I changed the spark plugs in my 2005 C230 with 202,000 miles on the odometer yesterday. When I removed the coil from the first cylinder, the bottom part of the coil stuck to the spark plug. A second coil had a crack in the bottom plastic "boot" but it didn't separate like the first one. I replaced both with spare coils that I had removed from a C230 in a "pick and pull" lot. The replacement coils are marked KD-7022 with a subscript of WSO 260404. I search on KD-7022 and didn't find much information. The coils that I replaced were made by Beru and the part number is A001501580. The car is running fine, there are no misfires, and the check engine light is not on.

I don't have complete records on the car. I've owned it for 8 years and I don't have any reason to believe the coils have been replaced.

I'm wondering whether I should replace all the coils with new Beru coils. The total cost for 4 would be about $125. I searched on the term "How long do ignition coils last" and the answer is, 80-100,000 miles. The fact that one coil came apart and the other had damage suggests that the coils may be nearing the end of their useful life. I'm not sure how much I can trust an unknown brand.

 

$125 for 4 OEM coils? I wish the coils on mine were that inexpensive. I'm at ~250 per coil.... x 12.

Probably wouldn't hurt for you to change them, especially at that price point.

 

That hurts. I understand that a 12-cylinder engine will need 12 coils, spark plugs, fuel injectors, etc., but I'm not sure why the coils should cost $250 each.

I did some further research and found that I could buy the Spark plug connector. which is the part that broke on my two coils. The fact that these parts are available suggest that it is a fairly frequent failure point. The spark plug connectors are $14.99 each, but I will need to pay shipping. I appreciate saving money, but after my investment, I will have repaired what are likely to be 25-year-old coils. It may be wiser to buy new coils and be done with it.

 

Just buy 4 coils and replace them as they die. 10 minute job on the M271. No point replacing them until they fail. Probably the easiest thing to replace on the car next to the cabin air filter. Personally I'd stick to Beru as they're the OE for the car as well as a reputable brand. They're not terribly expensive either for aftermarket.

 

They are easy to replace unless the spark plug connector is stuck on the spark plug. My other car is a 2000 Porsche Boxster. Due to the mid-engine layout, replacing the spark plugs or the coils requires placing the car on jackstands, and removing the rear wheels and fender liners. This is not something I want to do on the side of the road.

I'm not sure why the connectors broke, but it is likely due to age. The recommended change interval for the plugs is 70,000 miles or 5 years. I changed mine at the correct mileage interval, but they plugs were in the car for 7 years. It may be my fault that the connectors broke.

I decided to take a thrifty approach to this problem. The Beru coils look fine except for the broken connectors. I ordered two connectors. With shipping the cost is a bit less than $40. When the connectors arrive, I will reinstall the Beru coils and return the aftermarket coils to spare status. The aftermarket coils may be fine, but I have more confidence in Beru. If I travel out of town, I will take the spare coils with me along with tools needed to replace them.

 

Ignition coils are wear items, just because of the frequent heat-cold cycles. I bought NGK or Beru is an OEM company from Mercedes.

 

The connectors are easy to install. I pulled off the old ones and pressed on the new ones. The connectors turned a coil with a split in the connector:


Into this:



I was working on the assumption that the coils were the original ones installed at the factory. I looked more closely at the information written and stamped on the coil.

Note the small marking at the top right of the coil.

It appears to be a date stamp with the arrow pointing to the 6.



Merecedes manufactured my car in 2004, and I bought it in August 2017. I'm thinking that a previous owner replaced the coils in 2016 or 2017 with coils manufactured in 2016. If that is accurate, I repaired a 9-year-old coil instead of a 21-year-old coil. That gives my gamble to fix rather than replace the coils a higher probability of success.

Wish me luck.

 

FYI the old coil (green writing) in your photo is original from the car, manufactured in 2004 late August (04, 231st day). MB have an updated PN A000-150-29-80.

The Beru aftermarket equivalent is PN ZS053 (old?) or ZS077 (new?). Not sure what the difference is between them, but both PNs work fine on my car, and they look identical. Interestingly enough, the official equivalent is ZS053.

 

Thanks Slammer