MB C 180 (w203)

[eugekav]

Hi everyone, My mechanic has deleted the dtc codes and turned the engine dash light off after the car going into stuck in gear mode?
When i returned to the mechanic he connected a snap-on code reader to the car and got three codes he had a book but the codes were not in there i hope that someone can shed some light and i can get back to some pleasant driving. ps does driving the car do any damage apart from street cred.

 

[eugekav]

the mysterious dtc codes are P200F,P2502 and P220A .THANX

 

[eugekav]

My mpg would improve driving at such low revs but presumeably the engine would suffer and as i have had so many good driving days from her it would not be fair to torture her.if i can't find the meaning of the codes isuppose i will have to go elsewhere another example of a small business that is being squeesed out.he is a very good mechanic but with a young family how can you afford allthese computers so a good young enterprising mechanic has to loose a customer to alarger company that has the rescorces how can that help new companys flower seems a bit unfair.

 

[jimbob35]

I have no idea what dtc codes are.. But putting 'dtc' and 'P200F' into google came up with this;
DTCSearch.com - Diagnostic Trouble Code P200F

Not too hard

 

[eugekav]

two out of thre aint bad

thanks jimbob my tinternet skills are limited and finding those sights has helped me find two out of the three codes the last one p220a is not a valid code that was exactly the answer i got when i was trying to find p200f the code you found for me so i shall keep searching to give my mechanic as much info as i can find to fix my previously trusty steed so thanks for the pointers

 

[BlackC55]

I would take to someone with a better diagnostic tool. You really need a Star.

 

[eugekav]

are petrol engines so complex or is the computer to stop other mechanics working

thanx for the info i have specialists with the equiptment you mentioned just up the road but iwould rather give my money to an up and coming young buisness.It seems unfair that in these P.C. times I cant have my mechanic fix my car as i know he is more than capable of unless he buys a star machine for the two MB customers he has are engines that complex that we need computers to tell us or are the computers causeing the problem my gearbox works fine there is no rumbling or groaning whsn she decides to change gear and she seems to be taking notice of the change up or down option but i am never sure if it is me or is it her.the responce time of the gearbox seems to have slowed down i suppose it is the milk float mode that slows the selection process. thanx for looking and i am still betting on my mechanic to fix this problem british enginering at its best.

 

[eugekav]

thanks to jimbob I now have all the dtc codes de-coded although some of the codes from diferent sites do not match the benzworld site did seem to have a very comprensive list of codes also yahoo seem to have another take on p220a and that I need a conductor plate and this is a common fault another answer is the speed comparison of y3/6n2 toy3/6n3 is implausable but as I need to get as much info as is possible I shall join benzworld and ask the same questions to see what help I can get .I have a few pages of meanings of codes now so a few more for my mechanic to cast his expert eyes over will not hurt then he can sort the wheat from the chaff ,hope he can see through chaff as i am sure there will be some rubbish there seems no shortage on this tinternet.

 

[eugekav]

Hi to all,I have gone back to my mechanic and he has read the codes and cleared the engine light, he seems to think there is a problem inside the gearbox but i am not sure how he has come to this assumption .So it seems that had i found the definative codes he would have been only able to do the very basic things.So my next port of call is as Black c55 sugested get garage with the right diagnostic equiptment i hope that a volvo dealership close to me will have a star machine,or is it only merc dealers who can read the codes.My mechanic would not tell me the new code he found so i could not even see if it was one of the previous codes.At least he has admited that it is out of his scope rather than geting in a pickle to say the least.

 

[eugekav]

Honest volvo dealer

Spoke to a volvo dealer who admited he only had the same diagnostic equiptment as my backstreet mechanic and he has advised me to go to a stealership.My reason for not wanting to go to a stealership is six years ago i drove a bmw and took it to a stealership every year my wife was poorley and having safe reliable transport reached new levels of importance.Five years ago after picking up my car with my wife drove through a shoping area and notesed a nocking that got worse as i slowed. on investigation the weel nuts were loose how dangerous is that,so i would prefer to go for trustworthy above fancy gadgets so i think my nearest merc dealership is watford or park royal.Now the engine light is off i will try to put the car on the drive and give her a clean when i tryed before it was like the clutch was slipping to get over a low curb edge will keep going with this problem.Personaly i dont think that there is that much wrong but if you read previous posts then you will understand i am happy to be proven wrong as i see it as part of learning. thanx.

 

[eugekav]

shankes pony

parked the merc up to await the end of the bank holiday weekend to start using the phone does anyone have any good independant merc men they can recomend with the right diagnostic equiptment i live in ruislip thanks in antisipation.

 

[markjay]

Most (if not all) manufacturers these days will have propriety diagnostic computer, e.g. GM Tech2, VAG COM, MB STAR, etc.

This is required because there are many ECUs in modern cars - controlling everything from the aircon to the airbags. All these ECUs are not covered by the generic ODBII standard.

