2005 Mercedes-Benz SLK

VEHICLE HIGHLIGHTS

Mercedes-Benz SLK

The Mercedes-Benz SLK isn’t trying to be practical. It’s a two-seat cabriolet built for the pure joy of open-top motoring, something you don’t see much anymore on South African streets. The days of the affordable, proper roadster have mostly passed us by, with the SLK’s old rivals — think Porsche Boxster and BMW Z4 — now priced into the stratosphere. That was always the SLK’s trick: similar driving thrills but for far less cash. Two examples are up for grabs locally, both petrol-powered automatics, neither of them cars you’ll stumble across by chance. You’re looking at R115,900 to R188,888, and that tight window just underlines how rarely these pop up for sale. Both are 2002 models, so you’re staring at an average of 155,656 km on the odometer — a lived-in mileage, but about par for a twenty-year-old Benz. The SLK 200 Kompressor sits at the entry point with its supercharged four-pot for R115,900, but the one that’ll really tempt the enthusiast is the SLK 32 AMG: R188,888 buys you a supercharged 3.2-litre V6 and a healthy 260 kW, which was properly quick in its day. The big sell here isn’t just the badge or the price, though — it’s that folding hardtop, which means you dodge the usual ragtop headaches and enjoy a quieter, more secure cabin. No new stock, no easy shortcuts: if you want in, you’ll need patience and a sharp eye for condition, because that matters.