gt4awd

I'm not sure if it's an oil cooler, but sure does look like a large heat sink. The unit is connected to the oil filter housing in the engine bay. Has anyone experienced problems with this cooler starting to leak at it's connection point to the filter housing? Kind of strange, but it only leaks when the vehicle is cold. Seems to pressure seal once the oil pressure builds up some. Worst of all the oil drips off directly onto the belt...

I haven't had the chance to check with dealership yet, but was wondering if their is a replacement gasket available? My experience has been the dealership rips you off by only offering the entire unit, and never really offers replacement gaskets, or anything. Problem is starting to get worse, so I need to get this taken care of. Worried about slipping the belt with oil on it, or completely blowing the gasket...

MBH motorsports

that is the oil cooler for the c32 and the c55. I haven't had that cooler in a long time.However it does come apart in 2 pieces so it could very well leak from a bad seal. I with I had one in front of me to look at. Sadly I dont think there is a seal you can buy from the dealer. (I could be wrong) That unit is sold as 1 piece I believe. I could be wrong though. Maybe try torquing the bolts a bit that connect the cooler to the housing may help.

320 dreamer

you could try buying some gasket material from any parts house and make your own gasket. its an easy thing to do and done all the time

c32AMG-DTM

+1

It's a water/oil cooler, and a fairly expensive, AMG-specific part. Had to have mine replaced, and my indy doing the repair had to source one from Germany.

I still have the old one, so if you need any pics of any specific angles, let me know and I'll snap some.

NitrogenBalance

Here is a DIY if it shares the same part across the AMG M113/112 line, which it probably does.

https://mbworld.org/forums/c36-amg-c...il-cooler.html

It can be fixed for less than you think, yet expensive for what your actually replacing. $25 rubber O ring more or less

loudandheard

I had to do the fix a couple of months back and started a thread, I had no idea what happened to me. I found when doing the job some of the bolts were loose. You may want to try tightening them first and see if that helps.

Here's the thread that I started and I think it links you to page above:
https://mbworld.org/forums/c32-amg-c...s-problem.html

Here is the quote with the part #'s
I got them both from parts.com for about $40 overnight, otherwise it would have been like $20 plus or minus a few dollars. We should probably make this a sticky, because I think it will become a common problem.

gt4awd

Thanks you guys, I dropped by the dealership today, and had the parts guy print out a diagram. There are two gaskets that seal the internal piping. Bought both at the dealership. Came out to around $60 dollars overnight... Talked to one of the technicians, and he said he's never once seen an oil cooler leaking. He insisted that it must be the filter cap leaking. Told him that's not the case... I did check the bolts, and the top two were not completely torqued in place. Torqued them down, but I don't think that is going to help any.

gt4awd

I'm a little confused... Don't those gaskets seal the coolant going into the cooler? If that's the case how do they allow the oil to leak out? Loudandheard, any additional tips on replacement of those gaskets? I read through your thread, and another that was linked to benzworld...

MBtech1098

No, those seals, seal oil.

gt4awd

I see, thanks... By the way, the dealership said they would charge around three hours of service to replace the gaskets. Was considering having them do the job if it was an hour of service... At least I can still drive the c32 for now. On cold starts I just place a paper towel where it leaks until the two sides pressure seal. Takes about two minutes...

loudandheard

The tough part is getting at the bolts. The bolts use a torx socket. I can't recall the size, but it will come in a metric torx socket set. You will also want to have a universal swivel adapter. This will give you the ability to get into the tight spots. I would also buy a long extension for your ratchet, see if you can also buy a flexible extension as well. You will need an e11 torx socket to get the belt off, you may need to special order it. Buy an inverse torx socket set as well, comes in handy since our engines only use that kind of bolt or the other one. I also like to have a magnet with an extension to reach the metal things that I drop. It's also good to have an extra set of hands.

I was due for an oil change, so I drained all the oil before doing the job. I didn't want to have to deal with more oil leaking.

