bhamg

I wanted to separate this question from cek's thread on his engine repair. Does anyone really know how widespread this issue of potential failure is? Under what circumstances are head bolts replaced under warranty? Upon failure only? Only in conjunction with another (internal) repair? I note from cek's photos that the head of the new bolt is readily identifiable as the new replacement style.

Merc63

I have been investigating this for some time now since Josh (silver dragon) posted that he has had his head bolts replaced at Weistec since there was a bulletin out about it.

I have called two dealers here (Canada) and they wont replace them under warranty.

They have a new part number for them and it says not to use the older ones.

To me this is a serious issue. There has been members in other sections that have had engines fail because of these faulty head bolts (hydrolocked from coolant in the cylinder).

Obviously if this happens to someone with no warranty, you might as well start parting your car out!

The price per bolt is $15 for the new ones. I am looking into having my tech replace them now. But just trying to find out how that will effect the head gasket and if they can be just replaced or if the head has to be pulled and new gasket installed (Huge job).

If its as simple as taking a bolt out and replacing with the new one without removing the head, I think this would be a good idea considering the risks to the engine.

Even Money

Does ARP make some aftermarket bolts for the 6.3?

bhamg

I'll have a talk with my SA next month and try to get the straight dope. I say "try" because even though he is great to me and I take care of him fine this might be one of these issues that MB intends to keep a lid on. I would think that the criss-cross nature of head bolts lends itself to one-at-a-time replacement. Agreed, I can think of no other (likely) fastener failure (outside of a catastrophic suspension happenstance) that might have more serious financial consequences than this.

Sincity

I spoke with my SA about this and they will only replace if you constantly have to replace the coolant.

Merc63

So that means your car is burning coolant now and the seal between the block and head is not even sealed properly.. That's a time bomb waiting to happen.

Sincity

No....my car is not burning coolant. It is still too new (mileage wise).

cek

FWIW:

Part number of new version can be seen here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ckindel/6799433698/
Old v. new:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/ckindel/6799436626/

m a x i m u s

i have been shopping for an 08 or 09, so am interested in knowing more about this issue. interesting ...

jvanbrecht

Can someone link to the original thread by CEK.

GeorgeSmooth

Weistec will be releasing a bolt solution soon.

Sheep

Here: https://mbworld.org/forums/c63-amg-w...ead-bolts.html

Sheep

JohnnyUte

I didn't see it anywhere yet, but is it as simple as swapping bolts, or is it a more involved process?

Merc63

Unfortunately, I dont think this is the case.

I believe the cams have to be removed.. Which is not a simple job. You need 4 special tools to hold them in place. Its not easy.

My tech is looking into this 100%

Can anyone in Canada post a bulletin for these head bolts please!

JohnnyUte

Lame. In all honesty, how many times has this actually occurred or been an issue? Also, if you're out of warranty and something like this happens, will they still cover it? I mean, it's a big enough problem that they actually had to change part numbers.

Merc63

Good luck.

This is probably why they aren't making it public knowledge and having guys come in and switch them out..

Costs less for them to replace hydrolocked engines then it would to replace every 63's head bolts..

Guys out of warranty are SOL!

Jons95c36amg

My c63 is at 24k+ miles and doesnt use any coolant. If these bolts are a major issue there should be a recall.

pelteka

Do you know if the new bolts are made from different material?If not what is the point to chance them if engine is OK....The bolts stretch but if they are instal right no need to be touch unless you have to do the head gasket or they did made the new bolts from different material....

cek

Part of me (the sick part) would actually really enjoy the experience of a hydrolocked engine. Can imagine the thrill of going WOT and then "ka-boom, clunk, clunk, clunk!" Of course, I'm assuming this would only be enjoyable if I didn't crash as a result and the car was under warranty.

derspi

I mentioned in cek's thread that I had my head bolts replaced. I checked the repair order and it was due to a CEL I got with codes for a vacuum leak. There is mention of several codes but I'm not certain which codes were found with DAS. All work was done under warranty and new bolts were installed along with a new head gasket. Unfortunately, going by the part #s listed for the bolts on the repair order, it does not appear that the revised bolts were used. Don't know if this will be an issue later on or not so I'll just have to wait & see and hope that they hold up. If I recall correctly, prior to this CEL, I did have the dealer top up my coolant once and thought nothing of it and am not sure if the two issues are related. My memory is a bit hazy as this was done back in 2010 so I don't remember all details.

I do remember my SA telling me that this was a common problem and that they've had to replace the head bolts on quite a few AMG 6.2s but at the time, it was not addressed as a TSB of any sort. Basically, MB will replace these bolts AS NECESSARY so I'm not certain if there is a service bulletin to look up even.

Merc63

Ya my tech has searched all over and can't find a bulletin on it.. However, when you look up the old part number, it says to use the new one and forwards you to that number... So they aren't using those bolts anymore.

JohnnyUte

See that's what worries me, replacing AS NECESSARY. What happens when that "as necessary" is after your warranty? Sounds like getting f'd in the a on this one.

ZephyrAMG

I am most certain they have their legal department looking into what the heck they should do...believe me, its a HUGE decision that will be VERY costly for them (MB). If they don't do something about it now there could be a very extensive class action suit once engines fail out of warranty that would be even more expensive than replacing these bolts...

Jasonoff

I'd be fine with it being covered outside of warranty. Even if they decided to limit the year/km as long a it's suitable value like 10yr/200k km.

Pit-Pony

From what I have seen, it's a big job for a dealer tech to perform. No wonder they are not proactively fixing all the cars. I'm sure they are calculating what percentage of cars will probably fail and they are deciding to wait.

Unless they run into a huge PR issue it's probably the business decisions that will prevail.

As to post coverage warantee, that is the key question here.