Josh.A.Hussey

Hey!

Wondering what everybody uses for tools doing work on their benz?
I actually was specifically looking at pumps for ATF flushes, but then I realized it would be interesting to see what everybody uses for different stuff.

Main question: What pump do you guys use for oil/ATF flushes/changes?
I noticed these two at ECS tuning, but I've heard a lot of us are using mitivacs?

https://www.ecstuning.com/News/Merce...590/ES2774825/
https://www.ecstuning.com/News/Merce...590/ES2774836/

I'm about to order one, so what do you guys think is my best bet?? Air Operated solution would be even better!!!!



Now to the rest of the thread:

So!

I love SnapOn gear, typical... So thats basically all my hand tools! Haha, with the exception of some Princess Auto ProPoint stuff (which has actually been way better than I expected, it's a great product for the price point) and a bit of Crappy Tire Mastercraft stuff when I need something in a rush and everything closes in 10 mins!

Air tools, I have been SUPER impressed with DeWalts entrance into the automotive sector 2 years ago. My 1/2" impact wrench is unbelievable... It can hold its own against the IR SL thundergun (The SL version though... Nothing competes with a real thundergun!!) I think they are heavily based on MAC tools designs, but the price is unbelievably low for an impact wrench of that caliber, I think they take a small margin where they are trying to penetrate a saturated market. Other than the impact wrench, I haven't purchased any of the other DeWalt stuff because I don't have much use for them or I already own the Ingersoll Rand branded product.

Ingersoll Rand is still my go-to for pneumatic tools... but that may soon change!!

Electric tools, well, I don't have many for automotive stuff! I have a bosch recip saw that I use for cutting stuff up but never for my benz! (Mostly for old jeeps I restore)

And weird purpose built tools that you need for certain jobs like brake bleeders and vacuum pumps, I usually buy lisle and they seem to work out good! More expensive than the low level store brand stuff but not too pricey like calling the Snap-On truck to your house (which I have had to do wayyy too many times... gotta stop taking all my vehicles apart at the same time and leave one driveable!)

You guys have any favorites or any weird tools that are like a secret weapon?
Mine is literally a set of bolts with 2 washers and 2 nuts on each... Jack bolts... Needless to say there is NO SUCH THING as a fused rotor!!!

cvx5832

I'm a fan of the the basic mityvac. At $80 it has paid for itself in spades with oil changes, brake fluid flushes and power steering d&f for the last 8 years on three cars. Never had a problem with it, but I did hear of faulty gaskets in one of their production batches at one point.

I thought mixing fluids would be an issue but it hasn't been. Mine is a clone from Griot's Garage if that matters any.

Josh.A.Hussey

Yeah, I thought there were a lot of people using the mityvac, did it come with an adapter for the 722.9 transmission by any chance?

cvx5832

We might be talking about different models. Mine is just vacuum. So oil changes, brake bleeds and whatever suck & fill job you can think of.

As far as the 722.9 fluid & filter service, I got my adapter from Amazon for 15 bucks and a $4 pump from Harbor Freight.

Josh.A.Hussey

Oops, yeah my bad. I don't have Harbor Freight here. I'm guessing it's like Princess Auto or Canadian Tire though!

stgry1

So cvx, how exactly does that work on the 722.9? I can only assume it gets the excess in the pan that resides over the overflow pipe but what about the 2 or 3 qts that reside under the pipe? And of course the few quarts in the TC that are untouched? I'm just trying to wrap my head around the efficiency of this. Thanks!

Josh.A.Hussey

I'm guessing he doesn't use it for that.
To get the rest under the pipe drop the pan! Gotta do it anyways to change the filter.

When he said he bought a pump I'm guessing it was for filling.

It was me who made the mistake of asking about the fitting, if I'm correct.

Atlas Grey

Josh,
I need to do my wife's C300 trans fluid. What do you use specifically for that job? Also is it fairly DIY for a robust DIYer? To keep on topic, I use a lot of Lisle Tools. We carry them and they are the go to for me.

Josh.A.Hussey

Atlas,

it is a fairly simple DIY! As long as you don't mind laying on the floor if you have no lift!
I believe there is actually a video on it!
I will see if I can post it!

All you will need will be a hand pump or equivalent (available at any auto tools places, I'm guessing Harbor Freight in the states) and a 722.9 Transmission adapter.

And of course basic tools like hex keys and torx sockets.

There is also a sticky for the 722.9 DIY in this section! .


Out of curiosity, what is the "we" you speak of??

EDIT: Almost forgot! Something to measure temperature if you wanna do it properly!

stgry1

I would agree with you as that makes the most sense. Since you guys were talking about "vacuum and draining", I just jumped to that. Dropping the pan and draining the TC is the only way I would do it unless there is a better proven method which I have not yet encountered.

Josh.A.Hussey

What I should tell people I don't like :

"The best way to make sure all the tranny fluid is out is to put some AbsorbAll up through the transmission drain and then drive around the block"

Hahahahahaha!

CGC

I'm with you Josh on Snap-On! Looking at buying this pump for oil changes.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00JM5ZVQW...I3IM87PRI635FO

cvx5832

The Mercedes method, which is such a departure from conventional methods, is actually a very elegant solution. It just takes a while to digest the process.

