SL in ATL

Congrats on the find!!

JeffJ,

Did you resolve your issue??

User110

i agree with your wife, i bought my car from NY and drove it all the way home, i had the same problem, i was worried that it had something to do with my wheels missing a lug on each, but i was unable to find one and drove it after checking to make sure they were tight. my vibration is intermittent, and not as bad as how you guys clame, i can faintly notice it, especially in my passanger seat.

gonna have them check my seals for my tranny on monday, see what they say.



ALi

User110

OK, so my vibrations are getting worse and worse, what do i tell the dealer to see about solving this problem? has anyone else looked into the cause of this problem and jcern's find in solving it?


updates?




ALi

DFW01E55

I've got a vibration between 75 and 85 that's going to require a visit to the dealer next week.
I'm convinced that it's the driveshaft or universal or a tranny mount.

Either way, it's unmistakable and they should get it right on the first try.

grane

There are several possibilities you should look into based on my "friendship" with my local AMG MB dealer specialist mechanic.

Bad transmission mounts: I know of several earlier cars (2003-2005) that had to had both transmission mounts and engine mounts replaced. This cured the vibration problem. ( see the latest Star Mag for the same problem with other models.)

Rear alignment: MB is notable for NOT aligning the rear of the AMG since it take specialist work and parts replacement and MBUSA is loathe to reimburse them for this work. Have you care checked out by a reputable independent tire dealer with a BUSY aligment shop, and bring the printout into the dealership. Your alignment shop will probably NOT be able to do a good rear alignment since specialist parts and tools are needed. Insist that the dealer replace the rear suspension parts under warranty.

You see, many MB dealers do NOT perform an alignment prior to delivery. I was told "off the record" that they figure if you can afford an AMG you can afford to replace the tires every 6k miles. When the cars are delivered, they are winched down on the transporter that throw off the alignment and the dealers just leave it that way.

Aftermarket wheels: The offset for the 18" AMG wheels is 44mm. If you have Mandrus or other aftermarket wheels, their offset is only 32mm. This will completely throw off the AMG suspension.

Hope this helps...

Grane
PS
I drive a G500 and a 2005 AMG.

DFW01E55

Thanks Grane, they owe me an alignment anyway.
I've previously had 1 trans mount replaced.

User110

what would be good call on the tranny mount replacement, if my car has 60k on the clock, does mb cover power train or nothing at that point?


i have a warranty with wheels, and it covers everything(plus seals/gaskets/etc). can i get them to replace it or does this have to be a failiure for them to replace?



ALi

grane

I would read your warranty FIRST.

1.I almost got my dealer to take back the AMG under the NH lemon law because it had to go back so many times to get the electronic/hydraulic suspension right. If I let the car sit for more than 2 hours the front drivers side would collapse. Overnight the entire suspension would bottom out. The car is garaged. It turns out you need to replace the oil and the filters in the system, esp. if the car is sitting for awhile, otherwise the suspension collapses...But this is not mentioned as a service item! This was all covered and they finally got it right.

2.CPO warranties are notorious - they list all the parts they cover and then say -

"Any part that is not specifically listed is NOT covered."

I had a $1.00 manual door clip fail on my G500 because the automatic lock system failed to unlock the drivers door after repeated attempts. They stuck me with a $273 bill to take off the door panel. MBUSA in NJ didn't care. But I got the dealership to foot the bill.

3.So be cool, get your facts straight, and then be nice to people at the dealership because with MBUSA as arbitrary as they are you need an advocate at the dealer. Good advice under any circumstances, no?

Good luck,

Grane

DFW01E55

Just got a call from my SA and it appears it's a bad trans mount causing the vibration. Previously had a bad motor mount.

We'll see if that's the only issue, they've got it until Friday due to travel.

grane

You might check if they come in pairs - if they do - have them replace both. Otherwise you'll be back in again.

You might want to check on the previous bad motor mount and see if that came in pairs - did they replace both?

After that make sure they check the alignment. Rear alignments as I have stated before call for specialist parts and are notorious for being out of whack.

