Benz916

Hello guys. I followed the great DIY Joetwa and made the whole process fairly easy. I noticed fluid leaking down the passenger side of the convertible trunk cover. How do I go about replacing that line? Can I repair it? Try the dealership for a new one? I don't think Top Hydraulics sells them.

Here is a pic of where it's leaking from. Not sure which of the two is actually leaking. I will snip the zip ties and pin point it, but most likely its the one with the broken exterior.


THIS IS ABOVE THE SPOT WHERE IT GOES DOWN THE SIDE OF THE HINGE


THIS IS WHILE IT WRAPS DOWN THE HINGE

Benz916

Here is a pic after breaking the zip ties. The one with the metal exposed is actually not the one going to the rear bow lock, but instead to the passenger side plastic flipping thangy(the one that you keep hitting when working on car with it all opened up). That one appears to use a cable so I don't think the issue is there.

Top Hydraulics

Benz916, thanks for the detailed pics. Just to clarify for other readers, it appears that you previously had a leak in one or both of your locking cylinders 1298001672 for the rear bow lock 1247700426 and/or 1298000072 for the case cover lock 1247500684 (model years 98-01 up to chassis number 070017) or case cover lock 2087500984 (model years 01-03, starting with chassis number 070018). Joetwa's awesome DIY cylinder removal and replacement instructions can be found on Top Hydraulics' website: http://www.tophydraulicsinc.com/W208...eplacement.pdf

The failed hydraulic line needs to be replaced. Top Hydraulics manufactures new hydraulic lines for all modern convertibles, and the CLK is no exception. Just haven't had a chance to put the CLK lines on the website yet, but we have shipped plenty of lines going to the rear bow lock. Those would be line 47 with an angled fitting going into the side of the rear bow lock cylinder, and line 44 with a straight fitting going into the end of the rear bow lock cylinder. Mercedes p/n is 2088001481 and 2088001381. MB is often out of stock on those lines, and we charge less, anyway... :-)

Could you examine your lines a little more closely, so that we can find the reason for the failure? The hose material used by Mercedes is actually very good, and we normally see it failing only where it has been installed improperly or cut. You will typically only see a fairly short cut on the outside of the hose where it is leaking. Just to clarify, there is webbing under the outer jacket, and a core under that, all thermally bonded together. If there was stress on the line from being pulled and bent at the same time, then the crack is normally lengthwise. I am curious if there was a sharp object in the harness that may have cut the jacket instead.

Klaus

www.tophydraulicsinc.com

Benz916

MY CAR IS A 2000 CLK430 CONVERTIBLE WITH 81K ON IT.

Hello Klaus,

I took a few more pics to get to the bottom of the leak. Both lines leading to the rear bow lock have outer cracking(exposed) of the casing. The one furthest to the left in the picture has the most because the angle is sharper than the other hydraulic line(this one connects to the back of the rear bow lock so hydraulic line 44). It also appears to have a dent in it because of the angle. I recently picked up the car so I do not know the past history on it, but based on the zip ties and how neat it looked, it appears the lines were not messed with. It does have 81k on it. All the tabs, push clips for the carpeting all appeared to be virgin.

I can't seem to figure out which line actually has the leak it. Is there a way to figure that out? If I had to guess, I would put my money on the far left one. Maybe I should just purchase both.

Klaus...do you happen to sell the fluid as well?


The one all the way to the left



In this picture its the one closest to you

Benz916

So I decided to think why the line was kinked so much. So I put the ribbed plastic cover back on and you can see when the cover closes it put a major kink in the lines. When extended it looks ok. I feel as if there was a little less slack it would be better when in the closed position. So far this is all I have came up with.

Extended


In the process of closing

Top Hydraulics

Benz916:

good job! These lines are failing because they have been kinked. One of your photos shows the white webbing exposed under the black Nylon outer jacket, which is a sure sign of the hose already leaking or being ready to fail. The problem is apparently an installation error at the factory. We also see that on Mercedes W209 CLKs, on Saab 9-3s, and on BMW E46 3-Series. As I said, the hose material used here is actually very good. The minimum bend radius on these hoses is under an inch, which is impressive for a hose that can handle 10,000 psi. With the cover open, I don't see why there should be more than a wave in the hose assembly - just enough to avoid a pulling strain. As you can see, the bowden cable with the steel armor in it was kinked beyond its design limits, too.

Both hydraulic hoses need to be replaced. While only one of them might be leaking now, the other one would certainly be bursting soon. Now the question is what to do with the routing. I am looking forward to learning what you will be doing to take the excessive slack out of the bend in this assembly once you reinstall it. This would be a great help for fellow CLK owners!

The original hoses each have a two-digit number printed in red or white ink close to the hydraulic line fitting. That would be numbers 44 and 47 for these two lines. The manifold plate on the pump, which holds the lines in place, has the corresponding hose numbers engraved in it.

Two new hoses #44 and #47 (p/n A 208 800 13 81 and A 208 800 14 81) made by Top Hydraulics with the same German hose material are on the way to you. While Top Hydraulics also manufactures more flexible hoses with smaller bend radius, and thicker hoses with a larger bend radius, I believe that the AF1.8 hose used here is the best choice once installed correctly.

I just added the product to our website:
Both lines: http://www.tophydraulicsinc.com/en/w...nvertible.html
Line 44 (pump to the end of rear bow lock cylinder 1298001672): http://www.tophydraulicsinc.com/en/w...k-to-pump.html
Line 47 (pump to the side of rear bow lock cylinder 1298001672): http://www.tophydraulicsinc.com/en/w...k-to-pump.html



Klaus

www.tophydraulicsinc.com

Benz916

Klaus,

I will definitely get a detailed DIY for the community...it's the least I can do. Honestly, if we didn't have guys like you and other members here, these Mercedes would be even more expensive to own...lol.

Top Hydraulics

Awesome!

I have just created a poll, using your pictures below, to see if all hydraulic line installations in CLK convertibles have equally as much slack in that location. See https://mbworld.org/forums/clk-class...n-factory.html.

Klaus

www.tophydraulicsinc.com

navy99clk320

Hello,

I recently installed new rear bow and case cover cylinders, and to my horror, saw hydraulic fluid leaking from the rear bow lock area during initial testing.

Is connecting the lines to the cylinders difficult at all?

I'm hoping I simply did not fully seat the hose end...otherwise I just wasted $$$ on cylinders, when it was in fact a hose...

Serndipity

navy99clk

While W208 rear bow lock and case cover cylinders, are typically the first to leak and require replacement, the initial fluid leak you found could have been caused by a defective line.

Specially since the leak is still in the area of the rear bow lock cylinder that you mentioned in another thread.

Further inspection should determine if a line was defective.

lawrdent

It seems like projects never end but the love of my car pushes me forward. Last week as I parked my car at work I noticed oil leaking across my trunk. Realizing it was my hydraulic fluid I went to this site to see what others have done. I found this thread and have to say that it was amazing. I contacted Klaus from Top Hydraulics and he stated that it sounded like it was my Rear Bow cylinder and that most likely my cover case would be going soon after. He sent me the parts I needed and I followed the manual that another customer sent in. It was an very easy job and it all works perfectly. Thank you to Benz916 for great pics and Klaus for the help.