Hi All,
I'm new to Mercs & this forum, so be gentle with me please!
I'll start at the beginning, so you have all of the facts.
Recently purchased a 96 E230 Avantgarde from a local-ish used car dealer (who seemed perfectly reasonable prior to taking my cash!) and as part of the deal they were supposed to change the front drop-links prior to collection, due to a knocking sound over uneven surfaces.
Unfortunately, the work wasn't done prior to collection, but they assured me that they'd do it if I returned the vehicle the following week. Which was duly done, work completed and knock gone.
However, the following day I realised that they had snapped the locking wheel nut key in the nut and had conveniently neglected to tell me.
So back it went with no apology or admission from them (which did infuriate me somewhat). It took them two days to 'look at it' and when they had finally done it, all they did was remove the nut with the broken bit in and replaced it with a standard non-locking nut.
Obviously, this left me wondering 1) How do I get the remaining three wheels off and 2) The front O/S wheel is now unsecured against theft!
I tackled the dealer about this and he tried to palm me off with 'You can get the locking nut key from MB'. So I politely, but assertively, explained that, as it was their fault, they should replace the key and locking nut. To-which came a barrage of rage and insults and counter accusations regarding the mechanical soundness of the vehicle that I had traded in (despite the traders assertion on several occasions that it was a good drive!).
To be honest I was shocked and gob smacked , the bloke really went ape, bordering psychotic even (I did tell him that he wasn't right in the head during a momentary pause in his verbal abuse). I'm just glad it was over the phone, because there would have been fisty cuffs for sure.
Anyway ,the long and the short of it is that, his brother phoned back and agreed to buy the key for me and I compromised on the N/S/F wheel not being secure. (still no admission or apology on their part).
Now this was on Friday and I don't yet have the wheel nut key and since then the ABS/ETS lights have come on . The car is warranted for six months, but as you can imagine - I'm not convinced that they are going to honour this warranty and to add to that, I'm not keen to have them look at it again - I just don't trust them! Unless it’s going to be a major cost, I’d rather just sort it myself, plus that means I’ll not be without a car for who knows how many days – which is quite important, being self employed!
So back to the reason for the post here (sorry it’s so long), just prior to the lights coming on I heard a noise as if something fell off and bounced around a bit before dropping off– which appeared to come from the rear N/S. Now I couldn’t say whether the lights came on immediately, but I had noticed them within ten minutes of hearing the noise.
Obviously I can’t yet check properly, because three of the wheels won’t come off. But, on brief inspection, it appears all of the ABS sensors are present and correct.
Discounting the ABS sensors, could it be possible that one of the rear pads has disintegrated causing the wear indicator to short and hence the warning lights?
Would the wear indicator operate the ABS/ETS lights?
If not, where do I start (when I can get the wheels off that is!). Check all teeth present on the ABS rings, clean rings?
Can the ABS sensors be cleaned and poss’ tested with a multimeter?
Any other thoughts?
Also, what does ETS stand for? And which model is my car W210?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Regards,
Simon.
I'm new to Mercs & this forum, so be gentle with me please!
I'll start at the beginning, so you have all of the facts.
Recently purchased a 96 E230 Avantgarde from a local-ish used car dealer (who seemed perfectly reasonable prior to taking my cash!) and as part of the deal they were supposed to change the front drop-links prior to collection, due to a knocking sound over uneven surfaces.
Unfortunately, the work wasn't done prior to collection, but they assured me that they'd do it if I returned the vehicle the following week. Which was duly done, work completed and knock gone.
However, the following day I realised that they had snapped the locking wheel nut key in the nut and had conveniently neglected to tell me.
So back it went with no apology or admission from them (which did infuriate me somewhat). It took them two days to 'look at it' and when they had finally done it, all they did was remove the nut with the broken bit in and replaced it with a standard non-locking nut.
Obviously, this left me wondering 1) How do I get the remaining three wheels off and 2) The front O/S wheel is now unsecured against theft!
I tackled the dealer about this and he tried to palm me off with 'You can get the locking nut key from MB'. So I politely, but assertively, explained that, as it was their fault, they should replace the key and locking nut. To-which came a barrage of rage and insults and counter accusations regarding the mechanical soundness of the vehicle that I had traded in (despite the traders assertion on several occasions that it was a good drive!).
To be honest I was shocked and gob smacked , the bloke really went ape, bordering psychotic even (I did tell him that he wasn't right in the head during a momentary pause in his verbal abuse). I'm just glad it was over the phone, because there would have been fisty cuffs for sure.
Anyway ,the long and the short of it is that, his brother phoned back and agreed to buy the key for me and I compromised on the N/S/F wheel not being secure. (still no admission or apology on their part).
Now this was on Friday and I don't yet have the wheel nut key and since then the ABS/ETS lights have come on . The car is warranted for six months, but as you can imagine - I'm not convinced that they are going to honour this warranty and to add to that, I'm not keen to have them look at it again - I just don't trust them! Unless it’s going to be a major cost, I’d rather just sort it myself, plus that means I’ll not be without a car for who knows how many days – which is quite important, being self employed!
So back to the reason for the post here (sorry it’s so long), just prior to the lights coming on I heard a noise as if something fell off and bounced around a bit before dropping off– which appeared to come from the rear N/S. Now I couldn’t say whether the lights came on immediately, but I had noticed them within ten minutes of hearing the noise.
Obviously I can’t yet check properly, because three of the wheels won’t come off. But, on brief inspection, it appears all of the ABS sensors are present and correct.
Discounting the ABS sensors, could it be possible that one of the rear pads has disintegrated causing the wear indicator to short and hence the warning lights?
Would the wear indicator operate the ABS/ETS lights?
If not, where do I start (when I can get the wheels off that is!). Check all teeth present on the ABS rings, clean rings?
Can the ABS sensors be cleaned and poss’ tested with a multimeter?
Any other thoughts?
Also, what does ETS stand for? And which model is my car W210?
Thanks in advance for your help.
Regards,
Simon.
