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2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
200 PSI Compression Test.
Guys I have a question with compression test. I bought my 2004 C230K with 119,000 miles three weeks ago. Now my car is in the shop for Timing chain, serpentine belt, water pump, thermostat, valve cover gasket, spark plugs and seals, radiator (Valeo), vacuum pump, brake fluid, and rear brakes replacement. Also I asked them to service my transmission and perform Service A. When the technician pulled my 1st spark plug, It was filled with golden oil. The second spark was a little bit wet and both 3rd and 4th were dry. I panicked because I know, based on what I have read, this engine (M271) has compression loss issue. So I asked him to give me a quote of head cylinder replacement and he quoted me almost $4,000. When I told him to proceed with cylinder head job then he told me that he is confident that my Benz does not have compression loss issue. To give me peace of mind, he performed compression test in, front of me, on all 4 cylinders and he got 200 psi each. My question is, what is the normal compression test rate? I thought 200psi is too high. What do you think?
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
Guys, I would like to share what happened to the timing chain of my M271. We compared the brand new Mercedes Timing chain vs. the old one that's been in my engine for 121K miles and it didn't stretched at all. The length of both old and new chains are same. Maybe not all timing chains are bad in M271 engine. My initial reaction was disappointment that I wasted a lot of money but then I realize it's still worth it. What I have now is a complete peace of mind. I will be confident this time to take my car to my long trips.
Why did they replace the water pump - was it leaking?
Did you hear some noise at startup with the old chain/do you still hear it with the new chain?
Hmm, maybe the chain had been replaced before, who knows.
The camshaft sprockets can still get eaten though. Did you examine them for wear?
Never heard of "too high" compression. I think your test numbers are ok, and better still they are consistent. I DIYed my timing chain at ~125k miles, old chain was only stretched about 2mm...
I really believe the M271 chain could last the life of the vehicle, with proper mx and the correct oil.
I've never done a compression test on either of my cars, but 200 psi sounds good to me and the fact that they are all the same would seem to confirm that. In fact this post by Glyn confirms my assessment (https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...sion-test.html post #6).
The oil on your plugs concerns me but I'm confused about the "golden" oil? Had you just had an oil change? I would not expect any oil but certainly not that color! Seriously oil fouled plugs would tend to cause misfires and you don't mention that (I assume that would throw a CEL, too). I would also expect the wrench who did the compression test to comment on the oil, but from your post, he didn't seem concerned. A leak down test would determine whether your rings or valve guides are worn. Are you having problems with the engine? Is it burning oil, running rough, etc.
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
Originally Posted by VVF
Why did they replace the water pump - was it leaking?
Did you hear some noise at startup with the old chain/do you still hear it with the new chain?
Hmm, maybe the chain had been replaced before, who knows.
The camshaft sprockets can still get eaten though. Did you examine them for wear?
Thanks for the reply. Nope, the water pump was not leaking. I just told the technician to replace it for general purpose, including the thermostat, serpentine belts, etc. Funny he showed me my A/C compressor pulley was somehow noisy so I called the dealer and they said it will be $230 for the pulley and the whole A/C compressor is almost $900. So I called different places and I found a Denso A/C compressor for my C230 for only $430. So I got a new Denso compressor, new condenser with filter dryer attached to it and a new radiator.
Regarding the chains, it's never been replaced. I asked the full history of my car from El Dorado Mercedes dealer and they were so nice to grant my request. The previous owner meticulously took care of this car and never brought this car to any shop except the dealership somewhere at the bay area. We also compared the old and new camshaft sprockets and no difference at all. So I decided to return them and just use the old to save some money. Now two of my chains are new too (upper and lower). About the start up noise, I didn't hear any chain noise before. In fact, it just sounds same to me before and after chains replacement.
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
Originally Posted by ncmudbug
I've never done a compression test on either of my cars, but 200 psi sounds good to me and the fact that they are all the same would seem to confirm that. In fact this post by Glyn confirms my assessment (https://mbworld.org/forums/c-class-w...sion-test.html post #6).
The oil on your plugs concerns me but I'm confused about the "golden" oil? Had you just had an oil change? I would not expect any oil but certainly not that color! Seriously oil fouled plugs would tend to cause misfires and you don't mention that (I assume that would throw a CEL, too). I would also expect the wrench who did the compression test to comment on the oil, but from your post, he didn't seem concerned. A leak down test would determine whether your rings or valve guides are worn. Are you having problems with the engine? Is it burning oil, running rough, etc.
The technician that worked on my car told me that the previous tech at the dealer spilled some oil to the first two spark plug holes during oil change. Burning oil, not sure yet cos I just got the car last June. No CLE and the engine runs smoothly, better than my 2014 Corolla with 5k miles on it.
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
Originally Posted by RWDlifer
Never heard of "too high" compression. I think your test numbers are ok, and better still they are consistent. I DIYed my timing chain at ~125k miles, old chain was only stretched about 2mm...
I really believe the M271 chain could last the life of the vehicle, with proper mx and the correct oil.