One has to look at an AMG as a high performance SYSTEM - unfortunately the car industry just seems to want to replace broken parts only.

For example, if you had a worn out shock, would you just replace one, or the pair?

Good luck,
Grane

DFW01E55

Thanks Grane, they were checking the alignment as they owed me one.
Will inquire about the pairs.

User110

any updates, still vibratin?




ALi

Kar don

Very interesting thread.

My C320 4matic makes a vibration noise (cant really feel it) at about 55mph.

Just so you guys know, putting the vehicle in neutral while on the hwy doesn't rule out the drive shaft... because it is still spinning.

DFW01E55

Yes, sorry ALi, did it in another thread.

All is well, they replaced a tranny mount and the vibrating problem has gone away.

So now I've had a broken motor mount and tranny mount. Do you think it's because of the 530lbs of torque?

Headers in 3 weeks, stay tuned for more broken parts.

User110

haha good stuff DFW, but ya think this issue is what will solve mine and many other's with that same problem?

thanks for the quick response, now to figure out how to break it to my Warranty Company and get them to cover it lol.



ALi

trumpet1

Why didn't the service tech take it out for a spin and experience firsthand before giving the car back to you?????

grane

You ask good questions.

1.If the motor/transmission mount(s) is the same part as the CL500, is it not up to the task on the AMG?

2. Should this be a normal inspection/service/recall item on the AMG series esp the 215 chassis? Should a service bulletin be issued?

3. BTW do they come in pairs or sets?

4. I want to know if it is a fluid problem. Maybe the dampers dry up in the mounts?

Enquiring minds want to know....

Grane

DFW01E55

Excellent points. I wonder what the threshold is for statistical significance.

DFW01E55

Wouldn't surprise me a bit. The engine mount produced a a distinct noise/vibration only when cold on the passenger side front wheel well area.

The tranny mount just produced a vibration that you could feel in the front seats on either side.
Who is your warranty company? Mine is Daimler Chrysler and the SA told me everything went fine and they always have a good experience with them.

User110

wheelz warranty?


so you took yours in undewr a aftermarket warranty?




ALi

grane

what your quality metric and time window is.

One measure of quality is Six Sigma. Domestic airplanes have to have a lower incidence of failure than say, cigar lighters. Six Sigma + vs 2 Sigma.

But once the old ones (planes, not lighters) are sold off to domestic airlines in 3rd world countries, the metric may change. And the manufacturer may not track the model anymore.

So if we suppose MB sold about 500 CL55s in 2004, and (all of a sudden )there is a failure in a certain part or set of parts with 20% of the cars, does MB track it or care, since most people are paying for their own repairs by then? Do they feed this information back to the designer or the supplier for this or the next generation of cars? From the point of view of manufacturer, is it cost effective to do so? What have they learned? When the 2005s go out of warranty the customer may have to pay? Does Car and Driver track multiyear performance and reliability? If it sold magazines they would....

It took MB 3 months to replace the Comand in my G500 under warrranty because they make up the systems in batches. What does this say?

On another note I have found that most performance cars, like certain other thoroughbreds, need to be used hard, often, and otherwise kept well-serviced.

If not they tend to dry up, and fail, in one way or another. So drive the damn AMG and enjoy it - if you want a garage queen get a Picasso or an Italian car.

Grane

lasteph79

how much do they charge to change the tranny mounts?

DFW01E55

Warranty work, it was free!

The ticket says, $188 for labor (1.8 hrs) and the mount itself was 38.50.

dgibs

I have a vibration in my 03 CL600 and it seems to be the driveshaft or tranny mounts. I can feel a slight vibration in park if I raise RPMs above 1000 and it seems to get worse from 1500 - 2000. I also have a very strong vibration when driving from 70 - 85 mph and it totally disappears above 100 mph.

khutchinson22

dgibs, did you ever figure out your issue? What about the rest of you guys? I've tried a ton of different things with no luck. Only things mentioned I haven't tried are wheels (which were repaired), driveshaft and motor mounts. The mounts aren't collapsed or leaking so it likely isn't them.