Make sure to remove the engine cover and the air boxes, makes getting at that last bolt much easier. I had my belt removed as well, because mine slipped off because of the oil that had come out. I also took off the guide pulley and the metal hoses. I'm sure you don't have to do that but it gives you the room to slip an extension all the way in to the last corner bolt.

Once you have every thing off, you need to take off the hoses that run to the oil cooler. One of the hoses, I can't recall which, will leak a lot of coolant, so it will be smart to get some thing to plug up the hole. I had a difficult time getting the hoses off because they seemed to be cooked on to the oil cooler, but with enough movement I was able to get them off. The easiest way to tackle those clamps that keep the hoses on is to use a set of pliers and work them off. I think I moved them down on the pipe so as not to lose them.

Once you have the hoses off, all you have to do is take off the bolts, which is easier said then done. There are four bolts total and it's in the shape of a square, with a bolt being on each corner. With a universal swivel adapter and or an extension will allow you to get the first three off. That last one will require that you have taken off the belt and the guide pulley so that you can use an extension and a universal swivel to get to that last bolt. I had to do it by touch, getting the torx socket with the extension on it first.

After you have the bolts off, the cooler will require a bit of pressure or force to come loose. I was a bit scared to use a screw driver to pop it off, but I was able to do it with out any damage. The gaskets will be in plain sight and you will need some thing small and sharp to get them out. Took a while, but finally did it. All you have to do is reinstall the new gaskets, they should just push in. May require a bit of force, but they will fit. I bought a product that acts as a seal because I was scared that it may still leak. I used a bit on both gaskets running a bead on the outer edges of the gaskets, but I wasn't able to get it on the bottom one as good as I wanted too.

Putting the oil cooler back on is much easier with an extra set of hands. I tried to evenly tighten the bolts as best as possible as to prevent any further leaks. Once I was able to get every thing put back together, I ran the engine and used a white napkins to go over the edges to see if it continued to leak. I saw that it leaked a tiny bit, but it could have been residual oil that stayed around the unit, but I made sure to clean every thing. So I did find a bit of a tiny leak, but I kept it going and tightened the bolts a bit more and it stopped leaking. So far so good.

I thought that the job was going to take me a couple of hours at most, but going back and forth trying to figure out what tool I needed to get some of those bolts off. Cleaning the engine of oil also took me a while. Then reinstalling every thing was next. I started doing the job in my driveway and that was the worst idea because it was December. The wind started picking up and it started to get even colder. It was so cold I was going out for 15 minutes at a time and then it got dark. It would be smarter to do it in a warm and well lit garage.

This job was a pain in the *** to do, but it could have been due to the fact that the conditions I did this job in were less than good, lol.

gt4awd

Trust me, I've had my share of cold, dark, or even snowing/raining work on either my old 02' Sportcoupe or the C32 AMG. Built up a nice selection of tools too. Have everything needed to tackle the job. I really appreciate you taking the time to go into detail. Thanks a lot man!

gt4awd

Had first cold start this morning after tightening the top bolts on the cooler. Previously it would drip out at a rate of around one drop of oil per 3-5 seconds. This start the top seeped out a very minimal amount of oil. Maybe equal to a drop or two. No leaking from the lower section that dripped onto the belt. Don't want to push my luck, but it appears just tightening the top bolts has solved the issue. I'm going to pick up the gaskets at dealership today, and hold on to them for a while. If the problem doesn't persist they will be returned...

Edit: Also to note, the cooler didn't leak as the vehicle sat over night. Previously I would find a puddle of oil on the belt, and several drops of oil below the vehicle...

loudandheard

I thought as much. I found my bolts on the oil cooler so loose that I could turn them with my hands with ease. I think that bottom bolt closest to the engine was pretty tight, but the two on the opposite side were loose.

Let's hope that will cure the problem. Mine had leaked so much my belt came off, luckily I was in my driveway warming up my car when it happened. Cleaning up all that oil was a pain and I still have some places where I couldn't clean the oil, but I did manage to do a pretty good job.

If you decided to do the job feel free to pm for my number and I'll see if I can guide you if you get stuck.

