Worst night of my life
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 261
Likes: 1
From: San Francisco
1998 C43 Amg
Worst night of my life
I was driving my c43 tonight and hit a gigantic pothole. The car bottomed out and my driver side tire Popped. Thank god I had enough time to stop. I replaced the tire with the spare. Everything was fine, but after driving 30 min or so the check engine light went on. Then 5 minutes later the engine rpm went below 1000rpm. The engine sounds like a desiel now. And something is rattling on the passenger side of the engine bay. I'm really upset I want to sue the ****ing city for having really bad roads like this lol. I just got my car back from the shop why do things have to get worst.
Last edited by vlad957; May 3, 2014 at 04:05 PM.
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Joined: Mar 2005
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From: America
1999 C43 AMG, 2005 E55 Wagon
Uh oh. Hole in the oil pan? Dead m113??? Did you check for any leaks or puddles underneath?
Perhaps it messed up o2 sensor cables? That's a bit scary man. Probably nothing severe but you never know. Have you inspected it yet??
Perhaps it messed up o2 sensor cables? That's a bit scary man. Probably nothing severe but you never know. Have you inspected it yet??
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...
I was driving my c43 tonight and hit a gigantic pothole. The car bottomed out and my driver side tire Poped. Thank god I had enough time to stop. I replaced the tire with the spare. Everything was fine, but after driving 30 min or so the check engine light went on. Then 5 minutes later the engine rpm went below 1000rpm. The engine sounds like a desiel now. And something is rattling on the passenger side of the engine bay. I'm really upset I want to sue the ****ing city for having really bad roads like this lol. I just got my car back from the shop why do things have to get worst.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 261
Likes: 1
From: San Francisco
1998 C43 Amg
I did a visual inspection after the pothole but didn't see anything unusual. Tried peaking around and trying to see if the oil pan was cracked, But it didn't look like it was dripping oil. It was dark and I was using a flash light also. The car ran great, but 30 minutes later it threw only the check engine light and then I noticed the rpm needle going up and down. So I stopped and Popped the hood and the engine was idling really rough. I turned the car off and started inspecting the whole engine compartment. I couldn't see any leaking or anything. After that I started driving home and started hearing a rattling that sounded like it was coming out by the dashboard by the front passanger side or the wheel well. It could be a bushing or a loose suspension part.
Last edited by vlad957; May 3, 2014 at 03:59 PM.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 261
Likes: 1
From: San Francisco
1998 C43 Amg
This was by a mountain area called twin peaks in san francisco. I was driving into the parking lot when the car bottomed out really hard. I came out right away to check what I hit and saw a big *** pothole. It sounded like I hit a deer or something.
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Super Member
Joined: May 2013
Posts: 522
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2002 C32AMG
could be you dented the oil pan and fubarred the oil pump....same thing happened to me in different type of car but in my case the engine oil lamp lit. I drove it slowly home another 15 miles.
I had a new oil pump installed and all was good again.
I had a new oil pump installed and all was good again.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 261
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From: San Francisco
1998 C43 Amg
Hey thanks ill check if the oil pump is damaged. So I called the city 311 and made a claim to have the pot hole fixed. I am also filing for a law suit claim against the city for damaging my car. I just spoke to a lawyer and he said that basically I need to take pictures of the pothole and show repair costs on trial.
Thread Starter
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2011
Posts: 261
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From: San Francisco
1998 C43 Amg
So I just checked the car in the day light and no oil leaks underneath. I started the car and popped hood and it's still running rough the engine sounds like it's rubbing against something I can hear a rubber sound. It sounds like it could be an internal problem. 
Last edited by vlad957; May 3, 2014 at 04:03 PM.
Super Member
Joined: May 2013
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2002 C32AMG
take a vid of it running poorly. you might be able to use it in your case against the city.
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Joined: Jan 2013
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From: MN, USA
C43 5.4, ML320CDI, Fords
Did you check the oil level on the dipstick? does the belt drive look ok. These oil pans are cast aluminum and pretty beefy, it won't bend but they can break, doubtful though. Check your oil level and look at all the belt driven accessories. Post a video of it running. If you think the potholes are bad in California, don't come to Minnesota after a rough winter..
That's not too bad though for a worst night in your life. Good luck with it.
That's not too bad though for a worst night in your life. Good luck with it.
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Joined: Mar 2005
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From: America
1999 C43 AMG, 2005 E55 Wagon
MBWorld Fanatic!
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From: New Jersey
1999 AMG C43
Wow. Listen to me. DO NOT EVER EVER POST SOMETHING ONLINE WHEN YOU WANT TO SUE SOMEONE.
Ok. With that being said, since you probably can't delete this post now. You probably can sue the city IF they had notice that a pothole existed and they didn't fix it. Bear in mind every state has different law, me being an attorney in New York cannot tell you what the law is in San Francisco. However, I can tell you that in NYC, we have a company who does nothing but walk around the city and report every single crack, hole, and defect in the sidewalk and road. You probably want to talk to an attorney in your area or do more research, you may very well have a case. Also please be sure of the date of accident, sometimes someone will think they had an accident on the 1st of May, someone reports the hole on the 2nd of May, and then after looking back 30 days or whatever, you realize the accident was the 5th of May. Those dates are simply examples. Good Luck.
Ok. With that being said, since you probably can't delete this post now. You probably can sue the city IF they had notice that a pothole existed and they didn't fix it. Bear in mind every state has different law, me being an attorney in New York cannot tell you what the law is in San Francisco. However, I can tell you that in NYC, we have a company who does nothing but walk around the city and report every single crack, hole, and defect in the sidewalk and road. You probably want to talk to an attorney in your area or do more research, you may very well have a case. Also please be sure of the date of accident, sometimes someone will think they had an accident on the 1st of May, someone reports the hole on the 2nd of May, and then after looking back 30 days or whatever, you realize the accident was the 5th of May. Those dates are simply examples. Good Luck.
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 316
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From: San Francisco, CA
1996 C36
First thing I would do is scan the obdii for the code. The jolt from the pothole could have dislodged a connector and the code might give you a clue as to where to look. Where is SF are you located? I think I know which pothole you hit. There is a massive one in the entrance to the vista point.
