[hchang]

The other days I was taking the Mercedes out and noticed that when I start the engine, it feels like it doesn't have enough power to start up and sounds like its sputtering, then revs high to start itself up.

I asked my parents if they've experienced this problem as well, and they said they have too...but didn't think too much of it...

So I played around with it a few times, and found that it only sputters whenever the engine is cold, and has no problem when the engine is warm. The gas is about 3/4 full, so lack of gas shouldn't play a part in this problem.

I called Mercedes Benz to see what they can do, and since our warranty ran out it costs $190 + tax just to diagnose the problem, then whatever it costs on top to fix it. I would take a look myself but I don't want to be touching and messing around with a Mercedes's engine... scared of not being able to put it back together LOL.

Does anybody know what the problem might be? Or know who can take a look at it/fix it for cheaper?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

The car's a 2005 Mercedes Benz C230 Kompressor.

[TOPEC]

has the battery ever been replaced? it could be not holding charge properly, remember benz has lots of shit that will drain the battery fast.

[Nismo 1234]

how much km is on the car right now?

my friends s2000 is having the same problem too. He recently got new spark plugs and the problem kind of went away, but its starting to come back. also, check your alternator, maybe its getting weak...

[hchang]

how much km is on the car right now?

my friends s2000 is having the same problem too. He recently got new spark plugs and the problem kind of went away, but its starting to come back. also, check your alternator, maybe its getting weak...

There's only around 57,xxx kms on it.

I was thinking the spark plugs too... does anyone know a reputable shop that can replace a Mercedes spark plug?

has the battery ever been replaced? it could be not holding charge properly, remember benz has lots of shit that will drain the battery fast.

No the battery has never been replaced... I'll take a look at the charge on the battery. But it shouldn't be the problem cause my principal driver of the car is my mom and she rarely listens to the radio.

[ALEX1988]

it is because of the summer gas...

[ilvtofu]

On my mom's 02 C240 the battery went at around that mileage, and when the battery was dying weird stuff was happening, gear would stay stuck in 2nd (automatic) door locks went berserk etc. LOL I guess the computer went crazy lol

[Mugen EvOlutioN]

i love c230

[jpark]

^u being cereal?

[Supafly]

The other days I was taking the Mercedes out and noticed that when I start the engine, it feels like it doesn't have enough power to start up and sounds like its sputtering, then revs high to start itself up.

I asked my parents if they've experienced this problem as well, and they said they have too...but didn't think too much of it...

So I played around with it a few times, and found that it only sputters whenever the engine is cold, and has no problem when the engine is warm. The gas is about 3/4 full, so lack of gas shouldn't play a part in this problem.

I called Mercedes Benz to see what they can do, and since our warranty ran out it costs $190 + tax just to diagnose the problem, then whatever it costs on top to fix it. I would take a look myself but I don't want to be touching and messing around with a Mercedes's engine... scared of not being able to put it back together LOL.

Does anybody know what the problem might be? Or know who can take a look at it/fix it for cheaper?

Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks!

The car's a 2005 Mercedes Benz C230 Kompressor.


where the hell ( which mb ) are you going to spend 190/hr to diagnose a problem???..because i think shop rate is 140 or so.....

check ur fuel filter; and cps sensor.

when my fuel filter was dirty, a lot of problems came along with my car...including electrical problems from HID ignitor failure, sidemarker failures and radio failures...swapped out filters and voila....all the problems went away.

but im gonna put money down saying its a bad fuel filter....and i can do it for half the price in your backyard.

[tofu1413]

craigslist it --> sell it --> ???? --> profit!

theres a couple of shops around town that specializes in benzes.. i know theres one on marine and oak.. under the bridge.

[Mugen EvOlutioN]

^u being cereal?


i like cereal :p
where the hell ( which mb ) are you going to spend 190/hr to diagnose a problem???..because i think shop rate is 140 or so.....

check ur fuel filter; and cps sensor.

when my fuel filter was dirty, a lot of problems came along with my car...including electrical problems from HID ignitor failure, sidemarker failures and radio failures...swapped out filters and voila....all the problems went away.

but im gonna put money down saying its a bad fuel filter....and i can do it for half the price in your backyard.

wow sounds like you are really confident that its the fuel filter thats causing the trouble. Is this fairly common with benz? i mean i have/had 3-4 cars that are over 100k km cars and never had to replace once (all japanese)

[Supafly]

wow sounds like you are really confident that its the fuel filter thats causing the trouble.

