advans

so guys... I've been having quite a handful of mechanical issues with the coupe. The ESP light has been going on, "ESP Visit Workshop" and "NO ESP Available" are the two main "Malfunctions" that popped up.

I first thought it was my alignment that was going bad, that might had triggered the steering angle sensor to tick off. (since I've dumped the car).

I raised the car back up to Tein Specs - 1/4" lower Had alignment done, dealer reseted everything, it was okay for a day or two, then the error message popped back up.

The dealer then replaced the steering angle sensor, error message went away, but came back up a few days later.

The car has been in and out of the dealers, for the past month, and now, they said it's the ESP Module failure, which will cost roughly in the 4 digit zone for replacement. They also said that there's a problem with the steering column, this, and that, oh gosh...

I've noticed that the car fishtails a lot, even at low speeds, when turning left and right, etc, then I've noticed that there are "empty spots" when I'm steering....annoying eh!?

I'm not sure I've read anything about this issue. Just sharing my info with my fellow 203ers

pshek

Your ESP module might be going bad because of oil contamination or oxidative corrosion at the electrical connections. It probably does need replacement. I've heard of other people who had ESP modules going bad because of bad electical connections from contamination or corrosion.

The fact that your car fishtails alot is nothing unusual since your traction control does not work right now. Mine did that too because I permanently have ESP/BAS disabled. Good tires and LSD helps keep the car from fishtailing now.

Don't drive your coupe in the snow or the rain right now til you get it fixed.

shrink

I spent alot of money, changed the battary, changed the alternator, still have ESP issues, and I used to now dislodge the battary during night to have the car switched on next day without needing a jump everyday ?
Changing oil then will help, or do i need to disable the esp system ?
many thanks

shrink

I've a problem with the electric circuit. I have to give my car a jump everyday. My car is c240 2002 . I spent alot of money, changed the battary, changed the alternator, still have "ESP warning sign issue every morning". I used to now dislodge the battary cable during night every single day to have the car switched on next day without needing a jump everyday ??
Any help with that issue?
Many thanks to all of you.

Moviela

Reading between the lines, it would appear that your problem might be seat control modules that are not "going to sleep" as designed, and the high current they draw when "awake" is draining the battery overnight. It is a common problem with cars like yours.

Disconnecting the battery is not a good idea. When you do, a number of systems need to be "resync'd" including but not limited to the sunroof, the mirrors, the windows, and the ESP system. There is also a possibility that one of the CAN bus modules might be destroyed if the battery is disconnected incorrectly.

Please take your car to a properly equipped shop and have your problem diagnosed using the factory Star system. All dealers, and many independent shops have this.

I would not disable the ESP on my car, the safety it provides is worth the price of admission. Changing the oil will have no effect for your issue.

SeaCoupe

Hey Advans,

I think I had a similar situation some time back. My issue was in the front. The tires had worn to a weird angle. On left hand turns the ESP would cut in dramatically.

I cured it by just getting new tires.

Gross oversimplification, but it worked all the same.

E

TruTaing

Another simple thing: Have you tried the Lock to Lock w/ the steering wheel while the key is in the position right before the ignition position? (supposed to recalibrate the ESP stuff). When ya change out the battery or its running low, you usually have issues w/ the ESP and need to do the lock to lock to recalibrate the system ESP.

Keep us posted. Sounds like something more than one person has experienced.

pshek

I would agree that the majority of people should not disable ESP, since it could be a life saver. Also, don't drive in dyno mode (ie with ESP/TC disabled) especially with an open diff in wet or slippery conditions. Doing so under those conditions will cause you to fishtail and make the car undrivable. I do not advocate disabling ESP, but I kept it disabled because it no longer interferes with the supercharger clutch. I can drive the way I want to and not have to worry about ESP turning on and killing the throttle. My LSD remedied the fishtailing problem now that I drive without traction control. Others who have Quaife LSD also state that ESP comes on less frequently in the turns. I don't know if you can power oversteer with ESP + Quaife, probably not. Don't know if anybody tried that yet.

Without ESP, I had to learn how to drive the car all over again to make it controllable and drive in a safe manner. I don't let anybody else drive my coupe, not without forwarning them of being excessively throttle happy.

mleskovar

If SDS says it's the module then it probably is. I would ask for a refund/consideration for the steering angle sensor.

glocati

Advans, if it does turn out to be the ESP module, check out BBA Remanufacturing or Module Masters. They may save you some $$$ with a remanutactered unit.

I had to have the ABS/DSC module rebuilt in my E39 BMW. $1200 at the dealer for a new one. $300 for BBA to reman. Took 10 minutes to remove in the Bimmer. I suspect it is similar for our benzes. Either way, good luck on it.

shrink

Thank you : Moviela, emrliquidlife , TruTaing, pshek, mleskovar , and glocati .

I'll go with these advices to the mechanic and try to see if any of these ideas might work.
1- Seat control module
2- BBA remanfacturing or module masters ?? what is that by the way ?
3- steering angle sensor ?
4-Lock to Lock which might recaliberate ESP (while key before ignition position)

Mr. Movia, I've been to TWO BIG NAME OF dealerships here in California, and paid a good amount of money there (you know how much these people charge), changed the battery, changed the alternator, and still the same.

I've to dislodge battery every time I leave the car until I foind a solution to this problem ?

THE LAST TIME IN MY WHOLE LIFE TO BUY A USED CAR. i'D DRIVE A NEW CRABY BRAND, BUT NEVER MERCEDES USED FOR 6 MONTHS BY ANYBODY OTHER THAN MYSELF.

