zubin.p

Just had my entire rack and pinion replaced as well as my AC Compressor. Bill came up to a little over $4k but third party warranty covered it.

My SA said there were seals on the rack that were leaking and could not be replaced without removing the entire rack.

This service took me by surprise since most of the w211 owners on here dont mention having had this issue. Is it due to the insane winter on this side of the coast that are causing these seals to crack? My car has already been through 2 harsh winters under my ownership.

The rack and pinion service was also not part of the major service expenses on the w211 that I had researched which were:

Balance shaft issues for the M272 engine about $6k
Valve body and conductor plate issues, transmission rebuild about $3k-$6k
Airmatic issues about $2k (which do not apply to my E350)

Apart from these potential issues that I may run into, what other issues in excess of $2k can I expect? Or have you guys experienced? Im currently at 110k miles and my warranty is running out in 6k miles. I have already had my radiator seals replaced as I was leaking coolant into my transmission lines and that was about $1k

I hope im out of the conductor plate issues as I changed my pilot bushing a year ago and the car shifts perfectly, my VIN is subject to balance shaft issues but I understand that if the issue does occur, it will under 80k miles?

cetialpha5

It would probably help if you mention the year. You didn't mention SBC so I'm guessing you have a 2007? There's videos on youtube on how to check for balance shaft wear. There are reports of it happening later. Sometimes it's just the luck of the draw on what happens.

samaritrey

+1 on the balance shaft we have seen a few have the issue latter in life it is just an unknown. If you are bored you could check it out and honestly if i had one with a vin in the range I would either dump it within 5 minutes of finding out or do an inspection and see what it looks like.
Steering racks are a rare issue on most cars I have been around and almost unheard of on Mercedes. I have heard of two in the w203 chassis and you are the second I have heard of on a w211.
Valve body is more common and since you mention it I assume you have an 2007? How long is your warranty?

zubin.p

My car is a 06 but I thought both the 722.6 in the pre facelift w211s and the 722.9 in the facelift w211's had valve body issues? The electrical connections in the conductor plate gets clogged over time and the dealer asks for an entire transmission rebuild when most likely the conductor and valve body need to be replaced in most cases, correct? My warranty runs out in 6k miles, Im off to Buffalo tomorrow so doesnt look like the 6k miles is going to last too long lol

cetialpha5

Your 06 also has SBC which they got rid of in 07. You haven't had any problems with the pump or the reservoir? What's your in service date on the 06? The SBC pump had a 10 year warranty, but that's just on the pump, not on the entire system.

zubin.p

Yeah I actually forgot to mention that SBC was also on my list of researched expensive fixes for the pre 07 w211's. I had my pump reprogrammed around November of 2013. My SA told me the pump was fine and simply needed to be reprogrammed. The SBC damper is also in place which reduces the pumps noise. Knock on wood, have not had any issues with SBC.

samaritrey

The late 722.6 transmissions rarely have valve body issues or electrical plate issues.
The connector does leak but once you replace it you shouldn't have a leak anymore (upgraded o rings)