DrewZ9266

Well, yestery i flew down to Orlando and today i picked up Forza1's C32. The car has a few minor problems but overall i liked it and he seemed cool enough so i ended up getting it.

So i set off on the 10 hour drive back home and was smooth sailing.. til South Carolina. One of the idler pulleys broke. So i ended up stranded. Pulley just bent and i broke it off, so it didn't hurt anything, i'm just without a car now. I had it towed to a Mercedes Dealership around 1am. I had no other options at the time. Had some people come pick me up. I'm back home, but the car is about 3 hours away. I talked to Dustin, but my phone was cutting out. Called him later and he hasn't answered so hopefully he just doesn't bail out on me. I mean, i don't want anything and theres nothing that really can be done. I just know if it was my car i'd be all over helping them out.

But anyways, i never wanted to take the thing to the dealer, but i had no choice. The idler is the one to the left of the supercharger.

Not a good start to the C32.. as i'm sure most of you can understand. Bunch of ****!

I guess **** happens though.

Whats everybody think this will cost me? It would cost me about 400 to get it towed up here, fix it myself, or should i take the fall and have a dealer do it?

Really its just an idler, and a belt.

And yes i'm very pissed.

A ran the car very easy the whole way, gas mileage was good, cruised very well. Just hate it came to an end like this. Been a long.. longg.. day. And the car runs fine with the belt off, i'm guessing its all okay. Just the obvious, no belt.

gt4awd

I would recommend obtaining a higher RPM idler bearing. You may not need the increased RPM handling, but they are known to be more reliable, and last longer. You should be able to source one through Eurocharged for cheaper than the OEM idler. Assuming the bolting area wasn't damaged you can put the new idler, and belt on yourself in about twenty minutes... Just go to the dealership, and do the work yourself in the parking lot! You may need to buy a good star socket set. I purchased a really good deep socket star set on Sears.com for $40 dollars. Think it was E4-E18 or something... I can get you the stock number if you want.

TemjinX2

I think the idler pulley is around $70 online. Probably like $140 from the dealer. If you were in socal, i could've installed it for you. Its honestly like a 15min install. The dealership will probably charge you about an hr of labor. SO i would $240 installed for the pulley.

The sc idler pulley tends to go bad usually after 60k. Then the middle idler pulley and the tensioner pulley. There all relatively inexpensive if you buy them online and install it yourself.

I think the oem belt is around $60 online.

02C32guy

I forget, what were Forza1's mods? Did he have a crank pulley? It would be cheap and easy to put a pulley saver kit on.

jturkel

iirc, forza had a 181 and machined down s/c pulley. he probably already had an aftermarket idler pulley with the high speed bearing.

to the OP.....Forza is legit/nice guy. he won't bail on you.

DrewZ9266

Do you know him personally? The way he talked i wouldn't think so, haven't called him today or said anything. Don't wanna be an *** about it, just wish i had some kind of help on the situation. And he told me he had a LET 185. It's on the ad, he emailed me that, and told me in person. It is a bigger pulley for sure. The bearing the SC looked new, and he did say it was a higher speed.

And i do agree he is a nice guy.

One of my first things i wanted to do was get a pulley saver kit. We'll see tomorrow when i talk to the dealer. See what they say, if its something crazy then i'll tow it back and do it myself.

JonMBZ

congrats on the purchase, I would normally expect a hate thread from someone who had this experience. I am a little confused though what was actually broken and idler puller and the SC pulley?

jturkel

no i dont know him personally, but we've communicated many times through this forum and other means and he is very knowledgeable about his car and others. really caring guy from my experiences.

now which pulley did you say the bearing went bad on? was it the supercharger pulley? the upper idler (staring at the engine bay, the one immediately to the left of the s/c pulley) OR the one below THAT one (which is the OTHER idler pulley).

if it is the supercharger pulley bearing that went bad, then all you need is the new bearing which can be purchased for like 40 bucks IIRC...and it needs to be pressed in

if it is the upper idler....those are cheaper probably to buy online at parts.com or autohausaz.com and is an easy DIY

if it is the OTHER idler, and i guess he switched over to the 185 (he used to run the setup i previously mentioned)....then it probably an aftermarket idler pulley with a high speed bearing that comes from LET/Eurocharged. IIRC, it is a different size than the stock pulley there, so a dealer replacement wont be a good option.

I have the Needswings Pulley Saver Kit and love it. i would recommend that if it solves your problem (or if it doesnt, i still recommend it). NW pulley saver kit comes with a belt too, btw.

DrewZ9266

it was the upper idler pulley. Only problem is where it broke, if they can get the bolt out. How would you figure a dealer would take that?

gt4awd

All dealerships are just there to empty your wallet... Never take their suggestions, or recommendations. The idler can fail without any notice. I really doubt Forza knew anything was wrong...