Thank you so much guys,
Hany

glocati

Hi Shrink, I believe your problem is unrelated to Advans. Yours sounds like a parasitic drain on the battery and could defintely be the seat module. It is a common problem on our cars. Sounds like the dealer is not figuring it out. Find a good independent shop and they should be able to chase down what is draining your battery.

Advans is having issues with his electronic stability control which is a complex system that reads wheel data, etc from sensors and the ABS module and prevents traction slippage and a myriad of other things. I was telling him that if is indeed the main module that controls the ESP/traction and abs functions, then it can be rebuilt for significantly less than a new module.

Good luck on chasing down your issue and let us know the result.

advans

$960 dollars later...

Turns out to be the steering rack, steering angle sensor, 4 steering bushings, steering column, the turn signal switch.

The ESP was NOT replaced, its still the old one I had.

JUST got the car back today, gonna leave the e60 home to do some intense driving on the coupe, already swapped back into the AMGs for testing.

Hope the light doesnt go off.

glocati

Thanks for the update. Sorry to hear your out a grand.

mleskovar

That's a lot of parts. $960 seems low to replace all of that, they must have felt guilty. I hope your problem is solved and you can get back to enjoying your car. BTW....how much was the turn signal switch (mine is sticky, thinking of replacing it)?

advans

I'm going to check the bill tomorrow, I got so fed up with the car, I just kinda paid the total, and drove home! hope everything is okay with the car.

shrink

I went to an independant shop, the guy told me that he want s to change "2 computer systems" that switch on at night and drain the battery ? what do you think of that guys ? the total cost will be 800 $ plus his working hours ???
Any comments ?

Mr. glocati, thank you for your help, but a question here, Why Seat module would be the problem, and not anything else ?

Many thanks

C240-Merc

Advans,

It has been some time since you posted this and I was wondering if the dealer's work solved your problem. I have been experiencing the same problem for several months now going back and forth to the dealer's mechanic. They cannot seem to solve the problem. I have had the car aligned, YAW sensor checked and the ESP sensor replaced.

C230 Sport Coup

Ha, yeh, damn the ESP.
I'd like to disable mine, completely!
I get constant errors, been in the shop a jillion times for it under
warranty, it only stays fixed for a short time.

I was happy to find that Carsoft allows me to read the data related to the
ESP, and steering angle sensor, however, unforuntately I have not yet detemined what the meaning of the error codes are or what to do with the data, what to repair or how to interpret the output of the angle sensor.
I have one error that won't clear,
C1162. If you want to read about Carsoft, check in my post history back a month or so,
don't post here. But yeh, there is stuff on the Service DVD about replacing
pins in the connectors. You need new pins and a crimper...
unfortunately it doesn't provide info relating to errors codes I have and had.

I suppose I could buy one day on the MB service site and try to find the info but at $20+ a day,
I don't have time to stay glued to my computer for 24 hours, ha.
It would be nice if Alldata had the info...but I'd like to know before subscribing.
Haynes is coming out with a manual...I wonder if anything is in there?

What is needed is a complete list of error codes for the modules
for the W203. Codes that begin with "C" are Canbus codes,
but relate to many parts of the car.
I seem to be having issues with canbus communicating at all,
but everything seems to be working fine despite the error, so I don't worry about it.

PA_Pete

Interesting. Can't wait for that Haynes Manual! I've been having errors as well now for a little while. Seems as though they pop up while I'm making a turn in a parking lot or something similar to that. I'll get all three at once "ESP Malfunction", "BAS Malfunction", and "ABS Malfunction". As soon as I turn the car off and restart it, they are gone, until I start driving and they randomly come back. Some days they won't pop up at all, some days' they'll pop up everytime I start the car (after driving of course). I've read many a thread regarding this and it seemed as though most people who experienced what I just mentioned, had recently installed BIX on their car. I have NOT done this, so I know it has nothing to do with that. I too would like to find out what is causing this, it gets irritating having to flip through all them error screens everytime.

Oh, and for the record, my car is completely stock, stock suspension, stock wheels, stock everything. I recently got new tires for the car too, I was getting these errors before and after the new tires.

Glyn M Ruck

C1162 = Park Brake Switch # 2 Released Circuit
Failure

mleskovar

Having recently gone through the ESP failure on my car I can tell you that there are some things you can DIY to check and one cheap/easy parts swap. You can check the wheel speed sensors and wiring pretty easy for breaks, fitment, and crud. It's pretty obvious where they are on the wheels when you look. See if the wires leading to them are intact and not pinched and pull the sensor and make sure the pickup is clean (one torx screw). There are two modules in the trunk that control ESP...the yaw sensor, $104...and an ESP Module, $565. Both are centrally located under the mat in the back of the trunk and easy to access. Then there's the steering angle sensor behind the steering wheel, $365 and looks fairly easy to replace. I don't know if it requires adjustment when installed or not (anyone know?). The ESP module and steering angle sensor are pricy so I'd rely on someone with MB diagnostics if they were suspect but it seems even with proper diagnostics a lot of part swapping takes place with ESP failures. An ESP module fixed my problem.

aznmode

I'm having this same exact issue now. Hit a pot hole and damaged my rims both driver side. I put 19's on and drove it today to work. went on when I was almost home. I suspect its the wheel speed sensor based on info i got here. I think I know where the wire is. Do you have a pic of the sensor and where it's connected?

LILBENZ230

So if it were a wheel speed sensor, wouldn't that cause the ABS system to also not work (thus giving you an ABS light?).

The ABS uses the wheel sensors. I can see how ESP module, steering angle system, and yaw sensor doesn't cause ABS to shut down but a speed sensor?

mleskovar

I'm assuming you put 4 new wheels/tires on? The sensor is at the end of the wire. It's the only wire going to the wheel, you can't miss it.