Yeah...coming from experience. I replaced all the electronic sensors...and still had the same problems until i replaced the fuel filter...the next on the replacement list was the fuel pump..lucky i didn't have to go that far...

a very expensive lesson.

[Nismo 1234]

i think the shop tofu1413 is the one i know of, the shop under the bridge at oak and marine. i dono the name of the shop, but the owner name is Frankie, my friend use to take his car there until the engine blew cuz of cars age..
the shop might look shady but they do good work. a R34 was reassembled there:thumbsup:

[bcrdukes]

How does the car feel when you're driving/accelerating? If it feels sluggish, and combined with your startup symptoms, chances are its a fuel filter. You will want to change it as soon as you can. As Supafly said, you'll be lucky it isn't the fuel pump. That in itself is a very expensive lesson. :p

[skylinergtr]

most mercedes benz have a common problem with the crankshaft position sensor (CPS). Maybe this is a sign that it may fail soon. I've seen lots of them have this problem, and end up becoming defective. A tune up (spark plugs, injector cleaner, intake cleaner) would be good for the car now at its age.

If you needed a recommended shop, I go to and trust Gold Wrench Automotives in North Vancouver.

Best of luck.

[BEEB]

To be exact, shop rate is exactly $130 for Mercedes dealership in Vancouver.

Did you buy the car brand new or used? Have you brought the car back for the recall of a oil return hose under the air filter assembly?

[Solo_D33A]

I go to Flying Tiger in no.6 and westminster in Richmond for my Mercedes repairs

[?NR]

i think the shop tofu1413 is the one i know of, the shop under the bridge at oak and marine. i dono the name of the shop, but the owner name is Frankie, my friend use to take his car there until the engine blew cuz of cars age..
the shop might look shady but they do good work. a R34 was reassembled there:thumbsup:

Henneken.

Hans, a bit critical but nevertheless, good guys.

[hchang]

Thanks for all the reply guys, will take a look into all of the possible suggested above, and hopefully its just something small that needs replacing.

To be exact, shop rate is exactly $130 for Mercedes dealership in Vancouver.

Did you buy the car brand new or used? Have you brought the car back for the recall of a oil return hose under the air filter assembly?

I called the Mercedes Benz in the Richmond Auto Mall (which was then transfered to their shop by Bridgeport)

The car was bought brand new, and I can't remember exactly what the recall was for, but I remember vaguely it had something to do with a hose being bent slightly, and "not up to Mercedes Benz standards"... Can't remember exactly though.

[taylor192]

I was thinking the spark plugs too... does anyone know a reputable shop that can replace a Mercedes spark plug?
The 1.8L engine in the 2005 C230 is so easy to work on. If you cannot change thew spark plugs on this car, you should be ashamed to call yourself a man.

[taylor192]

but im gonna put money down saying its a bad fuel filter....and i can do it for half the price in your backyard.
x2

Any problems with starting are either spark, fuel or air.
- Spark plugs and fuel filter are 80-100K or 4-5 year maintenance items, so changing this would be good anyways.
- When was the air filter changed last? I find I clean mine more often, Vancouver is dusty.

OR

It could be one of 2 major problems:
- There are 2 vacuum hoses under the airbox that crack over time. There are replacements that last longer and TSB for them. They are a PITA to replace, think 6 hours labour! I can the top hose in 2-3 hours, yet had a shop do the bottom hose. The top hose fails more often.
- There are 2 cam sensors on the front of the engine. The seals in them leak oil into the engine harness, which eventually leaks oil into all the electronics. If you catch it early it is a cheap fix, $40 for engine harness extensions that block oil from leaking out of the cam sensor into the engine harness. If you catch it later, you may have to replace the 2 O2 sensors as oil leaks down the harness to the lowest point, which is the O2 sensor connectors - which happen to be the sending units too. If you catch it really late oil leaks into the ECU and you might as well sell the car for scrap.

