01 w210 e320 cdi nightmare

[stevie]

nothing but problems.over 3 grand spent already and still no joycar goes up and down on power.have replaced battery,injector no 3, low and high pressure fuel pumps,pedal sensor,2 mafs,one was faulty,intake maifold motor and both boost pressure control valves over the past 6 months since i bought it.when the new boost valves were fitted the car was perfect for a whole 2 days.wow!really quiet and really fast.car felt light as a feather and was effortless to drive.but inevitably it only lasted 2 days.even in the mornings when cold the car was great which it never has been.the problem is of course intermittent which is a nightmare.im on my second merc indy and the car has been on star diagnostics around 10 times.obviously it has shown up some of these faults which is why so much has been replaced but generally and at present the only fault it is showing is a heater booster fault which indy says is not related to power.it used to be intermittent on the turn of the key but now the power can vary mid journey so its cant be cured by turning car off and on again.my heart is broke and my bank account emptied and i think the indy is sick looking at me.i would point out that it even when down on power is it not limp mode or safe mode.it still goes right through the rev range.it just either flies or drives like crap.and considering im a taxi driver there is no escaping it.the best way i can describe it is that sometimes the car just seems to come alive and at other times it doesnt.indy said egr and turbo are working fine but i think he just doesnt care anymore.please please can someone help?

 

[BenzedUP]

Sounds like a big problems your having.

has the car been remaped? has anybody touched the ECU?

to me it sounds like your having ECU problems, take it to Mercedes to rest the ECU or Update it or either go to somebody who knows about ECU's and check the coding...

Thats just my guess^^^

 

[GordonTarling]

stevie - I don't know whereabouts in the World you are, or which indies you've tried already, but if Olly at PCS is within reach, I'd strongly suggest a visit to him. If he can't sort it, then I don't know who can! http://www.prestigecarservice.co.uk/

 

[stevie]

thanks guys. my indy suggested this might be the case but he told me to replace the ecu would cost a fortune.he suggested that what i was expieriencing were increases of power as apposed to loss of power but when it has the power its fantastic to drive, really quiet smooth and quick with easy gear changes as apposed to lathargic.problem is because the car has never been right since i bought it i really dont know how its supposed to drive but reading some of these posts it would appear they should be really quick.i would also point out that its really poor when its cold,and also,if its an ecu problem then why did replacing the boost valves make the car run perfect for 2 days?

 

[stevie]

forgot to mention im in belfast and the two indys have been john murray at dunmurry and merctech at kennedy way.phillip at mertech is a great guy its just he is sick looking at me.thinks im loosing it.i am.

 

[BenzedUP]

Put it on the Rolling road and see how much power that car is actually producing standard power on them is 197bhp and 470nm Torque i use to have one of them 2001 51 reg had it remaped with West Tuning took the power from 197bhp to 240bhp and 470nm to 540nm was really fast use to out accelerate BMW M3's from 30 to 70mph.

Also my car was really really reliable, i'm shocked at the problems your having with your car!

 

[Dieselman]

I can't see this being a remap issue as it wouldn't vary.

At an outside guess I'd look at the EGR valve or the turbo actuator shaft or vane rings sticking. It would be worth checking the MAF output from Pin 5 as well, just to ensure it's being seen properly at the ECU.

 

[miro]

* Clogged exhaust - when the system is hot the loose catalyst moves around or the gunk clogs the pores.

* Cam sensor

* Crankshaft sensor

* Worn out wiring harness going to ground

* ECU faulty

The Indy is not good with this type of car. Try someone else.

 

[stevie]

dieselman thanks for that reply,i was hoping you would get involved in this.i have already mentioned to the indy about the egr and the turbo and the cat.but he said they are all fine.i can tell you they have never been off the car for visual inspection though so i have to assume he knows what to look or listen for.he also said that the star would pick up these faults.as far as the maf is concerned im on my third one.the first indy reccommended i change it just incase it was causing the fault but it made no difference.i replaced it with a pierburg maf which failed within a month (detected by star)but was replaced under warranty.he also said he tested the egr on the star and could hear it working.one thing i didnt mention in my first post was the accelerator pedal feels completely different when the car goes up and down on power.when its up on power the pedal feels primed and responds to the slightest touch(almost feels like the pedal is pressurised)the whole front end of the car seems to sit up and even the steering feels lighter.when its down on power the first inch of the pedal seems to be useless.of course the star says the pedal sensor is fine.(whats new)another thing to mention is that its not just boost power that varies its top end power aswell.sometimes it can fly from a standing start but it can become lathargic further up the range and at other times its the opposite.what i cant get out of my head is how good the car drove when both boost pressure control valves were fitted.and why it only lasted for two days.now dont get me wrong,the car is much better now than it was before but its still far from being right.also on those two days the car ran perfect when it was cold.it never ran right when cold and now its hit or miss.

