W210 Evaporator Woe.

[ringway]

Hi everyone,

I have been told I need a new Evaporator for the air-con on my W210.

I have had the system re-gassed and there is a leak from behind the dash.

I have had a quote of around £1000.00 for the part and repair - dashboard out.

Has anyone had any experience of this problem?

Any help much appreciated.

 

[EDZ649]

I haven't had this problem but I would certainly look for a secondhand unit, plenty of 210's being broken out there.

 

[renault12ts]

£1000? Do you remember life before air con? Wasn't so bad.

 

[EDZ649]

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/members-offers-traders/69871-euromerc-mercedes-benz-parts.html

try Nick, he may have one.

 

[ringway]

I haven't had this problem but I would certainly look for a secondhand unit, plenty of 210's being broken out there.

Unit = £350.

Labour = £650.00.

This is from a body shop doing some repairs to the car.
They have replaced radiator, condensor..... and when tested they found the fault to be the evaporator.

I'm fortunate that the work up to now was covered by my insurance -damage underneath caused radiator, intercooler etc to drop down by an inch or so.

The body shop labour rate is around £50 per hour, so I dread to think what the bill will be if I take it to the MB dealer.

I've seen them on ebay in the USA for around $300.00 including delivery but the problem would be the whole dash removal.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

 

[ringway]

http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/members-offers-traders/69871-euromerc-mercedes-benz-parts.html

try Nick, he may have one.

Good thinking Batperson.

 

[ringway]

£1000? Do you remember life before air con? Wasn't so bad.

LOL.

I still have life without air con....

Also my Sprinter doesn't have aircon.

 

[wemorgan]

How old and how much is your W210 worth?
Is it time to p/x and move on?

A rather depressing thought I know, but that's a lot of cash for cold air.

 

[ringway]

How old and how much is your W210 worth?
Is it time to p/x and move on?

A rather depressing thought I know, but that's a lot of cash for cold air.

Yep, I may just have to keep on sticking my head out of the window.

I wouldn't get rid of the car. Its had 6 new injectors and glowplugs and other parts and also, courtesy of MB 2, new front wings and a new tailgate. It drives superbly and I really do enjoy the car.

If I had my time again I wouldn't have bought this particular car, but hey ho..

Regards,

Paul.

 

[proser]

There was guy down south recently breaking a 2001 w210 on Ebay, I'll see if I can find his details for you.

UPDATE:

ebay ID :- geegee0-6

 

[ringway]

Thinking about it, given that the dashboard removal and reassembly is the major part of the cost and a lot of hassle, I will be having a brand new part.

If I used an old part and it failed again in a year or two...

Regards,

Paul.

 

[w124coupe]

You need to either DIY or get someone you really trust to do this - otherwise you will hate the car when it rattles and squeaks from everywhere in the dash.

Are you certain the leak is at the evap? (ideally a pressure test at the valve on the firewall should be done).

 

[nick mercedes]

Thinking about it, given that the dashboard removal and reassembly is the major part of the cost and a lot of hassle, I will be having a brand new part.

If I used an old part and it failed again in a year or two...

Regards,

Paul.

Taking the dash out of a W210 is surprisingly straight forward.

 

[ringway]

You need to either DIY or get someone you really trust to do this - otherwise you will hate the car when it rattles and squeaks from everywhere in the dash.

Are you certain the leak is at the evap? (ideally a pressure test at the valve on the firewall should be done).

System was re-gassed after installing new rad, condensor etc.
Ultra Violet light used and evidence of AC refrigerant found on carpet.

Regards,

Paul.

 

[stevesey]

Friend had the evaporator changed on his CL500/S500 Coupe about 7 years ago I think that cost well over £1K then. Dashboard out - the garage used two service bays, took photos and laid out the parts in the second bay.

 

[nick mercedes]

Friend had the evaporator changed on his CL500/S500 Coupe about 7 years ago I think that cost well over £1K then. Dashboard out - the garage used two service bays, took photos and laid out the parts in the second bay.

It's more of a mision on the early cars, W202/W210 are a doddle in comparison.

 

[w124coupe]

Looking at the WIS steps I see what you mean - nowhere near as bad as the W124 (but still a fair few hours worth).

You could post up a DIY how to..

Here's a LHD example PeachPartsWiki: Replacing the A/C Evaporator Coil

Great comment at the end "now its just a case of putting everything back together..."

 

[ringway]

Looking at the WIS steps I see what you mean - nowhere near as bad as the W124 (but still a fair few hours worth).

You could post up a DIY how to..

Here's a LHD example PeachPartsWiki: Replacing the A/C Evaporator Coil

Great comment at the end "now its just a case of putting everything back together..."

LOL.

MB quoted me 12-14 hours.........

 

[andy27168]

Hi,
I investigated doing this on my C43 (it turned out that it was,nt the evap) what put me off was the removal of the entire steering column (inside the car) and the entire heater box, though I believe the book time just for removing/replacing the evaporator is 9hrs. Give Olly a call as he gave the most competitive price I found to do it, and you could feel 100% sure that it would be done correctly.
I did find a "HOW TO" on an American forum on changing the Evap on a 210, but cannot seem to find it now.
Can the A/C hose connection's to the Evap be accessed on a 210? As you could try replacing the seals on them or just nipping them up could solve the problem, as there is a lot said about A/C pipe seals leaking.
Best of luck on whatever you decide.

 

[nick mercedes]

Hi,
I investigated doing this on my C43 (it turned out that it was,nt the evap) what put me off was the removal of the entire steering column (inside the car) and the entire heater box, though I believe the book time just for removing/replacing the evaporator is 9hrs. Give Olly a call as he gave the most competitive price I found to do it, and you could feel 100% sure that it would be done correctly.
I did find a "HOW TO" on an American forum on changing the Evap on a 210, but cannot seem to find it now.
Can the A/C hose connection's to the Evap be accessed on a 210? As you could try replacing the seals on them or just nipping them up could solve the problem, as there is a lot said about A/C pipe seals leaking.
Best of luck on whatever you decide.

I would say that it's an easier job on a W202 than it is on a W210, the column comes out in one big lump anyway so that's nothing to fear.