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I know this might be long but just trying to cover a couple of things that I'm unsure of about the car because I'm new to the platform. So yesterday I bought a 2009 c300 sport 4matic with 137,000 miles. As far as engine, I don't feel or notice any issues, I scanned the car and the CEL hasn't been on for a long time so that's good. Now to the problems I'm having.
I have a warning for all the light bulbs when I start the car, first its front lamps, then if I push the brake I get brake light warnings, the light work and the owner said he changed all them out, what can I check? Can this be a fuse or relay issue?
When I set lights to "Auto" they are on even when it's sunny, is there a setting for this or do I just need to clean the sensor on the windshield?
The car has a very slight vibration when at a red light, if I put it in neutral it stops. From my research I found this might indicate motor mounts, would be be correct?
When I turn the wheel or when I set off from a red light the car creaks, from reading up on it, it might be dried out ball joints. or the strut bearings. I also have a warning for brake pads, I will be changing out the brake pads today but feel as though they are not related to the creaking because it also happens if I just turn the wheel. Anything I can do about this without changing suspension parts?
I know someone would probably say I should have looked for one without any issues but I got this as a temporary car because my car needs to get fixed after an accident and this was local and wasn't that expensive and seeing as there's no codes on it for a while and a decent service history, I felt it wasn't too bad. Really appreciate anyone chiming in on what I can check and fix. Thanks
For the bulb warning I would check the bulbs to make sure the correct ones are installed, could be the wrong wattage but the bulb will work. For the brake light did you check the high center light, maybe an led is out.
for the headlights being on, is it just in auto or even when off? i ask because maybe the drl is on. Do you have the operators manual in the glove box, if so page 91 on lightiong, then page 133 for getting into the lighting menu to check the settings.
Vibration, could be a few things. Mine was running a little rough at stop lights, put a bottle of techron in and now it runs great again. Or check your mounts, have someone rev the engine while your in the engine bay watching the engine for movement.
Creaking, good luck. Mine creaks on the front right side. I go under the car and spray all the ball joints and bushings with some PB Blaster silicone lube and it takes care of most. The bushings do look fine, but the car is old and has alot of miles. Winter/cold weather seems to make things louder.
I dont see these things as big issues. With a little time and looking around you can fix them.
If you havent already its a good idea to register your car with Mercedes. With the help of people oin here i found out you can easily register on the Mercedes website. Then sign up for the Mercedes Me and you can look up recalls and if they were performed already. Can also download your operators manual and maintenance manual if you dont have them.
There is a recall on the rear light bulb carriers. Not sure if its related to your warning light issue.
*Edit. I would really take a good look to make sure all the bulbs are in fact working. i did a quick search for the bulb out warning issue and seems a few people ended up with bulbs that were in fact out and they didnt notice until it was night time.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
As Tim pointed out, none of these things sound fatal. But, we don't know where you are, so it's hard to say what you should do. I would definitely check all of the suspension components and especially the rear subframe for severe rust as there is an extended warranty for the W204 (and others).
If the previous owner replaced all the bulbs, make sure they are the ones specified by the owners manual and not some LED "upgrades". (Again, as Tim said.)
You can always check for bad motor mounts by putting the car in gear, hold the brake firm, and give it a little gas. Have the hood open so you can see if the engine rocks significantly. (Search youtube for videos about this.)
Curious you say you get a front lamp warning, what does the warning specifically say? In the headlight housings there are 2 bulbs each in the "eyebrow". If one is out it may be hard to even tell, especially during the day.
heres a sheet telling what bulbs are required. This is for a 2010 C300 4matic sport but im assuming it should be the same.
I went and looked up the spec for each bulb which is why I wrote them down. Alot of bulbs have the same base or even look the same, but they have different wattage which can throw things off and get warnings popping up. All of the above bulbs work perfectly from my experience. I went and replaced most of them, keep the old bulbs wrapped nicely in the trunk behind the fuse panel in case one goes out at night and I need to replace, to keep from being pulled over mostly. I even have a pair of spare H7 bulbs for the low beam and/or fog light. But I did install an hid kit for the lows, when I first got the car I couldnt see anything driving at night the halogen lights they are so bad in my opinion. Thats simple plug n play so i can easily swap in the H7 if needed quickly.
These are the majority of the bulbs in the rear, I think 4 each side.
* The blue bulbs are the original Mercedes bulbs. 1 bulb in each side of my car burned out so i replaced with just regular 2825LL bulbs, which look brighter. I ended up just removing the other 2 blue bulbs and replaced them all so they look the same. If you want the Mercedes bulbs they have them on FCP Euro for a few bucks each.