 

[stevie]

thanks for the reply miro, but the indys im using are mercedes trained guys in their 40s who work on nothing other than mercs.they do rely heavily on the diagnostics machines though.i have noticed that.the difference between the first one and the one i use now is the first one was making a lot of guesses and they were costing me a fortune.at least the one im using now wont replace anything unless he knows it needs it.mind you thats not really helping me fix this damn car.

 

[Dieselman]

dieselman thanks for that reply,i was hoping you would get involved in this.
.he also said he tested the egr on the star and could hear it working.one thing i didnt mention in my first post was the accelerator pedal feels completely different when the car goes up and down on power.
.

Thanks. It's nice to be appreciated instead of just receiving hassle on here..(hey Guys ?)

Your description fits with the turbo vane ring or actuator linkage being partially seized. Sometimes it might stick in the low revs position, sometimes in the high revs position or in between. If out of sync the engine will feel lethargic in the appropriate position.

Clean and lubricate the actuator spindle with high temperature oil and grease and check it's moving the vane ring Ok.
Remove the EGR valve and clean it, whatever Star says, it could be partially sticking and could also have recorded the MAF fault.
In addition check the resonance flaps under the intake manifold are operating to both extremes of movement.

The variable power output is what is making the accelerator feel lazy, you expect a response and don't get what you expect.

 

[stevie]

thanks.have to go to work.think im getting a drive in a e320 cdi later so hopefully that will tell me if my indy is right about it being power increases as apposed to losses.i hope hes wrong

 

[PeterE320Cdi]

as far as the maf is concerned im on my third one.the first indy reccommended i change it just incase it was causing the fault but it made no difference.i replaced it with a pierburg maf which failed within a month (detected by star)but was replaced under warranty..

Some people have had problems fitting non OEM mafs, may be worth trying a merc one.

Hope you get it sorted, they are great cars when running well.

 

[Dieselman]

Pierburg is the OEM for the CDi.

 

[PeterE320Cdi]

you learn something new everyday

 

[BenzedUP]

I still think it could be a badly done re-map, one of my friends had a 53 C270 CDi and his car had a re-map by the previous owner and the power on the car was not consistent one day it was fast the next day it was slugish and really bad.

First off all he took it to mercedes and they suspected it was the MAF sensor they changed the MAF and updated the ECU car was slightly better but was slow consistenatly took it for a remap which done the trick and now hes had the car for over 3 Years and more than happy with it!

Btw diesel cars are slightly better when warm rather than cold opposit to the petrol cars!

If it was my car i'd put it on the RR and check how much power the car is actually pushing out and go from there as I said standard they are about 197bhp and 470nm worth getting it checked as your problem is with the power of the car, also you would get a graph telling you if the car is loosing power and when is it loosing power etc...

Good luck hope you get it sorted!

 

[stevie]

what ur saying makes perfect sense to me, but i wouldnt know where to start.its going to indy on wednesday to get the dreaded chrome arches fitted and to check an intermittent starter problem which has developed recently.would it take him long to check what you have mentioned?ie:egr,intake manifold and turbo.i may aswell get it done when the car is with him.

 

[stevie]

my indy agrees with u on the remap,but i am in dissagreement with him over the way the car is running.he thinks the car has been remapped and that it is failing ,but he is basing that on what he thinks is the car going too fast.when i have brought the car to him when underpowered he says its fine.but there is NO WAY its fine.my last car was the e300 td and my wife drives a c220 cdi and both of them are quicker off the mark than mine is when its like this..also when it drives like this the gearbox can flare or the opposite where the gear change is dragged out like they do when ur going down a steep hill.and before anyone mentions it,the box has been checked and serviced.as far as the way the car drives when its cold,i know they r a bit rough but not this rough.and yet again i keep coming back to the point that the new boost valves have made a massive difference.if its an ecu issue then why would the boost valves have made any difference.i dont wanna sound like im dissagreeing with u.its just ive already spent a fortune on the car and rolling roads and remaps are big doe.i think what dieselman is saying just sounds more realistic.at the end of the day i dont want the car to go faster than it should.i think 197bhp is good enough for todays driving.i think the indy is just saying this because he doesnt know whats wrong and he doesnt want to spend unpaid hours checking it out.

 

[BenzedUP]

I see what you mean but a Rolling road will only cost you 60-70 pounds you dont have to remap it just check the power on the car and when it's diping down on power etc..

You checked everything so might as well just check your ECU.. thats the way i look at it anyway! Or just take it to mercedes to update or rest your ECU it wont cost you much at all, having said that sometimes even if mercedes try and rest or update the ECU the remap may stay there in the ECU!

End of the day its down to you, good luck with it!

 

[stevie]

i know ur trying to help and i do appreciate it.what puts me off the rolling road is that the problem is intermittent so if i book it in for a certain day the readings the diagnostics will read will not neccesserily be the same as on another day.at least i think thats the case.am i right or am i missing something?i know if the power is up it will tell me whats what.but if not then i could end up on rolling roads several times.someone also told me that there is a way to connect the star to the car while driving but i havent seen it done.