Hi,
I've finally landed my dream car but I'm far from knowing anything about fixing it....yet!

I've got to drive it from Los Angeles to SF.

Know any good/realiable mechanics off the I5 in case I break down?

Thanks in advance!

Wouldn't it be easier to make sure that your insurance policy has coverage to get your car towed all the way home to SF if you break down rather than trying to line up shops along the route?

And don't get me wrong here - I'm not trying to be rude but if you have doubts the car will make a 5 hour run from LA to SF, why on earth did you buy it in the first place? If it's in such marginal shape that you're really concerned about making the trip in one piece, you could very easily end up spending much more on repairs than what you're looking to pay for the whole car in the first place.

If you haven't had the car inspected, spend $100 or so and have someone with old SL experience look over the car.

Some time ago I was over at a shop I use in Burlingame and overheard the owner of the shop talking to a prospective buyer about a very nice looking 560SL he had brought in to have looked over. It took the shop owner less than 10 minutes to find more than $5K worth of work (and that was before the test drive) needed on the car even though the seller had assured the prospective buyer (who had flown in from Florida) that the car was in perfect shape.

There is nothing cheap about an inexpensive SL except what you pay for the car itself.

I agree that an inspection is a great idea. These cars can be very expensive to fix.

If you do breakdown, you may want to call Mercedes' free roadside assistance at (800) 367-6372. I've never used it myself since I have AAA which has good towing coverage.

Good luck,

Steve

SouthBaySLC and Steve Maiocco,

Thanks to both of you for your input/info!

I agree about inspections. I was just trying to prepare for the worse case scenario; I do have AAA but only the basic 5-mile tow.

The car was inspected and seemed to be in good shape but one can't always find everything that could be wrong with an older vehicle. (grin)

Hey SouthBaySLC, care to share the name of that Burlingame shop? (or are we allowed to do that here?)

Please excuse my ignorance as I'm new to this site and to SL's!

Thanks again!

The place in Burlingame is called Autohaus Schmid.

Hey there SouthBaySLC!

What a GREAT garage! They will be helping me with the things I can't do myself.
Being female, I've always felt somewhat ignored or taken advantage of when I go to a garage; this is the first time mechanics have taken time to talk WITH me not AT me, before taking all my money! (grin)

Wuhuu! thanks again!
p.s. the car did make the trip from LA and with no problems!