j-mo

Wondering if anyone has insight on hwo to check this? Do you use the VIN decoder to check something? Delivery date is August 2011 which is late in the year so I am hoping it is not affected.

thanks in advance!

Valvestud

It's not affected.

To search on your own, you can either go here:

http://carinfo.kiev.ua/cars/vin/mercedes/vin_check and check it


or subscribe to MB Startekinfo here:

https://epc.startekinfo.com/epc/login.jsp

MB site is $75 for a one year subscription. The Russian site while free, only allows a limited (unknown to me) number of searches per day.

Alternately, just place your request in the forum.

Regards,

Joe

j-mo

Thanks a ton Joe! I did do a couple VIN checks and see the details. Can you share what to look for when checking if a car is not affected of not?

I'll probably need to look more up as my search continues.

thanks!

Valvestud

Go here to get a better understanding:

https://mbworld.org/forums/c63-amg-w...rly-2011s.html

The switchover is applicable to engine numbers with the last five digits of 60658 and above.

j-mo

Great! Thank you.

rnorthen

Bolts were rusted. Yes, still on MB antifreeze. I bought the car in 2012 with 3000 miles on it, the original owner had purchased the 7 year ELW warranty, which I transferred... I've serviced it consistently with my local dealer - have had zero issues with the car until this one. Glad it's fixed now, may be a permanent keeper.

It's an all options (lights, carbon fiber, P30, etc.) with no accidents - it's probably only worth $30k and hard to imagine finding another car I would enjoy more for anywhere near the price...

exhaustgases

The update bolt is a slight improvement. There is still alot of load on that thin flange. They should have used a large hex head with a slight flange under the hex, it would just make for a stronger bolt head. So here I am giving Mercedes some free engineering ideas. I agree with the use of ARP fasteners instead, and they probably don't cost as much either.

Jasonoff

Maybe if the flange was the problem, but, it wasn't.

chrisridebike8

People are running stage 2 and 3 superchargers on the updated bolts. And where are you finding ARP hardware cheaper? Updated bolts are like 20% of the cost of the ARP studs.

cabruce64

I was arguing with Ingenieur (who is now banned) four years ago about the failure rate of these head bolts. He stated that it's probably 60 in 60000+ engines (ridiculous). Here we are 4 years later with probably over 60 just reported on this site - and still going! In terms of wide spread it looks like plenty have failed down here in Aus too.

I'm now at about 90K miles and just had mine done (out of pocket - $5K Aussie) by MB - I recenty had it tuned etc which wouldn't help - and i'm paranoid.

They came out pretty rusty around the head of the bolt. In fact it looks like the rust was eating a circular cutout where the metal shaft meets the head - only a matter of time IMO.

hachiroku

my E63 came out clean and with zero issues at 117k. the shop told me it was a waste to swap out my head bolts. i've owned my car for 3 years and every year of ownership i've had the coolant drained and refilled with genuine Mercedes Coolant. i also drive my car hard pretty much every day.

Jasonoff

You have pics of them? Mine were nasty AF...

hachiroku

no... I was out of town when they pulled them out. told them to hold onto them, but they tossed them. they're my buddies so i believe them. basically he told me i wasted my time and money as they, "looked brand new".

i told him i want a clear conscience so i'm ok they're changed even if they were in perfect condition.

NickAMG

I have an 09 C63 with 133k miles, driven hard, no issues as of yet. Am I safe? Lol. Only problem I've ever had was alternator went out. I replace anything and everything if it's going bad, such as bushing, mounts, belts etc.

kamalpatel12448

Nick, nice to see such a positive story of the M156, given the TSB in place and numerous (horror) stories. Enjoy! Thanks for sharing.

Merc63

Its not really the corrosion, its the design of the bolt with the female torx head and limited material on the cross section of the head. Sure the corrosion doesn't help, but I think the flaw is in the design.

hachiroku

its the design, but corrosion once present can and in cases of failed engines seem to have gone deeper than surface level. some head studs folks have pulled out have major pitting which leads to the fact the bolt itself has been weakened drastically.

the headbolt design is subpar nobody is arguing that.

PJmak

So what exactly is the problem with these bolts?

Can someone explain please?

hachiroku

is something going on these days where all these members on MBWORLD can't read 1-3 posts prior to theirs.

Merc63

I never read that far back, been reading the same thing on here for too many years.

Merc63

Ive seen bolts with very little corrosion stretch or break completely. The corrosion appears to be on the surface for the most part. If the bolts make you nervous, switch them out one at a time with the revised ones.

asaud7

I just experience the dreaded failure. Took it my local indie shop and the set of bolts on the left was fully intact. They went to the right side and discovered a completely broken head bolt.

They'll be doing a complete replacement tomorrow along with the gaskets, lifters and cam gears. I'm thinking of having them do the spark plugs as well. Is that worth doing since they're already there?

bullitt69

That website is Ukranian, not Russian

The best tool I've found to decode the VIN in order to determine the engine number is the following:

https://www.vindecoderz.com/

hachiroku

sorry i meant the post prior to this and quoting your comments for him as he didn't read 1-3 post above.

MercedesDad

Hey guys,

60,000 miles and my ML63 has run like a top in my four year ownership. Not even a hiccup; ever. Even after killing Maseratis on the Interstate or towing heavy vintage AMG's on 2K mile trips.

That said, I have a couple extra bucks in my pocket and I am considering a head bolt upgrade for my own piece of mind. My idea is to keep my beast for many more years to come.

How do I know if my engine is in the potentially affected range? VIN is 4JGBB7HB8AA620104

Thank you and please keep up this informative thread.