Ask me how I know about these problems :(

[taylor192]

Did you buy the car brand new or used? Have you brought the car back for the recall of a oil return hose under the air filter assembly?
Was this made a recall in Canada? I know it was more than a year after it was first a recall in the US and it still was not in Canada.

[taylor192]

has the battery ever been replaced? it could be not holding charge properly, remember benz has lots of shit that will drain the battery fast.
It could be this, yet low voltage would be producing all kids of other errors too, especially with the interior electronics. There is a post on MBWorld detailing all the symptoms of a bad battery.

I've read that 6 years is about standard for a MB battery, yet I am almost on year 9 and 185K kms on my battery and alternator without issue (knock on wood).

[jing]

i think the shop tofu1413 is the one i know of, the shop under the bridge at oak and marine. i dono the name of the shop, but the owner name is Frankie, my friend use to take his car there until the engine blew cuz of cars age..
the shop might look shady but they do good work. a R34 was reassembled there:thumbsup:

If you're talking about Cannonball, then good luck ;)

[taylor192]

Just take it to a qualified garage, you don't need a Mercedes specialist for these types of common problems. I have most of my work done by a couple good guys at a Big-O tire in Kits and I buy my own parts online. It is just another car, and very easy to work on.

My dealer changed my O2 sensors twice under warranty before I diagnosed the cam sensors leaking oil into the O2 sensor connectors. They changed the O2 sensors twice with evidence of oil in the connector and thought nothing of it. Dealerships are glorified part swappers, don't expect them to diagnose an intermittent problem without it costing you a fortune.

[BEEB]

Was this made a recall in Canada? I know it was more than a year after it was first a recall in the US and it still was not in Canada.

actually, i've received a letter from mercedes about the recall. It is an actual recall in Canada. The hose itself is like 12 bucks but the labor to get to the hose is like 3 hours job. However, I've my car returned to me with a leaking gas line which I can smell and see fumes coming out of the front air dam. Then, they have to pick up the car without starting it cause it may catch fire easily.

Actually, just walk into the dealer and give the your vin, inquire about recalls, if there is any, they will take it in for free. I'd brought back my 00' ML430 for a catalytic converter recall free of charge too. And they started to tell me which part is faulty and suggested repair. So, that saved me lots of diagnostic fee.

[Iron Chef]

there has been a lot of recent cases of cold start issues relating to bad gas. Cheveron seems to be the common denominator at this point.

From what you describe i don't suspect it to be a battery or charging system problem as it would cause other symptoms

Its not your CPS as usually they cause no starts or hard starts when HOT.

If you havn't done maintence, your due for plugs, fuel filter, air filter by your age and mileage that would be a good place to start since its due anyways. In addition to this i would recommend you change gas stations for the next couple fillups to see if that makes any changes.

Shop rate is 130/HR. Initial diagnosis is 1.5HR.

do you expect dealer to diagnosis for free. it ain't the salvation army.

thank you come again

[taylor192]

For $30 you can buy a code reader and see if there are any codes stored. Write them down, clear them, then cold start the car and see if it throws any new codes. Not all codes trigger a CEL, so there could be some stored that would help diagnose the issue.

That is a lot cheaper starting place than 1.5hrs at a mechanic, and you get to keep the $30 tool.

[Eff-1]

i'm not familiar with mercedes but i'd be highly skeptical if someone told me there was a code reader availalble for a late model mercedes for only $30. once you get into canbus and things, $30 doesn't get you much. not saying it's impossible (because I don't know), but most scanners are at least $50 and up.

[taylor192]

i'm not familiar with mercedes but i'd be highly skeptical if someone told me there was a code reader availalble for a late model mercedes for only $30. once you get into canbus and things, $30 doesn't get you much. not saying it's impossible (because I don't know), but most scanners are at least $50 and up.
If you don't know, don't comment.

