Brake Problems
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Joined: Sep 2004
Posts: 180
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'05 MB CLK 320A; '06 BMW X5 4.8is
Brake Problems
Let me start off with some background, this is an '05 CLK 320 Cab w/ ~6000 miles. For the past couple of months I have been having a weird issue with the brakes. The brake pedal became very soft and there is no braking until the pedal is at least 3/4 of the way to the floor and if you go to the floor (there is an audible click when this occurs) the car stops, but not very quickly and there is no indication that ABS has kicked on, either through a pulsing feeling in the pedal or a pump, which makes sense because the brakes don't seem to have enough power to lock the front wheels anyways. I brought the car into the dealer about 2 months ago and had one of the employees drive it, who said there is something definitely wrong with the car, however when I turned it in for service, I got a can't recreate the problem, brake operation normal. I couldn't ***** at them when this happened because I had someone else pick the car up for me, who said after getting the car back from the dealer that the brakes don't work. I immediately called 1-800-4mercedes after I got the car back and drove it, recognizing the problem was still there and they made arrangements with the dealer to have my car towed back because they deemed it not safe to drive. The dealer ended up replacing the master cylinder and draining, replacing, and bleeding new brake fluid. The pedal was back to normal for approximately a week or two and now it is doing the same thing. There is no indication of fluids leaking and two master cylinders going bad is highly unlikely, any suggestions?
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Joined: Feb 2006
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From: Louisiana
CLK350C
Originally Posted by mrkbbd
Let me start off with some background, this is an '05 CLK 320 Cab w/ ~6000 miles. For the past couple of months I have been having a weird issue with the brakes. The brake pedal became very soft and there is no braking until the pedal is at least 3/4 of the way to the floor and if you go to the floor (there is an audible click when this occurs) the car stops, but not very quickly and there is no indication that ABS has kicked on, either through a pulsing feeling in the pedal or a pump, which makes sense because the brakes don't seem to have enough power to lock the front wheels anyways. I brought the car into the dealer about 2 months ago and had one of the employees drive it, who said there is something definitely wrong with the car, however when I turned it in for service, I got a can't recreate the problem, brake operation normal. I couldn't ***** at them when this happened because I had someone else pick the car up for me, who said after getting the car back from the dealer that the brakes don't work. I immediately called 1-800-4mercedes after I got the car back and drove it, recognizing the problem was still there and they made arrangements with the dealer to have my car towed back because they deemed it not safe to drive. The dealer ended up replacing the master cylinder and draining, replacing, and bleeding new brake fluid. The pedal was back to normal for approximately a week or two and now it is doing the same thing. There is no indication of fluids leaking and two master cylinders going bad is highly unlikely, any suggestions?
considering that you are still a survey elligible customer. You might be having a problem with the ABS pump. Not common with w209, but i've seen them go bad on plenty 163 chassis ML's. Also could be an air pocket when adding the new brake fluid. If they say they can not duplicate, find some time to drive with an advisor or technician. Also get a new clk off of the lot and drive it to feel the difference! good luck!