I think every one should check if they have loose bolts on their oil cooler and tighten them before they start getting an oil leak.

gt4awd

I agree... It really isn't a problem you will notice until something bad happens such as the belt falling off the pulleys. My belt did fall off, but it happened right as my temporary power steering line fix busted, and sprayed the belt with power steering fluid. However, I do believe the accumulation of engine oil on the belt contributed... Now I'm waiting for a new belt to be shipped from needswings. Don't want to get on the C32 at all until then. I had a quick sprint with a G37 last night, and the C32 was smoking with a rubber burn smell after. Almost dead even too, so major loss in power due to belt slip... It's going to be fun cleaning each individual pulley with q-tips.

Phil C55

Not me, an old tooth brush and a couple cans of spray brake clean and she would be degreased in about two minutes.

loudandheard

Tried a similar solution, but the grime would not come off, plus there wasn't much room to get a can or a tooth brush in the right spot.

gt4awd

What method did you end up using to clean the pulleys loudandheard?

loudandheard

I bought an engine cleaner and tried to let it sit, but I had a thick oil build up on some parts so it wasn't very effective. I still used it and let it sit. I then got an old spray bottle and filled it with dish soap and hot water. I sprayed the areas I could and tried to use a tooth brush to get the grime off.

Make sure to start from the top and work your way to the bottom. I was cleaning every where and kept having to clean the bottom. I took off the the under covers of the car so that the liquid would drain. It was a tight spot to get to and I had more oil then what I thought. I think I was cleaning up build up from a previous leak. I remember having few other seals that were replaced when the car was under warranty.

gt4awd

The oil cooler is still not leaking as of yet, so I think the bolts just needed to be tightened. I'm going to park the c32 for a month or so to work on it... I feel like I've bought a lemon. Problem after problem. It's getting out of hand. It's a terrible feeling having a vehicle you can't trust. The driver door lock actuator broke yesterday, and now sometimes I can't even shut the door without a hassle... Feel like giving up, but I can't. Someday I will be able to enjoy the AMG again. When that day is I don't know...

loudandheard

I think you have to be patient and willing to do your own work if you want to own a C32. Our cars do not have major problems, but a lot of small ones. I purchased my car with 60k miles, but it still had about a year left on the warranty. I had a few problems taken care of that I probably would have not been able to on my own, mostly electrical problems.

After warranty, I was able to find various DIY instructions on how to fix the various problems I've had with my car. I feel like that if there's a problem with your car, some one has already gone through it and has already written some thing up. I've taken care of the CPS, brakes, oil changes, super charger bearing, door lock actuator, oil cooler, spark plugs and wires, and installed OEM xenons. I've even put in my own after market radio, amplifier, and speakers. So don't feel that you are alone in the problems that you have, we all have had one problem or another.

Our cars are a blast to drive and the problems that we fix on our own only allow us to appreciate our cars that much more when they work.

gt4awd

I agree that patient is the key here. Which is why I've decided to park the C32 for maintenance work. Can't risk another tow. Those two tows could have bought me another front lip spoiler, or whatever else... My main concern right now other than the power steering of course, is the door lock actuator.

loudandheard

Is it doing the pogo stick thing. Where the lock just bounces up and down and then locks or doesn't.

I've already done the fix, but I think you said yours was on the front driver side door. Take in mind that you can't manually lock the door from the inside. You have to either use the alarm or lock it with your key.

I had done the repair for the door lock in my rear passenger side door and I had finally got every thing fixed after a couple of days. Turned out I didn't have all the instructions on how to do it or the all the tools. I decided to replace all the speakers at the same time and when I was done putting all the door panels on, I couldn't lock the door.

I was so upset that another door had the same problem after fixing that last lock, but it just turned out that you can't lock that door manually.

I checked out the front door and it looks a bit more involved than the rear door, but it's very possible to do on your own.

krisv420

Sucks to hear about your car still makes me wonder if i should get a c32 haha.. Maybe they made your car on a monday =-/

gt4awd

Yes, it will click around five times. I have to manually lock the driver door. It does however unlock, but then sometimes won't close. Very annoying...
That's one guess...

I need to pop the hood, and check if the cooler leaked any after sitting two days...