Camshaft Position Sensors
Thread Starter
Junior Member
Joined: Jan 2015
Posts: 45
Likes: 5
2008, CLK 550
Camshaft Position Sensors
Happy Monday all! Hope you had a spectacular weekend. I have an 08, CLK550 with just at 150k. Codes indicate I need to replace my camshaft position sensors (according to my dealership) I bought a set of 4 from Pelican and ready to replace. The two on the passenger side head are easily accessible and will be a snap to replace. But - on the drivers side cylinder head, it appears that a coolant line (hard line, not flex) will need to be removed.
Is there another way, shortcut, magic trick that may work, or am I also in for a coolant flush when I do this?
As always I appreciate all the assistance received here.
Thanks!
Is there another way, shortcut, magic trick that may work, or am I also in for a coolant flush when I do this?
As always I appreciate all the assistance received here.
Thanks!
Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2018
Posts: 295
Likes: 24
From: Edmonton Area
2007 CLK550 Coupe, 2003 CL600, 2012
I managed to replace all 4 without removing anything. It is a real pain, but doable. Use a box end wrench, and the solenoid has to be rotated and manipulated but it does have about half a mm of clearance.
It took me an hour at least to get the one out. Just take your time.
It took me an hour at least to get the one out. Just take your time.
MBworld Guru
Joined: Dec 2009
Posts: 10,782
Likes: 1,011
NO LONGER ACTIVE
Are these the sensors or the solenoids you are replacing? The sensors are easy to access, but much more expensive. The solenoids are easy to replace, but as you found, the right bank is blocked by the top cooling hose and the oil cooler. I have heard that some members have been able to replace theirs without removing the oil cooler, but I was not. I could remove the bolts, but the solenoid could not be manipulated from behind the oil cooler. I did also remove that top metal cooling hose as it made the job easier. It might take an extra 30 minutes to drain a bit of coolant and remove these parts, but it's all easy wrenching. I would suggest replacing the gaskets. They will might be OK if you don't, but it's always a good idea to prevent leaks. Also, the oil cooler gaskets have been known to fail and allow coolant and oil to mix, mimicking head gasket failure.
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Jun 2008
Posts: 1,227
Likes: 61
From: Atlanta Metro
2008 clk550 - Navigator - Frontier
You might want to check that the driver side ones need replacing. I think it is the intake one on the driver side that is a real pain. I was going to change all 4 but someone had partially stripped one of the bolts holding that coolant elbow. So I replaced only three. The codes I was getting were for the exhaust and I found in my records that the difficult one had been changed by my indy at around 60K miles, so I left it for another day; and a code. The indy was probably who partially stripped the elbow bolt.