These are for the front parking lights (eyebrow), license plate, and front side marker. Think these are also used inside the car.
Front and rear turn signal bulbs.
Just for fun ill show what I have in my fog lights. I was searching around for the brightest whitest H7 bulbs, that wont burn out every year and came across these. Ive had Silverstar Ultra in previous vehicles and these seem similar but less expensive. They are definitely brighter and whiter than the stock bulbs that were in there.
Curious you say you get a front lamp warning, what does the warning specifically say? In the headlight housings there are 2 bulbs each in the "eyebrow". If one is out it may be hard to even tell, especially during the day.
heres a sheet telling what bulbs are required. This is for a 2010 C300 4matic sport but im assuming it should be the same.
I went and looked up the spec for each bulb which is why I wrote them down. Alot of bulbs have the same base or even look the same, but they have different wattage which can throw things off and get warnings popping up. All of the above bulbs work perfectly from my experience. I went and replaced most of them, keep the old bulbs wrapped nicely in the trunk behind the fuse panel in case one goes out at night and I need to replace, to keep from being pulled over mostly. I even have a pair of spare H7 bulbs for the low beam and/or fog light. But I did install an hid kit for the lows, when I first got the car I couldnt see anything driving at night the halogen lights they are so bad in my opinion. Thats simple plug n play so i can easily swap in the H7 if needed quickly.
These are the majority of the bulbs in the rear, I think 4 each side.
These are for the front parking lights (eyebrow), license plate, and front side marker. Think these are also used inside the car.
Front and rear turn signal bulbs.
Just for fun ill show what I have in my fog lights. I was searching around for the brightest whitest H7 bulbs, that wont burn out every year and came across these. Ive had Silverstar Ultra in previous vehicles and these seem similar but less expensive. They are definitely brighter and whiter than the stock bulbs that were in there.
Wow really appreciate the detail in this, I did just run out to the store and noticed that the first fault that come up is “auto lamp function inoperative” it’s then followed by all the bulbs that are “bad”. I think this might be the sensor in the windshield, what do you think. I’ll maybe check all the bulbs today or tomorrow because I still need to clean up the car today.
When I’m doing the front brakes in the next couple of days I’ll check all the ball joints maybe spray some on silicone just to see if it helps, can’t hurt I guess, and the rear sub frame for rust. I’ll also register to check recalls. When going over bumps there’s a slight noise from what I found it might be the strut bearings. Like everyone pointed out it’s not things that make the car un-drivable more like cosmetic or ride quality. Just wanted to see how I can clear the bulb faults and how severe the creaking and engine vibration might be. Other than this the only other “problem” is the driver seat tear but I’ve been a basically most of these c300 have this problem. I ordered the bottom seat cover in leather, it says it fits 2010-2014 seat but they look the same. It’s worth a try. I also got some Techron, might try that.
A quick search came up with 2 causes. the first is if the car hasnt been driven lately or stored where its cold and dark maybe the sensors are confused, and just drive the car around manually working the switches and it will relearn in a day or two. If that doesnt work then it may be the weather sensor. Can try removing and cleaning it and the windshield, Not sure if you can or how to test it.
Im always inspecting things when working on the car. I like to use my phone to take photos and then view the photos on the computer so i can zoom in. Lets you really see anything damaged, broken. check all the bushings for cracks, ball joints for leaking grease, etc. Grab a pry bar and try to move move the control arms listening for noises. Then the silocone lube does quiet squeeks. Check the sway bar links for movement, i changed mine due to them clunking over bumps.
Here’s a 3rd opinion. @TimC300 and @JettaRed have covered just about everything.
Silicone spray works wonders on aging bushings. But it won’t help ball joints that have gone dry and started to groan. Try the spray on the bushings first. Don’t forget the shock tower. If that doesn’t help, what you can do for ball joints is get a small one-handed grease gun and clip in hypo needle. Stick the needle into the ball joint boot and inject enough grease to see the boot swell a bit. Don’t overdo it or the boot will pop off. That will quiet ball joints for 3-5000 miles.
The car has 137k miles. If it hasn’t had the engine and transmission mounts changed, it’s a certainty that they’re bad. A C300 should be smooth as silk.
Here’s a 3rd opinion. @TimC300 and @JettaRed have covered just about everything.
Silicone spray works wonders on aging bushings. But it won’t help ball joints that have gone dry and started to groan. Try the spray on the bushings first. Don’t forget the shock tower. If that doesn’t help, what you can do for ball joints is get a small one-handed grease gun and clip in hypo needle. Stick the needle into the ball joint boot and inject enough grease to see the boot swell a bit. Don’t overdo it or the boot will pop off. That will quiet ball joints for 3-5000 miles.
