Please, Please, Please, someone help CLK W208 Issues

Do I carry on with stubborn determination or give this up as a lost cause ?

  • Scrap the damn thing, it's just an old nail

    Votes: 2 40.0%
  • Get it sorted, it's a future classic

    Votes: 1 20.0%
  • Cut it in half and use the good end as a wheelbarrow

    Votes: 1 20.0%
  • Buy another one and use this one for parts and double the aggravation

    Votes: 1 20.0%
  • Suffer in Silence

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Total voters
    5

clk2000

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Your Mercedes
CLK230/A208/2000
Hello all,
I need help with this damn W208 CLK 230 Kompressor. This thing has been doing my head in for nearly 2 years now !!

I am at the end of my tether .. hold on .. this could take a while ..

It all started when I bought this car, checked it over, no EML or running issues. Great I thought, but little did I know that the previous owner had removed the damn EML bulb Grrr.

I replaced the bulb and it seems the damn thing hasn't gone back off since for one fault or another. Ready for this list ? .. here comes a nervous breakdown ..

Random codes and I mean EVERYTHING and some codes are back for the 3rd and yes, I said 3rd fault code for the same new unit already replaced.
Changed so far and faults found. Both MAP sensors, Both throttle bodies, pre cat Lambda, complete auxiliary air system, Camshaft sensor swimming in oil (replaced), de oiled Engine harness, ECU plug and ECU itself. Fusebox cover (seems like previous owner got so P'd off with it, he ripped it off in temper), water Pump replaced, all service items, coolant hoses , water pressure cap as the hoses were collapsing when cooling down, vacuum lines to auxiliary injection system. Faults range over the replaced units continuously and the car throws codes up when it thinks it will and non specific times. Could be 10 mins .. could be 4 hrs of running.

The list of codes I can't recall at the moment, there are so many from P2036 through all the other codes associated with brand new units that have only been on the car in some cases a matter of minutes.

My logic is telling me that possibly the main ECU is at fault, as this is where all the sensors come together. Surely sensors that are brand new shouldn't go out within minutes and now for the 3rd time ? This car has only done 200 miles in the last 2 years and I even booked it for an MOT to have it refused as the CO readings were so high, the analyser couldn't cope with it and blanked out their screen. on that occasion, I got back home and read the codes to find 9 (yes, I will repeat that) 9 different codes. Reset the codes and randomly, could be 1 come back to up to 5 at once returning.

Can someone with a clear head advise whether they think I could be on the right track with the ECU ? or am I just blowing bubbles here ? .. Is this car doomed for the scrap heap after spending close to a grand on parts on this thing ?
 
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LostKiwi

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Midlands / Charente-Maritime
Your Mercedes
'93 500SL-32, '01 W210 Estate E240 (RIP), 02 R230 SL500, 04 Smart Roadster Coupe, 11 R350CDi
Take it to a decent independent.
Some faults hide behind a fault code that isn't seemingly related - MAFs are a great example - the number of MAFs changed where they don't fix the problems is huge.
A good indy with years of experience and all the right diagnostic kit can save a lot of time and money.
 

Uncle Benz

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Your Mercedes
Mainly Mercedes
The ecu works mostly by outputting a 5v supply to a number of components, looking at the returned signal from sensors and sending control signals to actuators to control them. I’d be looking at the 5v supply that is likely shared between the components being reported as faulty, and also checking earth connections as a first step. The ecu is also common to everything, but check everything else first.
 

Oldspanners

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Location
Normandy
Your Mercedes
C CLASS 2004 C180
I go with what LostKiwi says, it's obviously something other than a simple component failure or multiple ones. A car that obviously has been messed about with by the previous owner may have a lot of "non standard" fixes and will take someone with detailed knowledge to decipher.
The oil in the wiring harness can cause problems for a long time and require repeated cleaning, I know from experience.
Find a good Indy on recommendation from this forum and see what's really wrong.
 
