Hi, brand new to the site (and forums in general). I am having trouble with my 05 plate c220 CDI, an oil leak that is pooling in the channels just under the oil filler cap (oil drip pan? Oil separator housing?). After a while the pooling oil spills onto the hot engine (exhaust manifold?) creating fumes in the cabin. Anyone got any ideas?
Oil pooling in oil/filler/separator/breather assembly.
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Jane270ML
Active Member
Had similar problems recently, replaced oil separator, approx. £24 from Inchcape Mercedes.
Less fumes in cabin, no more spillage - still a bit of oil in pockets - will get to it in better weather, no garage!
P.S Welcome to the forum.
Less fumes in cabin, no more spillage - still a bit of oil in pockets - will get to it in better weather, no garage!
P.S Welcome to the forum.
Thanks Jane, pretty consistent advice with other forums. A local dealer quoted £120, it seems to be a complete unit incorporating a pressure control valve. However I still can't see how the oil is finding its way into the channels under the filler cap.
Can anyone shed any further light, offer advice as to how easy it is to change the separator, my Haynes manual is pretty useless.
Can anyone shed any further light, offer advice as to how easy it is to change the separator, my Haynes manual is pretty useless.
Jane270ML
Active Member
Is it a genuine MB cap, with a seal attached?
Yes, first thing I did was replace the cap. Any idea what the function of the pressure regulator is, it forms part of the oil separator assy. My limited knowledge is that it is to ensure a positive pressure within the crankcase to allow the engine to breath, what i don't know is what the result is if it has failed/ become blocked.
I may just take the hit and replace the oil separator/pressure regulator/ filler cap assy and hope for the best.
I may just take the hit and replace the oil separator/pressure regulator/ filler cap assy and hope for the best.
I have changed the oil drip pan with no further pooling of oil, however I am still getting fumes in the car. It is only noticeable when I slow down or stop at traffic lights or a roundabout. No problem when I am travelling. There are no obvious leaks but I noticed smoke/ mist coming from underneath the air filter housing. Has anyone had this and found the cure?
GordonTarling
MB Enthusiast
If you're still getting fumes in the cabin, have you checked for a leaky injector seal?
Done some research into leaky injectors and looking at various pics posted on forums I am pretty convinced that's not my problem.
What I have done this morning ( on nights this week but I can't sleep without getting to the bottom of it) is stripped out the air filter housing to get a good look around. There was no evidence of any fresh leaks, however the heat shield that sits below the air filter housing was covered in tar, I suspect this was where the oil that was pooling in the oil drip pan was going and as cws196 suggests is burning off. Anyway it was removed and cleaned up, time will tell if that was my problem.
What I have done this morning ( on nights this week but I can't sleep without getting to the bottom of it) is stripped out the air filter housing to get a good look around. There was no evidence of any fresh leaks, however the heat shield that sits below the air filter housing was covered in tar, I suspect this was where the oil that was pooling in the oil drip pan was going and as cws196 suggests is burning off. Anyway it was removed and cleaned up, time will tell if that was my problem.
mornin clatter
Active Member
I just cured my oil leak from the oil separator, by getting a new large seal. I also took off the tube that goes down to the turbo as it was al covered in oil and was causing it to gather under the turbo hose. What i did was i cleaned all the parts including the seals and put them back. Last time i did this, i bought a new oil separator but still the oil leak returned. This time what i did was to replace the air filter as well, as a wise man also suggested that certain air filters might be more obstructive so part of the air starts to be sucked from the oil separator. Hope you get it sorted.
Over 1000 miles since I changed the oil drip pan (£20 of e bay) and cleaned off the tar like mess from below the air filter housing and no more smoke or fumes in the cabin - happy days. I joined the forum to seek help and am grateful to all those that contributed. However logging onto the site every couple of days I was surprised at the amount of pish that folk post.
What I did find on this site though was an absolute nugget, a complaint with my w203 was the lack of I pod / mp3 connectivity. A legacy post alerted me to the fact that the wiring was already present and I just needed a cable to connect. Anyway £11 + £5 p&p, 30 mins for installation and hey presto I am now able to play my I pod without the use of a temperamental FM transmitter.
2 problems solved - thank you mbclub.co.uk.
What I did find on this site though was an absolute nugget, a complaint with my w203 was the lack of I pod / mp3 connectivity. A legacy post alerted me to the fact that the wiring was already present and I just needed a cable to connect. Anyway £11 + £5 p&p, 30 mins for installation and hey presto I am now able to play my I pod without the use of a temperamental FM transmitter.
2 problems solved - thank you mbclub.co.uk.
