Militia

Sigh. I was on the way from my office, and I encountered a flooded intersection, so I took a detour hoping to avoid having to go through such high water. I ended up getting stuck again, this time without a way out.. so my car started to shake drastically, and I pushed a little harder to clear safely. I ended up pulling on the closest driveway I could find, and rang up a friend to come get me. Before leaving, I decided to ring the homeowner's bell, and the lady ended up calling the cops on me. I was in a suit, but anyway.. I don't blame her. The police officer asked me to move the car from her driveway, so when the water cleared up, I drove it 10 mph for a few blocks to park it at a friend's place. This entire time, the engine felt as if it were shaking/knocking, with white smoke coming out from the exhaust & my headlights had also turned off. Also, the "grill" (I don't know the appropriate name) that's beneath the engine, is a little bent open. Although, that looks like it could just be clipped back in place.

I'm going to call my insurance tomorrow and get it towed to the dealership. Anyone else experience anything similar? The water honestly wasn't too high, as I chose that detour to avoid having to drive through flooded water in the first place. I'm a very anxious, so I was hoping I could get some feedback, or any past stories. Will insurance cover it (full coverage)? What probably occurred? Are there any other alternatives to try and clear the water out myself?

I've been in much worse situations and have gotten out without a scratch. I did not intentionally drive into this flooded area, and I was out of options. Flame me if you will, but please leave some advice while you do so

ZephyrAMG

If you have full coverage your INS company will cover because it was unavoidable.

If you claim it, it may be noted as water damage on carfax.

If you got water into engine or exhaust system, you will need service to clean and flush out, usually without mush long term luck. That kind of damage is super iffy...

Call tomorrow and good luck. Hope all is ok...

MB_Forever

Comprehensive insurance should be able to cover it, but the car's resale value will be shot. You may want to get a diagnosis from the dealer before creating a claim with the insurance company. If the damage is not too big, it maybe better to fix it privately through the dealer instead of going through the insurance company.

Militia

Thanks for the input guys. It has been about twelve hours, and I just tried turning the car on. It turned on like it would normally, but the maintenance light was on, and the white smoke was still present from the exhaust. So perhaps it's good news that the engine still has power, and maybe this will better help understand what possibly occurred; any clue as to what might have happened?

I was browsing around the forums and this has happened to a few other W-204's. Is this a design flaw, or do I eat all the blame here? Anyway, I'll be getting it towed to the dealer as soon as they open!

Militia

Has been towed to the dealership, but the earliest I will hear from them will be Monday.

What's the worst that can happen?

alqamzi

Hope it get fixed...

ZephyrAMG

The worst? The car could slide off the tow truck. You asked and I told you. I'm sure it will all get fixed. Don't sweat it.

ruthless

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5b1F...ext=1&index=18

The worst that can happen Skip to 3:12

maybe water got into the exhaust and thats what the white smoke is??

bhamg

I'm no expert in these matters but I assume the white smoke is steam from water being boiled off that has entered your exhaust system. The fact that it starts and runs normally is a great thing. If it were mine I'd have the oil changed and then drive it until the exhaust looks totally normal, and then for maybe an hour beyond that. I'd certainly get on the dealer to do what they have to do ASAP and then take it out for the day.

ZephyrAMG

Thank you. Exactly what I meant...

avengerboater

Youch! So sorry about your situation! Hope it gets fixed and running soon.

soldier2304

Get ready as i will not be surprised that even if your car doesn't have anything serious, and maybe only requires like an oil change and some miles to get that water out of the engine, the dealer might still "make up" problems to charge you money and who knows they might even invent issues with the engine (which dont exist) just to charge you out of your pocket. Right now they have you in their hands. Good luck I'm pretty sure it's nothing serious.

betrezra

Probably OK... I bet the white smoke is steam from the water in the rear muffs....... prob no big deal at all. If you injested water and something catastrophic happened it would have already occurred.......

Dealer should give you pc of mind.