DrewZ9266

Oh of course, dealerships are horrible. I'm not a big fan of our local one. I hate the thought of it really. I think... it could go well and i be alright, or say i need to replace everything. And i overheated the motor and blew it up. WHICH... i did not overheat BTW. Car is fine. BTW, where they usually run? the ML and C32 run a tick above 80.

And no, their isn't any way to know if it would break. Not his fault at all. It happens.

gt4awd

I would consider normal operating temperature between 80C on cold days up to 100C on hot days...

jturkel

so if the upper idler broke, it should be easy to fix. basically, you unbolt the clamp hold it on....remove the emissions crap. then torque the tensioner pulley, slide the belt off to relieve that idler pulley of tension. take it off, swap it new one with new bolt (or whatever the assembly is)...and then reverse process.

my normal running temps are 180F and up. i've seen as high as 218F in the hot, arizona 118F summer temps.

jturkel

they shouldnt have to replace everything.....just that pulley/pulley assembly unless other stuff broke. make sure they don't touch the crank pulley, water pump pulley, or OTHER idler pulley b/c those are all aftermarket.

and what do you mean by "you blew it up" ? what did you blow up? i'm hoping you mean it just overheated and you had steam coming out b/c perhaps belt came off and water pump wasnt being driven.

DrewZ9266

Just wish the thing was here. Instead its sitting at a dealer 3 hours away. I'll let you all know what the say tomorow, maybe we can all have a good laugh.

and no... lol i didn't do that.. just saying what the dealer would say to me " well you blew it up ". I didn't overheat it at all. All is well

DrewZ9266

and i took this picture at the gas station right before i broke down:

i have more on my actual camera of it on the tow truck lol. I'll get to it later one day.
Just so much stress, i already have enough of it as it is, i'm gettin eye twitches now days.. start freakin out lol. Just can't be peaceful no more. Always something..

and the wheels are growing on me, not that bad loooking.. def. stands out..

I'd like it just lowered, SL55 wheels, projector headlights, standard grille

but i like it enough to keep it that way for now, Grille reminds me of Carlsson.. big round circle w/ their logo. Be kinda cool if i could find that and plop it on there.

gt4awd

When I bought my C32 the intercooler pump was basically shot, and I had a 400 some odd mile trip back home. Nothing like loosing speed going up a hill while you're driving a 350HP supercharged vehicle... You can imagine, and are probably aware of the disappointment. I do share your pain, lol...

DrewZ9266

Yeah, i just look at it this way.. it can happen to any car really. Doesn't matter of the year or anything. Just happens. Guy at work was telling me about an 05' Trailblazer he bought new. broke down driving it home. Basically a lemon after he told me everything. Oh and his wifes new CR-V has been in and out of the shop numerous times. It happens, just new cars have a warranty.

boohooramblers

Eyelid myokymia.
Likely due to you being overcaffeinated, really tired, stressed / anxious, hypokalaemic, or being alcoholic / on drugs.

Cut down on all of the above and eat a few bananas to see if that helps (hypokalaemia).

You're welcome.

Newzchspy

Like you said above, sh** happens and the failure of a bearing does NOT at all mean the car is a piece of junk or a lemon. It was old, got overheated and you were probably running higher RPMS on the drive home. Get it fixed, get a new belt and you'll be a happy camper.

DrewZ9266

Welp, got the calll, said something about a tensioner, new water pump etc. $1195.

jturkel

so nothing wrong with the upper idler? wtf?

odd that the tensioner got messed up. and they said your water pump (i/c pump) is out? or the corresponding pulley?

Dingleberry

outrageous.

get the car towed home and do it yourself

loungn14

would agree. The tensioner is cake to do, and the water pump just takes a little time.

c32AMG-DTM

To the OP - please check the diagram in the first post in this thread:

https://mbworld.org/forums/c32-amg-c...er-pulley.html

Was the pulley that failed #4, #6, or other?

If #4 (smooth guide pulley), and your car is running a 185mm pulley kit, then your aftermarket idler failed. It's mounted to the waterpump housing, and can likely destroy the mounting post when it lets go - requiring the otherwise-fine waterpump to be replaced. A $1k+ repair bill usually ensues, if you have a dealership or indy handle the job for you. Of note, the dealer service dept. probably won't be able to fix this for you without you sourcing them an appropriate replacement part, as it's not an MB part that failed.

Another somewhat recent thread that may be of assistance, in the event that it was the #4 pulley:

https://mbworld.org/forums/c32-amg-c...er-pulley.html

If #6 (ribbed guide pulley), your dealer's diagnosis doesn't make much sense to me.

Best of luck with your repairs.