My 2003 CLK-500 might be a lemon

Dec 24, 2003 | 04:06 PM

rocky

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Joined: Jul 2002

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From: New Jersey

2004 Audi S4, 2003 CLK 500

My 2003 CLK-500 might be a lemon

Well my car is once again in the shop for the 3rd time this month. This all started back on November 18th. I went out of town and was gone for less than 48 hours. When I returned and got in my car to drive and hit keyless go, nothing happened. I put the key fob in the ignition and nothing happened. Car was completely dead. I called roadside and had car jump started and I was on my way. The following week was Thanksgiving and I let the car sit for 3 days and guess what? Car was completely dead. DEJA VU all over again.I brought the car in for service and the dealership was baffled about what is causing the drain on the car. They received special equipment to attach to car to see what can possibly be the cause of this situation. After 2 weeks they said the car finally went to sleep, [ I never knew a car needed to sleep ] and they figured it was the SAM module That means Stand Alone Module. A fuse box or something in the trunk of the car. They replaced the SAM and I was on my way again, or at least I thought I was. 4 days later after the car was left alone for 24 hours, car was completely dead. Got jump start, went to dealership , told them when I get back from Las Vegas the first week of January that if car is not repaired properly they will be getting me out of my lease and into a 2004 CLK-500. If not, I will be exercising might rights to have the lease terminated thru the New Jersey lemon laws for automobiles. None of my previous cars which include 3 BMW's, 5 Lexus and 1 Audi have ever been in the shop as much as the Benz. All of a sudden a BMW 645i is looking mighty appealing. This is my 1st Benz, an experience I would like to forget.

Last edited by rocky; Dec 24, 2003 at 05:48 PM.

Dec 24, 2003 | 07:47 PM

RJC

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From: 2000 ft over the FL coast in a B-17

Various

Sorry to hear about your repeated issues with the 209. Unfortunately MB has taken a big hit in quality,there was an article in the trade magazine for major parts suppliers in Germany and they all noted that Schremp of MB is only interested in cost cutting and not on paying for quality parts. A friend of mine just purchased a new 04 sl 500 sport, after 2600 miles the new for 04 7 speed trans ccompletely failed and the car is now in the shop for a replacement trans...he is not a very happy camper. Mu 04 has been good so far except at 3000 miles my brakes are squealing whenever I come to a stop...very embarrasing:o

Dec 25, 2003 | 02:26 PM

Karl

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Your dealer replaced the wrong part. I would not be surprised since they call the SAM by its wrong name. SAM means Signal Aquisition Module!
Go back and tell them to replace the keyless-go control unit. THAT is what is waking the CAN up and draining the battery. It turns on the ignition.

Dec 25, 2003 | 04:40 PM

rocky

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From: New Jersey

2004 Audi S4, 2003 CLK 500

Karl, how do you know it is the keyless go unit that needs to be replaced? Thank you very much for your imput.

Last edited by rocky; Dec 25, 2003 at 04:47 PM.

Dec 25, 2003 | 05:41 PM

birdbirdbird

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I had the exact same problem with my 2001 BMW X5....the car would go dead if it wasn't driven every 24 hrs, dealers couldn't figure out what was wrong with it either....so i traded it for my clk500 and so far it been nothing but perfect...

Dec 25, 2003 | 10:32 PM

allenjdmb

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Joined: Nov 2001

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From: Georgia

E 63S Wagon Renntech, E55 Renntech, SL65, SL 55 030, ML, bunch of old ones--they come, they go...

FYI, our dealer here...

is in the process of installing their second 7 speed replacement on an SL 500 also. This one lasted 40 miles.
Amazing. I encourage you all to let NJ know of your dissatisfaction. As if they care.

Jan 2, 2004 | 04:30 PM

rocky

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From: New Jersey

2004 Audi S4, 2003 CLK 500

My CLK-500 is being dropped off at the house today. I am still on the West Coast and will be returning tomorrow. They claim after all the work was done that the reason the car would not start after the SAM module [ Signal Acquisition Module ] was changed, was due to a weak battery. We shall see very soon if the new battery solves the problem. I want to thank Karl for his imput. He might be right about the Keyless-Go control unit needing to be replaced. I will know soon enough after letting the car sit for another 24 to 48 hours. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO EVERYONE!