The car has 137k miles. If it hasn’t had the engine and transmission mounts changed, it’s a certainty that they’re bad. A C300 should be smooth as silk.
I'll probably get the grease and grease gun now so that I have it for when I do the brakes later in the week. I did try like others said to put the car in gear and hold brake while giving it gas, the engine did move but it wasn't shaking or bouncing. Just normal movement when you rev it, the mounts don't look new but also aren't rusted or anything. I hope it wouldn't be them because it seems like not a small job and even more work with it being 4matic. I did check recalls and there were a total of 4, two for airbags, one for srs module and one for the brake lamp but all say under "my vehicle status" completed.
When I was in the car earlier i did get the 4 fault on the dash they were, front brake wear, auto headlight inoperable and rear left lamp and brake light and rear right lamp and brake light. Pretty sure I saw "front" earlier today, maybe it didn't pop up now because the front light were off. Hopefully the sensor "relearns" so I can get that out the way or maybe end up replacing if it doesn't but I will go and check wattage of bulbs based on the sheet provided.
Just wanted to hop back on here after scanning the car
So I used my scanner yesterday and pulled a good amount of codes from it, some stored but some are current and stored. I attached the screenshot of all codes and if they are old or not. From what I can tell is I first need a new rain and light sensor because it says its broken and maybe that is somehow causing the issues with the bulbs. And the car does feel a bit sluggish when revving, like if I just tap the gas pedal quickly, I can take my foot off but there's so much delay that the revs still go up even after taking foot off. I did read that I can try to reset the transmission or ask dealer if there's an update, car drives and pulls fine just slow to rev and kind of late to drop a gear when passing someone on highway. The other code that worries me is P0521, could this be related? I had a 07 gl450 before and also had an issue with the intake and it also revved slow like this one. Not sure if this is just how they are or if the intake flaps are the issue. Can I easily check the intake? Without taking it out? I found a whole intake online for like $155-200. Would I just need to change it out? How big a job is it? Thanks to anyone who can look this over and help, just want to have it running well and no worries.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
Not sure where you live, but in Maryland the car would never have passed the state safety inspection required for registration. Have you registered your car yet? Do they require a safety inspection where you live?
Not sure where you live, but in Maryland the car would never have passed the state safety inspection required for registration. Have you registered your car yet? Do they require a safety inspection where you live?
I’m in NJ we have two year inspections, it’s good through 05/24. I know it has a lot of light faults but that’s the thing, faults are there but all lights work. as for everything else the CEL hasn’t turned on for 21,000 miles so guessing nothing that serious, yet. What would you say about the p0521, replace whole intake or just the repair kit for the runner flaps? I’ll go check today how it looks but maybe repair will be enough because it’s not a “stuck open” fault so maybe intake internals are good.
I was going to mention putting a bottle of Techron in the gas tank when you said there was a slight vibration. My car felt like it had a rough idle when at stop lights so i put a bottle of techron in the tank and now its running fine again, I even noticed it seemed a little quicker, not more HP wise but inthrottle response. They have it on sale at Napa auto parts if theres one near you. I have been using techron for years now, I only think about it when the idle seems a little rough usually at stop lights, put a bottle in and I totally forget about it, seems to work.
I havent really looked through all your codes, have to run to the store. ill look when I get back on.
*for the tail lamps have you taken the bulb units out to inspect them? Could be corrosion and needs a cleaning.
I searched the P0521 issue and someone said there air flap lever was broken. I think these are visible on the front of the intake, just take a look and inspect everything. Im not recommending the parts below, just showing what they look like.
Heres a good thread on the P0521 code. Has the fix, in there case.
For the stored codes I also had a few when I first hooked up my recent scanner, I erased them and they haven't come back since. I do remember the abs warning light coming on awhile back, was just a one time thing and probably why the code was there.
I had this, erased and hasnt come back.
And back to the tail lamps. Ive read a few people have had issues with the tail lamp carriers and/or wiring harness. Partly why they had a recall, as i noted above. inspect the harness for melted plastic. Inspect the carriers for corrosion. Double check for burned out bulbs. I guess its so common FCP offers a repair kit that has new carriers, connectors, pins and grease.
This photo is from someone with a tail light issue.
I searched the P0521 issue and someone said there air flap lever was broken. I think these are visible on the front of the intake, just take a look and inspect everything. Im not recommending the parts below, just showing what they look like.
Heres a good thread on the P0521 code. Has the fix, in there case.
