Another new project! Mercedes C55 AMG W203

[Sam87]

Are the photos working ok now?

 

[Sam87]

If there's not much love for the C55 on a MB forum, I can see why the car was never too popular

By the time the C55 was forced into being built MB enthusiasts knew the C63 was 'on the way' , fast forward 18 years and C63's are as common as muck , C55's ? not so much.

Ah, I didn’t know that!
Well that explains why the C63 is so common unlike the C55
I do understand why there’s so much love for the C63…… they are fantastic cars and it’s a car I would like to own one day. A facelift saloon in pearly white or red

 

[Petrol Pete]

If there's not much love for the C55 on a MB forum, I can see why the car was never too popular

Another update for the C55 for those few that do like these models........ I knew I should have bought a C63

As most of you have seen by now, I tend to go a bit OTT with the cleaning. I thought I'd clean the underside of this car also.
Started off by removing the wheel arch liners, engine, gearbox and the underbody covers.
In 18 years, I highly doubt anyone had cleaned the underside of the car before. As you can imagine, it was a bit dirty underneath but no rust which is always a nice thing.

This is what I started off with

I can't open any of these photos ??

 

[SpikyMikey]

Are the photos working ok now?

Working for me on the mobile...and great work as usual

 

[Sam87]

I can't open any of these photos ??

What about the ones I posted 33 mins ago?

 

[Sam87]

Working for me on the mobile...and great work as usual

Thank you!

Ah, that’s good that they’re working this time

 

[Petrol Pete]

That’s strange! They don’t work on my phone as well but on the laptop the photos work fine
I’ll try to re upload them again if admin can help with deleting the last two posts. Thanks for letting me know.



Oh that’s impressive mileage! Nice to see you’ve been enjoying it as intended
I did think about possibly making some changes but I will leave it oem, just some very small changes



Looking at the mot history, the car was doing around 1500 miles a year on average. Until 2020, it had only 24k miles and from then onwards it was doing around 4k - 5k miles a year. I think this is the reason why the starter motor failed.
I’ve read about the oil consumption. I will keep en eye on it, I’ve just done an oil change as soon as I bought it even though it’s not due a service. I’ve barely driven it since I got it but I thought I’d do around 100 miles or so and then change all the fluids and do a major service on the car so I know everything has been changed.
I read the oil breathers get blocked up and that can cause the car to burn oil?
Not sure if my one has ever had them cleaned.

The 'oil breathers' are most likely to be the ones on the top of the cam covers , just small chambers with rubber hoses coming off them , no big deal . But at some point your engine will have the rocker cover gaskets fail (they might have been done already) , again , no big deal , it's just a trait of the M113 engine , top tip is to use genuine MB when having them replaced.

Also , do you have any service history for the transmission ? and have the sparkplugs been replaced ? Both important at this vintage , as you probably know.

 

[Sam87]

The 'oil breathers' are most likely to be the ones on the top of the cam covers , just small chambers with rubber hoses coming off them , no big deal . But at some point your engine will have the rocker cover gaskets fail (they might have been done already) , again , no big deal , it's just a trait of the M113 engine , top tip is to use genuine MB when having them replaced.

Also , do you have any service history for the transmission ? and have the sparkplugs been replaced ? Both important at this vintage , as you probably know.

It doesn’t seem like a big job to do and i might just get it done for a peace of mind. One more thing to tick off the list I guess.

It has full service history but I haven’t looked at all the paperwork into details to confirm if the plugs or gearbox oil had been done. I will get the plugs changed for sure when I do the major service in the next couple of weeks. If the gearbox hasn’t been serviced, I’ll get that done too

 

[Petrol Pete]

I think the 2006/7 C class 203's fell into the (frankly) ridiculous 'sealed for life' 766.2 (5G) transmission Bollok$ rhetoric from MB, so it could be possible the transmission on your low mileage car has never had a service . Worth checking.

The (16) spark plugs should come out at 50K miles , the general opinion is that if they are not removed they can seize into the head . I have heard anecdotal stories where the original plugs have been taken out at 50K , checked and put back in without issues.

I had my indy do mine when I bought the car and have since replaced them myself . From MB the plugs are silly expensive but frankly if you are not a DIY person it might be best to have an MB indy replace them , they are a bit of a PITA.

 

[Flyinspanner]

It’s looks super underneath now, callipers look nice too. Keep up the good work

 

[Sam87]

I think the 2006/7 C class 203's fell into the (frankly) ridiculous 'sealed for life' 766.2 (5G) transmission Bollok$ rhetoric from MB, so it could be possible the transmission on your low mileage car has never had a service . Worth checking.