I personally love the standpipe arrangement. You knock it off with a drift to drain, replace it and it becomes your fill port. Remove the hose then it becomes the overflow and having it at the bottom works wonders with job cleanliness and it's easier to tell when the fluid reaches the correct level (in this case, the top of the standpipe).

The torque converter has a separate 4mm Allen drain plug. That one gets a bit messy when the TC goes glug glug as you drain it and makes a mess in the bell housing.

Even the pan bolts, which uses torque to yield bolts and ACM gaskets, is a far superior solution to the BMW process I'm used to in every measurable way.

Josh.A.Hussey

Couldn't have said it better myself.

People often complain about working on imports, especially German vehicles. I find its mainly for 2 reasons.
1- They don't have the tools.
2- They don't know what they are doing.

It's like anything, it's a pain in the *** until you know the process, and then, at times, as CVX said, it can be quite elegant.

I find there's not a place on my vehicle that I can't swing a wrench.

If you have a decent set of Torx/Etorx and a triple square set, and a pump there's not much you can't do. It's just about knowing how to do it.

cvx5832

^ this!

Funkwagen

Mityvac 7201 for oil changes.

A small mityvac vacuum gauge/pump kit for bleeding brakes - the 7201 is a bit big and clumsy for "small jobs" like bleeding brakes. Also doubles as a vacuum tester, etc

I don't have any power tools and the only breaker bar I have is a foot and half long. Hard mode it is

dennish

For filling I found a cheap drain adapter from a Chinese seller on ebay.I was worried that the threading might be off but it worked good.

Josh.A.Hussey

I was waiting for you to chime in!

Hey now, don't forget your Star C4! Quite a powerful diagnostics tool!
I also forgot my maxidiag MD802... Partially because I am not proud of it.
I will be purchasing a Star soon when I find a genuine used one, or if you could recommend a vendor, I've heard many of the knockoffs are crap.

Ahh! Sounds good, link??

Carsy

I have serviced my vehicles & machinery all my life (age 69), never visited a mechanic except for warranty work. My core trade is a fitter & machinist.

There is nothing flash in my tool kit, just a set of metric open enders, rings ,torq , & sockets, allan keys,, a nice Warren & Brown torque wrench , MB oil filter remover & a home made pressure brake bleeder which attaches to my $100 Chinese compressor, a couple of small trolley jacks, 2 hydraulic jacks , various sizes of timber blocks & a set of steel ramps, 3 coal chisels 2, engineers ball hammers, brass dolly ect.

Other rarely used tools include a strut spring compressor,measuring instruments ie vernier calipers, micrometer set (for brakes) ect .

I bought a portable diagnostic tool but have never had to use it in 9 years. A complete waste of $300 so far. !!.

A set of MB workshop manual CDs & information from learned people on this site have been invaluable over the years.

Funkwagen

I was going to recommend http://www.obd2express.co.uk/, but it appears their entire inventory for clone sdconnect multiplexers have disappeared not sure why, that's where I ordered mine! I can't recommend another place to order one that's reliable unfortunately I paid about $700 CAD in total for a multiplexer. I purchased the C4 SD connect clone initially, that was stolen, so I replaced it with a "new" C4 clone that looks like an C5 SDConnect, but is still a C4 clone hardware wise.



That being said, if you're planning on getting one, be prepared for a lot of software configuration. It's really hard to find a good all in one pre-set up kit with vediamo and xentry/das. Lots of the chinese clones can ship with a laptop with everything set up already, but with some weird sort of DRM or something. Not a fan.

What type of strut spring compressor do you use? I'm looking to pick one up and I know there's a few types - one of which is apparently dangerous to use on these cars.

Carsy

A picture is worth a thousand words. Attached. I have used these on Peugeots & Leyland McPherson Struts without a problem. Not yet on a MB.

I think it is wise to attach a strap or flexible strong rope around the compressor & strut spring just in case.

Josh.A.Hussey

Thanks Funk! I'm not worried about software, I've got quite a reliable source... I'm actually on the forum right now on my diag comp which has software of just about any manufacturer you can think of... Flash programming/EPC's/WIS/Diagnostics... And of course I paid for them all... ... ... ...

And Carsy I have the same set! Fine for the front, and rear of most cars but be advised, these WILL NOT fit on the rear of most MB's and other Euro's... I had to drop the arm to get mine out.

For the rear of these and others similar, like Audi, you need a special spring compressor which has two plates and goes up through the whole in the arm to screw into the two plates. They are available online. I am about to purchase on as I need it to do any corner weighting when I get my suspension going good without having to drop the arm every time. I personally don't have a set of corner weights since they are 2K+ USD and I don't want to spend most of my time dropping arms to adjust spring perches when I'm paying 100/hr to use the scales.

Josh.A.Hussey

This is the coil spring compressor you'll need for the rear.


I'm ordering one now, it doesn't explicitly state W204, but I will confirm and report back here!

Carsy

[QUOTE=
And Carsy I have the same set! Fine for the front, and rear of most cars but be advised, these WILL NOT fit on the rear of most MB's and other Euro's... I had to drop the arm to get mine out.
[/QUOTE]

Thanks, I hope I do not have to change out the springs.

Have attached a photo of my bench & tools.

Josh.A.Hussey

NICE KUBOTA