For the stored codes I also had a few when I first hooked up my recent scanner, I erased them and they haven't come back since. I do remember the abs warning light coming on awhile back, was just a one time thing and probably why the code was there.
I had this, erased and hasnt come back.
And back to the tail lamps. Ive read a few people have had issues with the tail lamp carriers and/or wiring harness. Partly why they had a recall, as i noted above. inspect the harness for melted plastic. Inspect the carriers for corrosion. Double check for burned out bulbs. I guess its so common FCP offers a repair kit that has new carriers, connectors, pins and grease.
This photo is from someone with a tail light issue.
I'll do another system scan tomorrow to see what came back and what didn't. When I cleared the p0521 it didn't come back right away after starting the car so maybe it's not that bad yet, will take a look tomorrow at all the plastics on the intake tomorrow. I know the upgraded parts are like $160 would you say it's a good idea to a whole new manifold to not have to worry about anything inside breaking? Problem is it wouldn't be the pierburb or OEM one its an intake off of amazon from a brand called MITZONE don't know anything about it. I would of course use new gaskets and such but then again on amazon there's a repair kit for like $30. I don't want to go the cheap route but what would be better, replace broken parts with quality ones or replace the whole thing with ok looking parts? I might have to take the bolt holes or clean up some other things on the cheaper one but I guess I'd be fine with that.
As for the lights, I'll check tomorrow for the carriers having any signs of damage but might hold off on replacing bulbs because they work for now and after seeing the code for a faulty rain/light sensor I'll replace that first. That's also the first fault that pops up as soon as I start the car "Automatic light inoperative".
I ordered one, should be here next week, if faults still show up I'll start going bulb by bulb.
I have no idea about that Mitzone intake manifold, i see alot of them were sold on ebay. I would look for whatever has broken first and then decide what to do. If it is just that lever part they sell kits, or maybe can find just that specific part. I did a quick search and on Partsgeek they do have kits that are not much money.
I seem to have signs of oil all over my intake manifold im trying to find the cause of. i will say if I had replace my manifold i would most likely get a used one off ebay, i already have a few lined up in case. Found a few low mileage, well much lower than what my car is anyways, and they look very clean no oil. And some come with everything, fuel rail, throttle body, fuel injectors, basically look bolt on and go minus ecu. Some people arent comfortable buying used, ive had very good luck so far.
For the tail lights im just saying remove the carriers and look around, can easily tell if the wrong bulbs were installed just looking. Look for corrosion. The carriers pop right out, just push the plastic tab up, or down I forget and they come right out.
Found an interesting article on FCP about replacing the M272 intake manifold with a plastic one. Shows it does away with the failing flap issues and adds hp. Guess it requires larger throttle body and may need a tune afterwards.
I just found that article interesting because it seems it does away with the flaps altogether so theres nothing to break again.
I have no problem buying used parts, most times I feel better buying a used OE part than an aftermarket part. Perfect example is my purge valve, my car had a check engine light and the most common issue with that code seemed to be the purge valve which i then confirmed by listening to it and it was not working, no continuous clicking sound. Bought a used Mercedes purge valve off ebay for something like $12 shipped and its been working great for 2yrs now. When looking for a replacment I just made sure the seller was not known to sell junk parts.
Since seeing oil residue on my intake manifold i have been looking around at used replacements. I have a few lined up from one specific seller i bought from before with very good luck. They are around $200 and come with everything still attached, throttle body, injectors, fuel rail, even the ecu brackets and mass air flow sensor. They look very clean, no signs of oil. Im not saying this is the way to go, but I probably would go this route. the id have a bunch of extra parts along with it, the extra injectors alone is a great plus. I can tell you where im looking if anyones interested.
Same with the slk350 throttle bodies, i havent done much research on if used are the way to go, but i found a bunch that look clean that would be worth looking in to.
I have a launch scanner so not sure if it would be called the same thing but I did a throttle re-learn and also reset adaptation levels or something like that, both in the engine module. The car feels better, it feels like it hold the gear longer before shifting so has better response. Highway downshifting somewhat feels more responsive, not sure if it was the resetting, the techron or maybe I just got more used to the car and am giving it more gas. Either way I feel like using the scanner is better than the other method of holding gas in when in ignition to reset, appreciate the advice.
2015 SL400 (M276 Turbo), 2014 C350 Sport (M276 NA), 2004 SL500 (M113), 2004 Audi TT225 (BEA)
The process is in the LAUNCH scanner, just not as obvious as it shows with the iCarsoft scanner. I will try to find it and take pictures or at least describe the steps. I think it is under Special Functions for the ECM. Special Functions usually tell you the steps to perform. You can try to look there. I think 're-learn' is the term they use.
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