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clk2000

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Your Mercedes
CLK230/A208/2000
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The ecu works mostly by outputting a 5v supply to a number of components, looking at the returned signal from sensors and sending control signals to actuators to control them. I’d be looking at the 5v supply that is likely shared between the components being reported as faulty, and also checking earth connections as a first step. The ecu is also common to everything, but check everything else first.

Now .. Thanks Uncle Benz. You may be onto something here. On reflection, I have noticed that a lot of the codes seem to revolve around sensors having open or short circuit issues. You may well be onto something with the 5v supply rail. There are other codes that seem to be more aimed at the mixture side of things, but for sure, I recall both the MAP sensors kicking this issue up at me.

For today's code, we have P0108 High Pressure Sensor short or open circuit .. whoo hoo .. only 1 code today, must be a good day. If I believed this, I would be replacing MAP sensors for the 4th time hahaha.
 
Last edited:
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clk2000

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Your Mercedes
CLK230/A208/2000
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I go with what LostKiwi says, it's obviously something other than a simple component failure or multiple ones. A car that obviously has been messed about with by the previous owner may have a lot of "non standard" fixes and will take someone with detailed knowledge to decipher.
The oil in the wiring harness can cause problems for a long time and require repeated cleaning, I know from experience.
Find a good Indy on recommendation from this forum and see what's really wrong.

Many thanks for your input Oldspanners. I appreciate all input on this car from anyone trying to help me. I have had ample chance to inspect this car from end to end and apart from a non standard audio unit, I don't see any evidence on the car of Bodged or Lash up repairs. I think the previous owner got sooo fed up with the EML keep coming back, that he couldn't be bothered to remove the 38 pin diag cover and just tore the lid off the fusebox, leaving the plastic and screws in the mounting flange. Then probably got sick of the orange glow and ended up taking the bulb out in desperation.

General aura of the previous owner. "I think the aircon needs a regas, but to be honest I never use it. If I want cool air, I just put the hood down" and then proceeds to tell me how the car has been "Looked after by a Mercedes Specialist". When I check the paperwork for the car, I just see Ebay purchases for spark plugs and bulbs and also breakers yard invoices for other items like door mirrors etc. Hmm.
 

Oldspanners

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Your Mercedes
C CLASS 2004 C180
With the myriad of faults coming up you may (I say may) well have a CAN BUS problem.
Have a look at this video
he really is excellent on a lot of subjects and will give you an idea of what's involved and what tools you would need to diagnose otherwise you are just throwing parts at the car and hoping, like the previous owner was. Find a GOOD Indy and it will be money well spent and you will get a return on your money and not a pain in the posterior to put it mildly which is all you are getting at the moment and you'll end up will a good car.
PS You need to have a proper scan to see all the historic fault codes as the previous owner won't have had them deleted.
 

gassed up

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liverpool
Your Mercedes
2011 C207 350CDI;2010 C207 350CDI sport;2010 SLK300;2004 C209 320;2000 C208 230K;
All of the above are spot on. My own two penn'orth is damp and corrosion. One bad earth or one corroded multipin plug can cause havoc. I've just bit the bullet and scrapped my 230K C208 because the issues just stacked up. Not an easy decision, I paid £16,200 for that car in 2003.
 
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clk2000

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Your Mercedes
CLK230/A208/2000
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All of the above are spot on. My own two penn'orth is damp and corrosion. One bad earth or one corroded multipin plug can cause havoc. I've just bit the bullet and scrapped my 230K C208 because the issues just stacked up. Not an easy decision, I paid £16,200 for that car in 2003.

I'm sorry to hear that gassed up. I know from experience that your car after that period of time becomes a "Little Part of You". I hear you with the stacking up issues. I have been a time served Mechanic for over 40 years and I have never seen anything like this level of "Stack Up". Usually, Problem, Diagnosis, Remedy. This one seems to be going into an endless loop of Diagnosis and Remedy like Groundhog Day and the cycle never seems to be broken.

I'm fast getting beyond looking at components and now looking at the brain that controls them. I have no where left to go with this one.
 

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