The technician that worked on my car told me that the previous tech at the dealer spilled some oil to the first two spark plug holes during oil change. Burning oil, not sure yet cos I just got the car last June. No CLE and the engine runs smoothly, better than my 2014 Corolla with 5k miles on it.
There you go! That's where the "golden" oil came from. You have nothing to worry about. Your compression is not too high - it's fine. You don't need a leak down and you're probably not burning oil (though you should obviously keep up with the oil level).
I really believe the M271 chain could last the life of the vehicle, with proper mx and the correct oil.
You're wrong. Do you really think the people who have timing chain problems don't maintain their vehicles? Paul (cintoman) has maintained his to the letter.. obessively, by his own admission.. and he has suffering timing chain stretch at 99k miles. Mine was also obsessively serviced and was starting to make noise at 145k. Both my 05 and Paul's 05 were in fantastic shape in every way. Since they looked, rode, and drove pretty much new I don't consider either of those mileages to be the "life" of the car.
This is a known issue. It is not a maitenance or neglect problem.
You're wrong. Do you really think the people who have timing chain problems don't maintain their vehicles? Paul (cintoman) has maintained his to the letter.. obessively, by his own admission.. and he has suffering timing chain stretch at 99k miles. Mine was also obsessively serviced and was starting to make noise at 145k. Both my 05 and Paul's 05 were in fantastic shape in every way. Since they looked, rode, and drove pretty much new I don't consider either of those mileages to be the "life" of the car.
This is a known issue. It is not a maitenance or neglect problem.
how often does this issue have to be taken care off (how many km) is this a one time this or every 50,000 km issue and what is usually required chain and the guides or any other parts also?
I don't know that the OEM parts are "faulty" per se.. it's just the design is a single-gang chain and that isn't durable enough. It's more of a design issue rather than a parts issue.
Lilbenz, look at this exhaust cam sprocket
Apparently, the ROW M271 engines made in 2006-7 suffered the same soft metal problem as V6's in the US. So - faulty oem parts.
You're wrong. Do you really think the people who have timing chain problems don't maintain their vehicles? Paul (cintoman) has maintained his to the letter.. obessively, by his own admission.. and he has suffering timing chain stretch at 99k miles. Mine was also obsessively serviced and was starting to make noise at 145k. Both my 05 and Paul's 05 were in fantastic shape in every way. Since they looked, rode, and drove pretty much new I don't consider either of those mileages to be the "life" of the car.
This is a known issue. It is not a maitenance or neglect problem.
I agree Matt. Both you and I maintained our vehicles obsessively, and yet look at the range in miles of both our cars...mine likely stretched at 99K miles, and yours making noises at 145K miles. Other than that, like you said, our cars look fantastic. And there is no way that 99K miles is considered the life of this engine. Our vehicles have been maintained exceptionally, and quite often, taken care of FAR better than what Mercedes would take care of based on their maintenance schedule (an example would be doing 8,000 mile oil changes instead of Mercedes' recommended 12,000 mile changes).
According to Glyn, over in SA, there has been an epidemic of these chains stretching.
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
Yesterday I told my friend about the timing chain stretching on M271 engines. He immediately told me that Nissan just had a recall on their Juke models for the same issue. Do you think Mercedes could do the same action Nissan did? At least we could get our refunds if Mercedes will issue a recall about timing chain stretching.
Not a chance. Some M272 engines have bad heat treatment on the balance shaft sprocket. It's a known issue and in fact there is a Star Bulletin on it. If your sprocket wears out because of this problem, they will treat it as any other out of warranty issue. You get points for using the dealer a lot and for proper maintenance but it wasn't clear to me if those points translate into money or how much.
I don't think MB considers the timing change to be a real issue.
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4Matic, 1997 Mercedes benz C280 Sport, 2014 Toyota Camry LE, 2004 C230 SOLD
Originally Posted by Preet
LexBenz any update on the timing chain?
Sorry for my late reply. I'm busy with my NP program. Anyway, my car runs perfectly fine. I already put 5k miles on it since I replaced my timing chains. Plus I had my other seals (main seal, transmission seals both front and rear) replaced too. Drained my torque converter while my tranny was out of the car.
Funny though because I bought 6 Liters of Mercedes Transmission fluid (red) from the dealer. While putting them in my car, we wondered why one of the bottle has blue oil . We checked the label at the back and it says 236.15. So I called the dealer where I bought these oils and they were very helpful. They gave me 12 Liters of 236.14 red oil in an unopened box, transmission filter and a gasket to flush my tranny. Did the drain and refill 3 times and now my car has a complete clean transmission oil. I think Mercedes liked blue fluids for their cars. My Mercedes coolant is also blue.
07-08-2014, 12:21 AM
. We checked the label at the back and it says 236.15. So I called the dealer where I bought these oils and they were very helpful. They gave me 12 Liters of 236.14 red oil in an unopened box, transmission filter and a gasket to flush my tranny. Did the drain and refill 3 times and now my car has a complete clean transmission oil. I think Mercedes liked blue fluids for their cars. My Mercedes coolant is also blue.
