C-coupe 180SE- low compression in cylinder one

[tcs]

Hi,
I am a newbie here. I have a 2003 reg C-coupe 180SE. 48000 miles. Full service history at Mercedes garage (Edinburgh). Last service Nov 2008. New tyres only. Last week it failed MOT!!! apparently lambda sensor issues and it failed MOT on emissions(so i am told). Got it checked at Western Mercedes and they ran diagnostics (£200 pounds later) and told me that the compression was low in cylinder 1 and it definetely need changed and quoted me £4000/-. Thats a lot of money.

Is this type of problem common to occur after just 48000 miles! Did contact Mercedes UK who are investigating!

If Mercedes UK washes their hands of the problem what do you think i should do? any independent garages in and around Edinburgh who can do it for cheaper? Thanks for you suggestions and help.

 

[jberks]

Why is compression down? -- thats the key question
I seem to remember a spate of people having cylinder heads replaced a year or so ago (similar age cars) so I suspect there is a known issue. Someone will no doubt remember the details.
Whatever happens, a few points to remember
1) MB WILL make a substantial contribution. They may need chasing and hassling but they will pay.
2) Pressure Western to persue this and make it very clear that you will not be paying anything close to £4k, so if they want the job they better get you a substantial contribution. As an example, a friend recently had a gearbox replaced on an audi TT (same age). The first 'offer' was 10% - He finally settled on 80% contribution. Ok that was Audi, but MB are no different, but be prepared to argue. After all, a merc of that age and mileage shouldn't have engine failure.
3) Worst case, a big part of the bill is labour. You can halve this with an indie so if I'm wrong and it is 100% to you, take the car elsewhere.

 

[tcs]

Thanks jberks...I will trawl through the forum and look if any one had reported replacing cylinder heads a year ago. Any other info regarding this is most helpful.
Mercedes just said that the compression is low...didnt tell me why...just said it need replaced. The inside workings of a car is alien to me!!!
I will wait for Mercedes UK to reply and will pester them. I will also speak to western and ask for a substantial reduction.
Will keep you all posted!

 

[Ellsy Tanners]

It must be a 271 engine with the valve guide problems. This is a common fault unfortunatly.

 

[tcs]

Just had a word with Mercedes dealer. They just did the diagnostics and told me where they thought the fault was. They are not exactly sure what the cause of the low compression is as they have to take the engine apart! is that true and of course that would cost a lot of labour. They feigned ignorance about this being a common fault (naturally) with 271 ingine. have asked them to fax/email me the diagnostics report and i will ask a second opinion. Still waiting for Mercedes UK to get back to me. I have highlighted the reports in this forum about this being a common complaint. Meanwhile I am driving a rental Nissan Micra!!!!!

 

[sl63amg]

First off, did the engine missfire or run rough? there was a problem with the valve seats stamping out of shape on engine 271 but this normally revealed itself at around 30,000 miles,this caused a missfire. I would also advise that alot of people missdiagnose lambda faults and sometimes turn out to be air mass meter faults. Ask what the readings are for the compression test if you are getting a second opinion as differnces have a tollerence of around 10%,also did they carry out the compression test a couple of times to get an accurate indication. If indeed it is a faulty cylinder head ask about a warranty goodwill contribution even though the vehicle is out of warranty as it is fairly low milage.

 

[jberks]

I'd be tempted to approach it loosely at this stage. Ok, you don't know the true cause but it's not old, hasn't got high mileage and is suffering from low compresion. This isn't acceptable on a Ford, let alone a Merc. We all know, inc the dealer and MBUk, that there is a very high probablility that it will be a valve seat. After all, other than piston rings, what else could it be? (head gasket would have other symptoms)
So, I'd play the hypothetical game. "Assuming it is the valve seat, and it needs a new head, can I please have a commitment from MB and yourselves before you lay a spanner on it."
The problem is that as soon as you let them strip it down, you're in for cost, tied in and at their mercy.

Don't fall for the 'not a common problem' line. I got the same when I complained about the cluster displays on my E class. "Not a known issue Sir". 3 years later and there are 4 firms I know of in the UK specialising in fixing them.
Golden rule in these cases - argue and keep arguing - they'll give in eventually. It took my friend 2-3 weeks of daily phone calls and arguing before he got his 80% offer and even if they deny knowing about it, they do know, and they know you know. it's a game, though not a very fun one. Stick to your guns.

 

[tcs]

Thanks for your input. I am sticking to my guns. its alot of money!

 

[tcs]

Engine did not misfire

The car was not in its best form for a couple of days. Engine did not misfire. Then the engine management lights went on and then the sequence of events.

 

[Blobcat]

Pls have a read of this, this,, this and this There are others and I believe at least one owner has had theirs fixed by Mercedes but weren't allowed to talk about it.

 

[tcs]

Truly amazing

Dont we all love the internet. This forum is fantastic. Thanks for the links to the other posts. I will not look like a lemon when I go and talk to Mercedes!

 

[jberks]

It is brilliant.
It's how my friend found out that the collapse of his gearbox wasn't a one-off but a common fault. It gave him enough ammo to shoot the service manager down and win the argument.

It is a great consumer tool. I looked at a holiday recently, then checked on a few consumer review web sites and discovered that I was about to pay a lot of money to take my family to a hotel that was dirty, had lousy food and staff that couldn't care less. There were literaly dozens of people all saying steer well clear.
It's certainly saved my summer holiday.