AMGC43C55

bhamg

Not at all. Actually I wouldn't expect the typical dealer to want to release the car w/o some expensive "diagnostic/corrective" labor charges in a situation like this, whether justified or not. If it were mine I might want to have service drop all the underbody trays and take a good look for myself at what components might be at risk.

lomita

Change all your fluids, ie, engine, tranny, differential oil. If everything is working, and running smooth, shine all that diagnostic crap. Check your engine air filter. Might be a good time to throw away the paper element and switch to nice cotton filters. Clip your splash guard back in place under the vehicle.

Hope your air conditioning system didn't pump any water into the interior. Are the windows fogging on the inside when the car sits for awhile? Run an air purifier, ie, ( http://www.alpineairtechnologies.com/ ) to kill any mold for a minimum of half an hour with the windows up. Then if any fogging is still occuring on the interior, make sure to open the car up and get thoroughly dried out.

Don't sweat it. This vehicle was designed to get wet, just not forge rivers!

Now, for my own past story, went through some water in a Mazda B2000 little pickup truck. Water was up to the top of the raditor, just below the hood. I pumped water right into the cab via the heater fan. Engine ran like crap with half a cup of water under the distributor cap, but kept on running. The manual transmission oil and differential oil, when I dumped it, looked like grey liquid clay, about the consistency of a milkshake. Changed all the fluids and emptied and dried the distributor/cap. Was back in business after the great dry out.

Good luck!

Militia

They finished diagnosing the car, and these are the part I need:

*Head lights
*Fog lights
*HID Ballast Control Unit
*Throttle Bodies
*Splash Guard
*Oil filter
*Air filter

And as suggested, I also asked them to change all the fluids. The parts & labor will cost a few hundred less than 10k, so I'm just going to pay for it from my pocket. They did however say that it's a preliminary estimate, and that they might discover other problems upon replacement of everything listed.

I appreciate everyone who took the time to respond! You guys were very helpful, and I definitely needed it.

I'll update once I get my car back (probably not until next week)

ZephyrAMG

Nice to hear. But also remember what soldier said about now they have your car, you are distrought and they can start making stuff up. Look into whether you really do need a new splash gaurd and fog lights, head lights, throttle bodies..etc ( I am not sure how deep you were in but these parts needing to ne replaced...seriously???). I can understand filters but act like you are paying attention.

bhamg

Possibly too many parts. Throttle bodies...I don't think so. Any light housing that has gotten wet internally but is not cracked should be OK...I would remove the housing, take the bulbs out and rinse it out with distilled water. Sorry, I'm not buying that list but then again I haven't seen the car, but good luck.

bhamg

I might spray the inside of the throttle body with MAFS cleaner. Perhaps someone has a better idea...and get the used parts back!

avengerboater

Throttle body? Seriously? How deep was the water?

Sorry to hear that it'll cost you $10k, or possibly more from what the dealer is prefacing.

MB_Forever

$10k in repairs

iatacs19

If the engine did take in water and tried to compress it, wouldn't it bend the valves and cause internal engine damage?

emericr

I am sorry but something is not adding up. First let me state we all feel bad for what happened to you. However, from reading your original post, I will venture to say that most of us thought you went thru a spot that may have about 1 foot of water for a very short period of time, therefore the answers above that it should be fine.
From the parts that the dealer wants to replace, it would mean that your headlights were flooded and that would mean about 2 feet of water for a prolonged period. That is serious underwater driving...
So either your dealer is taking it safe (changing every possible part and charging you dearly for it) or we are not getting the full story.
Regarding the headlights, it should be obvious to see if they are still working or not and if there is water inside of them.
I would pay a visit to the dealer and ask to inspect every part they mention. Since it appears your car can run after the fluids are changed, then I would hold on all the parts they want to change and get a second opinion from a reputable electric shop.

black-clk500

+1


Also, I know it's not good to have a flood registered on carfax, but $10K+ out of pocket when factored later on when you trade the thing in, it might make more sense to call the ins.
I mean if you keep this thing 3-4 years, you might get $30K for it tops when trading it in, so would the flood title make the car worth less than $20K--I don't know, but I'd sure find out.
Not to mention if the engine is damaged at all cha-ching, I'd have my ins. on speed dial!
Also, if you're leasing it, which I'm assuming not, would the flood title be your problem?

You could always leave the keys in it at your local movie theater, hint, hint

Either way, sorry man that totally sucks a$$