[Phil@rise]

Its got almost 60000km's its time for some maintenance and basic tuneup.
Fuel filter is part of that basic maintenance and tune up but not the outright solution.
I can recommend a factory trained merc tech if you like or you can come by here and we can help you out.

[Supafly]

I go to Flying Tiger in no.6 and westminster in Richmond for my Mercedes repairs

hey man, i've noticed over the years....this guys work is good...but theres better places with cheaper prices....;)

[Eff-1]

If you don't know, don't comment.

What's with the attitude? :rofl: I'm asking a question but you decide to be a jerk about it.

[bcrdukes]

If you don't know, don't comment.

That was harsh.

[taylor192]

What's with the attitude? :rofl: I'm asking a question but you decide to be a jerk about it.
Please highlight the question in your response. I highlighted the assumption you made without having the correct information. Instead you could have asked:

"Where can I find a $30 scanner?"
or
"Does the scanner need to read the canbus?"

Yet you didn't.

That was harsh.
Nah, it could have been far harsher. The OP asked a technical question, random not-thought-out off the cuff answers don't help, especially when they contain incorrect information.

[Eff-1]

Please highlight the question in your response. I highlighted the assumption you made without having the correct information. Instead you could have asked:

"Where can I find a $30 scanner?"
or
"Does the scanner need to read the canbus?"

Yet you didn't.


Nah, it could have been far harsher. The OP asked a technical question, random not-thought-out off the cuff answers don't help, especially when they contain incorrect information.

Sure okay there my friend.

You could have said:

Actually for the MB you don't need canbus (not until 2007 anyways) and $30 scanners are quite easy to find. Here's a couple links...

OR

$30 might be a bit low, but regardless the most you'd spend is $50. Still worth it.

Yet you didn't.

You can go ahead and keep telling yourself you're mr helpful, while in reality you're quite the arrogant one.

Regards.

[guesswho]

try cleaning up the air mass sensor

[taylor192]

Sure okay there my friend.

You could have said:

Actually for the MB you don't need canbus (not until 2007 anyways) and $30 scanners are quite easy to find. Here's a couple links...

OR

$30 might be a bit low, but regardless the most you'd spend is $50. Still worth it.

Yet you didn't.

You can go ahead and keep telling yourself you're mr helpful, while in reality you're quite the arrogant one.

Regards.
I know I could have been more helpful in my reply, yet remember, you ignorantly spoke first. Ignorance does not merit respect.

Check my other posts in this thread, you'll find I posted a lot of good information without being ignorant or arrogant, while you just wanted to have your "voice heard" for no good reason.

GTFO

[Cman333]

Richmond Motorworks

http://www.richmondmotorworks.com/



Dealership quoted $5000+ to fix an issue and Richmond Motorworks costed $700

[Supafly]

so today, my water pump for my car decided to shit the bed.....major wobble in the shaft?...lols.

[falcon]

I can't believe the sheer amount of lacking car knowledge on here... especially considering it's a car enthusiast forum.

[Supafly]

I can't believe the sheer amount of lacking car knowledge on here... especially considering it's a car enthusiast forum.

well, i don't see how you are helping the situation....maybe you can enlighten us with you KNOWLEDGE....:rolleyes:

[Iron Chef]

very common and actually quite easy to do
so today, my water pump for my car decided to shit the bed.....major wobble in the shaft?...lols.

[slammer111]

OP, you have the M271 engine. (2003-2005 C230k) Taylor192 and I both have your same engine.

Spark plugs are easy to change from what I've read. I haven't done mine yet though, and don't plan on doing it in the near future. I don't think this is the problem you have though, or you'd have power issues all the time, not just when the engine is cold.

The M271 engine has 2 "recalls" from MB. They may just have been TSBs (I cannot remember) but I had them all done. 1 for the Crank Position Sensor, and 1 for the 2 hoses Taylor mentioned. The CPS one is to stop an oil leak that coats your engine harness and soaks freaking everything. :eek: This one can be DIYed if the dealer won't cover it. As for the 2 hoses, the upper one can be DIYed with some tools. Google "$12 hose" and my MBW DIY post is the 1st link. ;) The 2nd hose was done under warranty so I don't know anything about it.