• Superb example of the earliest CLK 55 AMG

 • Excellent condition

 • 347bhp V8 power

 • Full service history

 • MOT May 2023

The coupé version of the Mercedes-Benz W210 E-Class, or successor to the W124 ‘CE’ models, was originally going to be called the ELK. 

That was right up until the moment that the Mercedes-Benz A-Class turned turtle on a Swedish car magazine’s ‘Elk Test’ – a high speed manoeuvre that simulated a moose wandering into the road. 

The resultant barrel roll led to a wave of negative exposure in the press and the E-Class coupé was hastily renamed the CLK instead, detaching it from any negative connotation. 

It was a lovely car, especially in higher spec trims. And they don’t come any higher up than the AMG models, powered by a normally aspirated but gutsy 347bhp 5.4-litre V8 engine. 

This one is one of the first AMGs and is in great order with an impeccable history. 

It’s at the age now where if you look after it, the value is only going one way.

 • MoT until May 2023

 • Service book stamped up to 95k

 • Original manuals, handbook and service book

 • Recent service invoices 

 • V5C

The vendor of this car is a garage specialising in classic and performance cars and the owner has been using the CLK for a few months as his own car having looked after it for its previous owner for the past couple of years. 

It has a very good history file, with a service book stamped to 95,000 miles (just 6,000 miles ago) and an invoice for a full service carried out since. 

The service folder contained lots of prior invoices and all of the car’s original handbooks and minor documents, along with a ‘Mercedes Signature’ used car invoice and associated papers. 

• Black leather

 • Heated electric memory seats

 • Excellent condition

 • Parking sensors

The cabin is trimmed in smart black leather with a grey ash centre console. 

The seats, carpets, dash and door trims are in great order and all of the dials and controls work as they should, as do the electric seats. 

There’s a more modern stereo CD-radio fitted to supplant the original tape player, while the only minor fault we could find was the passenger window, which is slow to return to the fully closed position. 

The heated seats and air conditioning both work as intended, while subtle “Mercedes-Benz V8” door kick plates and “AMG” dials are the only subtle hints that this is more than a standard CLK.

• Classic Mercedes-Benz silver

 • No evident corrosion

 • 17-inch AMG alloys

 • Low-key body kit

Subtlety is this car’s byword and it really hides its light under a bushel performance-wise. 

Yes, it’s an AMG – but it goes about it in the least showy way possible. 

There’s a body kit, but it’s hardly overt, and the 17-inch alloy wheels are smart but hardly scream the fact there’s a 5.4 V8 under the bonnet. The wheels, incidentally, were refurbished at some expense in 2019. 

The rest of the body is in really good condition, with no evidence of any rust or deterioration to the classic Mercedes-Benz silver paint, which is in superb order. 

 

• 5.4-litre V8

 • five-speed auto transmission

 • 347bhp

 • Amazing performance

It may look subtle but as soon as you fire it up, it’s obvious that the CLK isn’t a common-or-garden CLK – the guttural rumble of the sports exhaust system, combined with the intoxicating performance when you give it the beans is all you need to know. 

This is real performance, discreetly delivered. 

We were able to drive the car a few miles for the photography and can confirm that the performance is incredible and that the steering, brakes, suspension and transmission all performed as expected on a short test drive. 

The original CLK 55 AMG must be one of the most discreet Mercedes-Benz performance cars ever made, and in many ways that’s core to its appeal. 

It’s a genuine performance car that can despatch 0-60 mph in 5.1 seconds and has a limited 155 mph top speed, but it does so in a manner so subtle that only those who know truly know. 

There aren’t many left in this kind of condition.