mjr24

Well, looks like it is time to make my bi-monthly dealer trip. The ABC light keeps coming on.....not the red warning one..but the blue VISIT WORKSHOP one. This problem has been present since the car was bought in Janu. 04.
Well, actually, it started last June. Then it would do it almost every other time the car was driven...the light would come on...and if I kept driving, one side of the car would become lower than the other. I had to turn off car and restart it to re-balance it.

I thought I had it fixed in November 2004 when apparently a blocking valve had shorted, causing this. I got it fixed...yet for about a week after, the light kept coming on, albeit not as much. It started to get colder here and it did not come on once the whole winter. It now is starting to get warm in the last 2 weeks and it has started coming back, the last few days it is constant. Any ideas?

Chip

You might want to take it to another dealer, if the one your using can't fix it.

mjr24

It is there now...hopefully they find the problem.

techbike

Good luck troubleshooting that. A related question...my CL squats on 1 side after sitting for a week or more. The red warning goes on saying ABC too low!. I start it and press the ride height button and she jumps right up. Is this normal?

mjr24

Mine ended up being a strut. There was a service bulletin out on this I guess that they would not have been able to identify if not for my rather specific description. My car would not do this during the colder months...only during the warm ones. My advisor said it made perfect sense from reading the bulletin why it would only do it in the warm months.

Jud Chapin

If I don't use my '02 for three weeks or so, the front drops and the ABC warning light comes on when started. Once I put it in gear, it comes right up to normal height. I don't know if this is normal or not.

AMG2GO

I don't think thats normal. Mine doesn't do that.

techbike

Nope.
Well...., according to 1 service advisor, it's normal. 2 Techies from mercedesforum.com said it is probably a leaking valve to the offending corner that needs to be replaced. I also ran into the Service Mgr of rallye motors and he said the same thing. Valve. Not an amergency situation but needs to be checked into service.
The tech suggested changing the oil (Pentosin CHF 11S) and filter and giving the system a workout; as that sometimes solves the problem. I tried it and my car is parked away at my other house so I'll se next weekend if it did work.

I bought expen$ive extended warranty that covers it so I'm checking it in in a couple of weeks.

Jud Chapin

I had the car in and they said "front valve block for ABC leaking internally". They replaced this item and flushed system. We'll see if it's fixed.

Vendetta

Checked my car in this morning for a routine service. While it's there, they're gonna look into why the car leans just a little to one side. I never get any warning lights or anything like that, and the lean is barely noticeable until you take a tape measure to the car. They're gonna do a complete diag on the system, we'll see what comes of it. I noticed that there was a recall for the ABC system on the 2001 CL (MB #2004070012), but my SA says my car is not affected. I have a warranty, so I'm actually hoping they find a problem to fix.

-V

techbike

V, This is what my car is in at Rallye for. (the recall) and also my RF droop poblem, which could be related. It doesn't happen when I use the car, but when I leave it out east for a week, the RF is down.

Vendetta

It's in there even now? Mine went in this morning. Let me know what they tell you. My SA said my VIN wasn't part of the recall. Less than 7,000 cars were affected by the recall. I'll PM you my number - reach out some time and we'll catch up.

-V

DarrenCT

...mine does that alot on the driver's rear wheel, no "abc" lights have come on yet, though. as soon as i start up and move fwd or back , she rises back to normal. going in for service soon, so who knows

techbike

...and apparently, the recall for the ABC hydraulic line applied to my car. They claim it's fixed it. No charge. Actually a good excuse to get them to change the Pentosin oil and filter for the ABC as it was part of the covered procedure. I was going to do it myself and found the filter's $60 and 4 cans of the Pentosin at $28 each!

I'm putting the CL back to sleep for a couple of weeks again so we'll see if it worked.

Vendetta

You're a lucky guy, bro. That's about $2,000 to fix if you weren't covered. They came right out and told you that your car was affected? I wonder why they didn't notice it earlier. At the dealerships, when they log in your VIN, it tells them up front if your car has any "open" recall campaigns and they fix it outright to avoid liability should, God forbid, something go really wrong. (This particular recall was in place to avoid engine compartment fires due leaking suspension fluids.) When was the last time your car was at a dealership?

I'm just wondering all this because maybe they were able to shoehorn your car into the recall even if was not one of the relatively few truly affected. A very cool thing for the dealer to have done if that's the case. If so, I'm changing dealerships.

-V

Vendetta

Just an update on the ABC situation... I pulled my car out of the service department before they actually fixed it. Reason being I just purchased the warranty last week and didn't want to raise any flags or make the guy that sold it to me look bad by having such a major repair so soon.

I'll wait a few weeks and then take it back. It's not critical at this point.

-V

techbike

Well, my car came from the deep south so I don't know how the dealers are down there. My dealership bends over backwards for me as I've bought maybe 10 cars from them over the years, my salesman, one of the top, is a fellow pilot and we fly together. Also, I've lodged 2 complaints with Montvale, NJ regarding new car prep and service and since then have gotten red carpet treatment each time. I even got a loaner even though I didn't buy this car from them. I also slip a 10 or 20 to the SA everytime I pick up my cars. Maybe my car wasn't part of the recall as it had been logged in previously and they never said anything. The car was also detailed when I got it back. I DID pay for a cable fix on a seatback flip lever.