The (16) spark plugs should come out at 50K miles , the general opinion is that if they are not removed they can seize into the head . I have heard anecdotal stories where the original plugs have been taken out at 50K , checked and put back in without issues.

I had my indy do mine when I bought the car and have since replaced them myself . From MB the plugs are silly expensive but frankly if you are not a DIY person it might be best to have an MB indy replace them , they are a bit of a PITA.

You might be right and I wouldn't be surprised if it's never been changed due to the low miles.
I've had a look and they don't seem too bad to change [ unless they're seized! ]. I done them on the S65 and that one is a bit of a headache compare to the C55

It’s looks super underneath now, callipers look nice too. Keep up the good work

Thank you sir!

 

[ALFAitalia]

Who would want 50k old plugs in there car....working fine or not?.....let alone taken out and put back!!!

 

[Petrol Pete]

You might be right and I wouldn't be surprised if it's never been changed due to the low miles.
I've had a look and they don't seem too bad to change [ unless they're seized! ]. I done them on the S65 and that one is a bit of a headache compare to the C55



Thank you sir!

If you are going to do them yourself do the one nearest the driver side first ,it's cramped in there, that will confirm that you have the correct tools for the other 15, you probably know this but the leads coming out of the dual coils are different lengths as the same coil pack fires the two plugs at a different time , so getting them put back right is reccommended.

Crank position sensor is another one , the one I took out of mine at about 100K miles was not the original so it will have had two in that 100K. Also a complete PITA to get to in the cramped engine bay.

Some say it's an half an hour job , maybe on an M113 engine in many other MB's ? , but it's a bit more cramped on a C55.

 

[Sam87]

If you are going to do them yourself do the one nearest the driver side first ,it's cramped in there, that will confirm that you have the correct tools for the other 15, you probably know this but the leads coming out of the dual coils are different lengths as the same coil pack fires the two plugs at a different time , so getting them put back right is reccommended.

Crank position sensor is another one , the one I took out of mine at about 100K miles was not the original so it will have had two in that 100K. Also a complete PITA to get to in the cramped engine bay.

Some say it's an half an hour job , maybe on an M113 engine in many other MB's ? , but it's a bit more cramped on a C55.

View attachment 167201

That’s great, thank you! I appreciate the advice. I will start from where you suggested
I didn’t know the leads are different length.

Looking at that photo, I can see how much fun the crank position sensor would be. I hope I don’t have to change it

 

[Sam87]

Another small update for the C55 AMG.

I changed front and rear indicator bulbs from orange ones to chrome ones as I prefer the clear look.

Before




After




The front side light bulbs stood out so much in orange looking light so I fitted some led ones and I will upgrade the front fog lamps also. Waiting for them to get delivered.



I also upgraded the Xenon headlamp bulbs for more powerful ones and they look great!
Pic doesn’t do them justice. They’re 6000k instead of the original ones which are 4300k if I’m not mistaken?
Ignore the temp wheels. I don’t want to fit the fresh wheels until the car is done underneath. It doesn’t look too bad even with the E class 18’s




I’ve also started to do some painting underneath the car. Still not finished but it’s looking a bit better.





I also thought I’d polish the exhaust

Before




During




After

 

[SpikyMikey]

Another small update for the C55 AMG.

I changed front and rear indicator bulbs from orange ones to chrome ones as I prefer the clear look.

Before




After




The front side light bulbs stood out so much in orange looking light so I fitted some led ones and I will upgrade the front fog lamps also. Waiting for them to get delivered.



I also upgraded the Xenon headlamp bulbs for more powerful ones and they look great!
Pic doesn’t do them justice. They’re 6000k instead of the original ones which are 4300k if I’m not mistaken?
Ignore the temp wheels. I don’t want to fit the fresh wheels until the car is done underneath. It doesn’t look too bad even with the E class 18’s




I’ve also started to do some painting underneath the car. Still not finished but it’s looking a bit better.





I also thought I’d polish the exhaust

Before




During




After

Do you quantity discounts on Solvol Autosol?

 

[Sam87]

Do you quantity discounts on Solvol Autosol?

The amount of Autosol I’ve used, they should give me some discount

 

[chic0821]

Good to see you back Sam. Missed your OCD posts. Keep them coming

 

[Londonscottish]

I’ve also started to do some painting underneath the car. Still not finished but it’s looking a bit better.

Stunning. Better than factory. I love watching M539 on YouTube doing this sort of thing to various 20 year old Bimmers.

Keep the updates coming.

 

[SmartAmg]

Not another AMG, Sam. I'm sick of bloody seeing um.
Seriously though, very nice! A Trio of AMGs not many can say that.
A nice pic of all 3 together, when you get the chance.
Thought I was OCD, but your on another, level.
Keep the pics, and progress coming.