2 problems..head gasket leak & dead instrument cluster
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Newbie
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 1
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1997 MB C280
2 problems..head gasket leak & dead instrument cluster
I have a 97 c280 with app. 100M miles. I love the car but has 2 serious problems. First..my instrument cluster went blank except for ASR light. I sent it to the east coast to a repair shop and they said it had a bad chip and they couldn't fix it. In the meantime I bought a used one on ebay and a local shop synced it with my car but unfortunately it had 140 M miles on it. Any one know of any instrument clusters repair shops that may be able to fix my original one.
Second, after having the car about a month or so I switched to Mobil 1 synthetic and within a week an oil leak developed which has gotten steadily worse. Seems there was a defect in 97 C280 head gaskets that allows a leak to develop on the front of the engine by the timing chain cover. Without spending $1500 to $2,000 to fix an oil leak any suggestions on alternate repair? Any help on both is appreciated!
Second, after having the car about a month or so I switched to Mobil 1 synthetic and within a week an oil leak developed which has gotten steadily worse. Seems there was a defect in 97 C280 head gaskets that allows a leak to develop on the front of the engine by the timing chain cover. Without spending $1500 to $2,000 to fix an oil leak any suggestions on alternate repair? Any help on both is appreciated!
Junior Member
Joined: Nov 2007
Posts: 51
Likes: 0
From: Dana Pt, CA
'95 c280 '93 190E '07 C230
280 head gasket
If the leak only happened after you used Mobil1, that must have caused the leak. If thhis is the case, have you tried going back to conventional oil to see if the leak stops?
as I was reading your comment I noticed an ad for "Steel Seal". You might check it out at www.steelseal.com for your problem..sounds good but who knows?
Good luck
as I was reading your comment I noticed an ad for "Steel Seal". You might check it out at www.steelseal.com for your problem..sounds good but who knows?
Good luck
Super Member
Joined: Jan 2006
Posts: 584
Likes: 1
From: Atlanta, GA
C230K
I agree with Pasha. Go back to a conventional oil, maybe one of the ones for high mileage cars. Synthetic can cause leaks to appear in high mileage cars that have never run synthetic before.
Where is the oil leak? If it is just a valve cover, that is easier and cheaper than a head gasket. Are you seeing oil sludge in the coolant reservoir?
Where is the oil leak? If it is just a valve cover, that is easier and cheaper than a head gasket. Are you seeing oil sludge in the coolant reservoir?
Newbie
Joined: May 2009
Posts: 4
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From: Troy,Ohio
97 C280
I have found with the Benz's I have,most of the improvementsI come up with are nothing of the sort.I have found to stick with all of the factory requirments,they pay engineers lots of money to figure out many of the things we have questions about,as for the oil leak,mine leaked for over a year before I bit the bullet an had my dealer fix the headgasket[C280],a 97 ,last year for the inline 6,for a tidy sum of 1500$.it now runs like a new carwith over 172k miles.Make your choices and pick your poison.
