 3 year-old kid.

JGrabowMSt > Aya, Almost Has A Cosmo With Toyota Engine Owned by a BMW. 10/17/2014 at 10:19

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What experience made you want an SL600?

Aya, Almost Has A Cosmo With Toyota Engine Owned by a BMW. > JGrabowMSt 10/17/2014 at 17:07

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When i was a little kid, me and my parents live in Germany. We come to a local car meet, and there's a guy comes with a Red Lamborghini Diablo. I was thrilled to see a car that mad, but then when i ask the owner to sit inside and look at the interior he's not letting me to do that.

And then comes a guy with a green SL600. He saw me looks a bit disappointing with the lambo, and offers to not only let me sit inside the car, he even takes me for a little spin arround the block with the top down. I was extremely happy.

At the end of the cruise he told me "Kid, if one day you can afford to buy yourself an amazing car, please share it with the people. Who knows something good will come out of it?"

I don't know his name, but he's definitely my role model. I don't mind taking my car to a car meet, and as long as they don't break it, i'll happily let them plays with my car.

deekster_caddy > Aya, Almost Has A Cosmo With Toyota Engine Owned by a BMW. 10/17/2014 at 19:52

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SL600 guy totally rocks. I bring my '54 MG TF to a lot of shows and I ALWAYS let people sit inside. Especially kids. The biggest surprise is when an older person or couple ask if I can take their picture in it, "This is the car we had when we got married" or "This is the same age as me" etc. I always say yes.

Sometimes I supervise a kid sitting inside, and after a few honks have to protect the horn button, but otherwise there is NOTHING in there they can break. The seat leather is worn and ripped in a few places, some from when I was a kid. My mother bought this car in 1968.