The problem for non-specialist garages is that they have to make do with one or two diagnostic units to cover all makes - it is not economically practical to buy the manufacturers' diagnostic kits for every make on the market.

Also, keep in mind that these unit are not just for diagnostics - they are also used to reprogram options on the car, as well as update the firmware when needed.

But a specialist - even if not a franchised dealer - should always have the manufacturer's diagnostic kit.

I carry with me a basic code reader that also covers some of the additional MB-specific systems, e.g. airbag, ABS/ESP, etc, but it is mainly to help me find out what's wrong without having to take the car to a dealer every time a light comes up on the dashboard. Obviously, for £200 I don't really expect it to cover all of the car's systems, and can't be used for changing any settings or uploading updates.

I think the reason that manufacturer's own kit is not generally available to the public is not related only to commercial issues - I can understand why manufactures do not want curious owners to mess about with the car's computer setting. It is not unlike IT support putting a password on the BIOS setup of your PC...

 

[eugekav]

need merc mechanic with star or stealership

Hi everyone as you might have read i have been having trouble with my beloved c180 but she has not been to well lately my friends are tellng me to go to the stealership at watford to get a definite answer.I hate stealerships as i mentioned in previous posts the bmw stealership in ruislip left the weel nuts undone or loose .I would rather trust someone recomended than take it ot a faceless dealer who promises everything but packs up every few years and changes the name.I have been told about a guy that works near the cherry tree pub in west drayton ,workshop behind the petrol station has anybody got any feedback on this guy Raj ,i do not know his company name.I have found mi-tech in Acton recomended so i have a three way horse race all equidistant with me in the middle.

 

[markjay]

If the car is up to it - I would recommend a trip down to Olly near Portsmouth, see Mercedes Benz & Smart specialists | Prestige Car Service based in Portsmouth, Hampshire.

I know, my initial response when hearing about him was the same: what, driving all the way down to Portsmouth for a good garage? But I have since became a fan, as did other on this forum.

You will get good honest advise from Olly and you will also save (a lot of) money.

 

[eugekav]

thanks

Thanks for the heads up about olly,i think a journey of that size would not be sensible as i do not know what the problem is on ollys website he has mobile diagnostic equiptment that comes to london i have asked him how much it costs and when service avalable by the way,the first person who posted to me and whose advice i am folowing,OLLY i do not know if i shall use his service but another usefull post has led me to mi-tech in acton that is more feasable a journy.thanks

 

[eugekav]

How to find out what type of oil

Hi,Since parking up my limp baby i have found a very slow drip from the underside, it is coming out from between the engine protector plates, the oil seems to be spread about obviousley while i was enjoying driving her, so this could have been an older problem and i have only noticed now she has sat in the same place for too long. The oil on a tissue leaves a yellow/greenish stain i dont know if this is a factor in working out where the oil is from or if there is some test i can do to find out ?

 

[eugekav]

yellow or green

Hi.the fluid that is leaking seems to be power steering fluid a friend has told me of an addative sold by halfords that reconditions the rubber seals and helps to seal the rack or box or whatever the part is that is leaking does anyone have any experience of this substance what is the worst that could happen.thanks.

 

[markjay]

I have not tried it, but personally I wouldn't add anything to the ATF in the power steering... this leak really need to be fixed properly. Also... yellow/green sound more like coolant - ATF is red / dark brown?

 

[eugekav]

Can, wait till tomorow

Thanks to markjay for some good down to earth advice.The yellow liquid feels oily to the touch but i shall find the resivour and compare.I have waited for tomorow as i have a diagnostics guy coming tomorrow and hope he is the answer to my problem.I did send olly my details via his website and presume he is busy.As with this guy I take that i have to wait as a good sign and hope that i can use his services in the future I shall take markjay's advice as the only way i can imagine that the power could work would be to thicken the fluid which would then make the pump work more. my experience of quick fix was on a old bedford van that was owened by a few of us youngsters the guy with the driving licence was a apprentice mechanic.We ha d a rod leak and no money everybodt had their ideas egg was one and another porridge.He took the van home and returned to me the next morning to tell me he had put porridge in the top of the rad we took the engine cover off that also doubled as the centre seat i took the cap off it flew off followed by a sausage shaped stream of porridge i rember runing away from a three foot high steaming volcano he had somehow managed to get a box of scots oats in there i can look back and laugh an no one was hurt so thanks again markjay for the the shortest route is not always the quickest.

 

[markjay]

Tow things to note...

If power steering fluid, this is most likley to be a loose hose clamp, or split hose, though a leaking PS pump is not impossible. Worth weighting all the hose clamps first.

If coolant, please keep in mind that coolant has some oily feel to it, and indeed the original Ethylene Glycol was an oily substance - though these days they use alternatives.

But generally speaking leaks should always be properly fixed by detecting the source and applying a full repair rather than patch-up, otherwise they may lead to even more expensive repairs.