Mercedes w211 help needed

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Fayiz

Active Member
Joined
Oct 25, 2016
Messages
128
Location
England
Car
e320 cdi
Hey guys, I'm in need of some help,

Well, this may sound stupid, but I topped up the transmission fluid on my e320 cdi, took it for a drive, left it for a while now the car just cranks, won't start,

Any advice would be much appreciated since I have no clue in terms of what's gone on, and it's my daily driver so need to get whatever it is sorted asap,

Thanks,
 
Unfortunately no codes present atm, took it to a garage too, they scanned it and said they can't find what's wrong with it, AA said the same...

If it helps you guys in any way, I can say that there were ESP, ABS malfunctions present on the dash, could that contribute to anything?
 
Yes but you need to get it on Star to read the codes, doubt it is just low battery if it is turning over
 
"no codes present atm"

I don't recall ever scanning a Merc. using Star and not having a code present!
 
Was the battery flat at any point? If it had ABS/ESP faults then they would/should definitely be in the scan. The transmission fluid should have nothing to do with the starting of the vehicle. Only way it is linked is that the car must be in P or N for it to start. If left in 'gear' it won't crank so can't be that.
 
Think he parks it under a bridge .
 
Too much fluid in the transmission can lead to aeration of the fluid/entraining of air leading to transmission fault codes. The transmission ECU warns the engine ECU to prevent further damage- normally on the road this means the engine goes into limp home mode rather than fails to start but may depend the fault codes logged? OR--- its a co-incidence-- and the fluid top up has nothing to do with the current problem--- however if you have been cranking the engine over a lot in a vain attempt to start the car this may have reduced battery voltage enough for the ESP/ABS systems to flag a low voltage problem? Not all scanners can interrogate Mercedes transmission ECU's adequately, best to get it on a STAR diagnostic system
 
Thanks for the replies guys, I came across a thread somewhere which stated that these ESP / ABS issues can prevent the car from starting (don't know if it's true ofc) hence I assumed that since the dash has been showing ESP / ABS malfunctions, one said service brake or something too...

Or possibly a faulty brake light switch maybe?
Could that prevent the car from starting? sorry I'm not too good with these things lol

Was the battery flat at any point? If it had ABS/ESP faults then they would/should definitely be in the scan. The transmission fluid should have nothing to do with the starting of the vehicle. Only way it is linked is that the car must be in P or N for it to start. If left in 'gear' it won't crank so can't be that.
The previous owner claims that he changed the battery, but afaik it hasn't been flat,

I'll get it towed to a local merc specialist tomorrow, hopefully he can get it on STAR and see what's wrong with it
 
Had the car checked today,

Bad news unfortunately, timing chain snapped... It was a surprise to me since the engine has only covered around 130k, and I previously had en estate 7 seater running well at 178k....

Would it be better to get a new engine fitted or sell the car as spares or repairs?

Any advice will be appreciated,
 
If you said yours was an E200k then fair enough, but a snapped chain on an E320CDI? I find that really hard to believe unless there has been some recent chain-related work done you haven't mentioned (or I failed to read!)
 
If you said yours was an E200k then fair enough, but a snapped chain on an E320CDI? I find that really hard to believe unless there has been some recent chain-related work done you haven't mentioned (or I failed to read!)

Trust me, I'm just as surprised as you, the specialist was also very surprised, he said that the chain is double and extra strong on these engines...
 
Shirley it was knocking for ages before it did snap. They are not known for just snapping.
 
What year is your E320?, Inline 6 or the later V6. I would have thought if the timing chain had snapped then the engine would have locked up and not been turning over. The timing chain jamming everything up down below. I can not even recall if the pistons will jam up against the valves, causing mega damage.
Well, this may sound stupid, but I topped up the transmission fluid on my e320 cdi, took it for a drive, left it for a while now the car just cranks, won't start,
Did you put the transmission fluid into the right hole ? and follow correct procedure to get the engine hot before testing with a dip stick? It did drive for a bit before destroying itself.
IF.. it needs a new engine, then there are often complete engines on Ebay, depends how much work you will do yourself to make it a viable proposition against the value of the car. As old as my own 320 is, with 254,000 on it, I would still find another engine and swap it over. Still hard to believe it is a broken timing chain.

Steve.
 
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Well that's what's putting me in doubt as well, since another mechanic advised me that it wouldn't even turn over if it was the timing chain,

Well thanks for the reply Steve, I'll let you know what goes on after getting it towed to another mechanic and diagnosed correctly..

Its an inline 6 e320 cdi 2004
 
Well that's what's putting me in doubt as well, since another mechanic advised me that it wouldn't even turn over if it was the timing chain,

Well thanks for the reply Steve, I'll let you know what goes on after getting it towed to another mechanic and diagnosed correctly..

Its an inline 6 e320 cdi 2004

Where are you? If near Portsmouth, PCS is a great and trusted place. Or someone could recommend a known and trusted indie near you
 

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