sz01361

My car reluctant to ignite 3 times for the past 2 weeks. When I say reluctant, it crank but no ignition. I had to pull and re-insert key, restart 3-4 times with gas pedal pressed. The first and second time was when car parked overnight (cold start), the 3rd occurrence was at gas station where I have driven the car 20km from cold start.

Plugged the car to SDS today and nothing detected.

What might cause the issue and should I worry it will lead to bigger problem? Could it be Fuel filter/pump?


Thanks,

EDIT:

The bad has become the worst! After driving 2 days ago, I parked as normal and today the car won't crank at all. When the key inserted everything seems normal i.e.: Window, side mirror, dashboard, light even Parktronic work fine but when turned to position 3, no crank sound no nothing at all.

Please Help!!

jonUF02

Sounds like possible crankshaft position sensor. There are threads on it with DIY, search for it.

sz01361

Thanks Jon,

I read about CPS but it seems the symptom is failed to start when engine is hot not cold start. Does failed CPS logged error on SDS?

Any other possible culprit I need to check? as said, SDS check yesterday doesn't give me anything to begin with


Regards,

jonUF02

KPS would give you the symptom where you drive to the store, stop for a few minutes, then cranks, but no start. It may also give you rough idle or stall. What is SDS? The dealer STAR computer? If they have someone good with the computers and watch it for a while they should find the issue. I know a lot of dealer shops suck and just plug it up once, don't see any codes, then give up. They don't actually like to take the time to troubleshoot or diagnose anything even though they charge you an hour labor to plug up the computer.

sz01361

2 out of 3 incidents was cold start when left overnight and 3-4 hours. My car seems idle fine apart from weird sounds coming from one of the pulleys :S

Does failed crankshaft position sensor actually gives out error on STAR when plugged in?

My friend did not charge me a dime to do the diagnose but as you said he plugged it in, run full diagnose and nothing engine related error come back (it has other error but non engine related i.e.: parktronic, seat motor, etc) and pulls it off. Should he do something else when running the STAR diagnose?

jonUF02

I don't know the dealer computer system, but I would imagine there is some real-time data that can be analyzed and diagnosed rather than just pulling up the stored codes. KPS is a cheap and easy swap, so if you want to throw parts at it I would start there since it seems to be a common failure.

radaddict

If the CPS is only occasionally failing, it's possible the active code is clearing after a successful start and you may not see it with a simple scan. However, I would think the Mercedes SDS would be able to see stored codes. Did your friend search for stored codes or did he just look at active codes? I'm not familiar with the tool, so I'm only guessing at functionality.

If you can, do a scan during a failed start. Have you noticed a message on your instrument cluster saying "1 malfunction" when it won't start?

sz01361

The SDS showed both stored codes and present code (if any during diagnose). We looked at both stored and active codes and couldnt find anything related to engine.

The problem is i have not been able to replicate the issue. The stall issue seems random for those 3 incidents (overnight, 3-4hours and at gas station). The CEL on my dashboard does not light nor mention any malfunctions apart from BAS/ABS/ESP whenever speed goes above 25km/h but that cpl months even before the cranking issue.

Can fuel filter or pump actually cause this? in addition to Crankshaft (KPS), what about CPS (Camshaft)?

sz01361

EDIT:

The bad has become the worst! After driving 2 days ago, I parked as normal and today the car won't crank at all. When the key inserted everything seems normal i.e.: Window, side mirror, dashboard, light even Parktronic work fine but when turned to position 3, no crank sound no nothing at all.

Please Help!!

jonUF02

If there is no crank at all I believe you have an electrical or computer issue. If it were sensors or fuel delivery issue, then it would still crank. I think it's time to take it to a pro, these can be complicated and drive you crazy. My buddy just had a very similar issue with his jeep. The dealer mech found some frayed wires shorting out, had it fixed in a day.

sz01361

Just called my local garage..

He said it probably starter motor and will come tomorrow to check it out. How easy is it to replace starter motor at parking lot considering the car is unable to move now ..

Can this correlate to the CPS that might cause intermittent ignition during cold engine?

Sigh! hopefully this does not lead to another expensive fix...

jonUF02

Before you said it would crank, but not start. That is much different than no crank at all. That's why I would point to a deeper electrical issue. Because of the previous symptoms of cranking and no start, I would say it's not the starter motor, but possible that it's a coincidence or that it failed due to repeated cranking.

radaddict

Now that it won't crank at all, check your codes again. Hopefully, there will be a code that will give you some idea of what and where the problem is.

Good luck!

sz01361

Thanks Radaddict and Jon,

I just did some research and rechecked the car again. By the symptoms, it seems starter indeed might be the culprit i.e.: Key position 2, dashboard light as normal, no dim in headlight when cranked, no "clicking" sound when cranked (of course, no crank sound at all too). Fuel pump seems working because I hear sound when key on position 2. Ignition switch seems fine as well because the key recognized immediately when inserted and act normal.

I am not sure if my friend will bring over STAR tomorrow to check code. I guess that he will be checking over battery, alternator, starter solenoid and starter motor with voltmeter.

How hard is it to change the starter motor on CLK230 with native jack? If its motor, should I change the CPS as well as precaution?

sz01361

Also what is the part number for starter motor? is it interchangeable with other model?

I found this on ebay:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/OEM-STARTER-MOTOR-Mercedes-W211-E320-E430-S430-S500-CL500-SL500-CLK320-CLK430-/140815280936?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&hash=item20c93eab28&vxp=mtr

radaddict

Sorry, I can't speak to how difficult it may be to replace the starter. I'm sure you would need to place the car on ramps or jack stands. You don't want to be crawling under the car with it supported by just a jack.

You may be able to find a DIY by searching the Internet. There must be some information out there on this.

radaddict

Check out this link:

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w202...r-removal.html

There may be some useful information. Follow some of the links in the thread posts.

Good luck!

sz01361

Update:

My friend came over did some check and tapped couple of times at the very bottom end of starter motor couple of times. The car then able to start as normal! I think this confirms starter being the culprit.

I have ordered new starter and will arrive tomorrow. I should be able to install before end of week. Thanks everyone for the input!