Man buys Mercedes R170 SLK for under $500 only to discover some very unusual problems

A Mercedes R170 SLK with heated seats, broken springs, and a stripped interior was bought for under $500 and turned out to be far more chaotic than expected.

The car had been sitting for several years, hadn’t passed a safety inspection in at least four or five years, and was sold at auction with no bids until the new owner took a gamble.

Described as starting and driving, it revealed a mess of disconnected electronics, mystery pedals, and hidden mechanical issues.

The previous owner appeared to have started modifying the car with heated seats and hand controls, but gave up halfway through.

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The interior was in disarray, with the seats loose, switches dangling, and wires exposed across the cabin.

A second accelerator pedal and hand-operated switch hinted at disability controls. Other unexplained wires pointed toward the failed heated seats project.

To make things worse, both front springs were broken, the brake system had failed due to a burst pipe, and the tires were near the limit.

The car barely rolled, and the brake pedal felt like stepping on air.

Once recovered to the garage, a new battery and fresh fuel got the engine running.

The convertible roof mechanism worked perfectly, though. And the supercharged four-cylinder engine idled smoothly despite a later diagnostic showing a cylinder misfire.

It only appeared once and likely pointed to a spark plug or coil pack issue rather than a mechanical fault.

The team behind the restoration began by clearing out all the non-original wiring related to the attempted heated seats retrofit.

Interior trim panels, carpets, and missing covers were sourced secondhand or from Mercedes directly.

Cleaning products restored the condition of the interior, revealing that beneath the grime and stripped interior, there was a surprisingly complete and salvageable base car.

New brake pipes and hoses restored braking function, allowing a basic test drive around the yard.

The automatic gearbox shifted cleanly, and the air conditioning system was ice-cold.

Aside from the ongoing engine management light and airbag warning, the Mercedes R170 SLK was finally starting to feel like a viable project.

The next stage will be a full service, suspension repairs, and investigating whether it’s worth investing further into the bodywork.

Given the broken springs, scuffed panels, and yellow paint, the car will never be worth a fortune. But for $500, the stripped interior, broken springs, and failed heated seats now feel like manageable issues.

The Mercedes R170 SLK might just become a proper budget cruiser.

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