NoS-LiVeD

Hi,
I'm a new owner of a 93 400E, just got it last month and had the garage do some work to it, New Front discs, brake pads all around, engine mounts and tranny's too, Air filters, engine and tranny oil filters, oil cooler hoses, Steering arms and shock absorber, expansion tank (old one was leaking, new one is a different shape than the old one?), expansion tank cap and new ATF and Coolant.

The thing is the garage seems to have used normal ATF fluid, not the MB stuff that comes in 1 litre packs (I gave him an unopened 1 litre pack and told him to buy more to add, when I got the car back the pack was unopened, even though he kept saying the ATF is MB specification, I have no reason to belive him) also the coolant is Blue colored part #0009890825, and I know for sure that MB's require the orange coolant, he also kept saying that this is the correct coolant for the engine.

So tell me guys, will I have any problems if I keep the ATF and coolant, or is it better to change them to avoid catastrophies in the future?

btw I think the coolant is not mixed with any water, can't be sure of that though.

hate having others work on my car, but don't have the time/equipment to work on it on my own.

One funny thing, I asked him to changed the brake fluid, He told me that it dosent need to be changed EVER only topped up, lol. Car seems to have the same brake fluid since 93! Braking is definetly not half as good as the 98 740il I currently drive, is this normal?

Thanks a lot W124 fanatics.

jeffreyli86

Hello mate,
AFAIK the coolant should be blue. The old ones are orange and MB changed them to blue-ish green in recent years. Hope this helps I'm no mechanic..

As for the tranny fluid. I used some equivalent product not the genuine MB stuff.. AFAIK, as long as your gearbox is not the 5speed tranny with a separate ECU, you won't have any problems using a substitute product.

Correct me if I'm wrong.

Cheers,
Jeff

mbmodem

U need to use genuine MB coolant or equivalent. I use Honda cooland in all my MBs (it has the same specs).

Due to the engine material, other coolants react with the metal and do not do a good job. So type of coolant is important.

Tranny and axel oil - I used Mobil 1 Syn. Seems to have worked for me.+

NoS-LiVeD

According to WIS i have the 722.354 Tranny which is the 4 speed, so no worries there.
Gotta call the dealer tomorro to check on the coolant, currently temperature dosent go above 90C even with the A/C on the coldest setting at 130Kmh.
The A/C is another problem, filling it with gas dosent last 24 hours! Tried both R143 and R12, gonna take it to the mechanic tomorro to spot the leak, hope it isn't the evaporator

Thanks for the help guys.

kwb210

you wrote:One funny thing, I asked him to changed the brake fluid, He told me that it dosent need to be changed EVER only topped up, lol. Car seems to have the same brake fluid since 93! Braking is definetly not half as good as the 98 740il I currently drive, is this normal?

Brake fluid NEEDS to be changed/flushed every 2-3 years. And it doesn't cost much...$45 to $85 dollars (the $85 was quote from MB dealer and of course using MB branded fluid Dot 4+) No offense but your "mechanic" is out of his mind if he states the brake fluid NEVER needs replacing. You say braking is half as good as...Well, duh! (no offense again) its got water in it! Brake fluid naturally attracts water/moisture and this changes the way the fluid compresses, it gets mushy. Plus the water in the system will soon rust out the system...master cylinder, lines, calipers etc. It's is far cheaper to flush than to wait for a huge replacement of parts. Yikes! Maybe its time to find a garage who has worked on MB's and still works on MB's. When I selected a garage I was attracted to one that had its parking lot full of MB's Porsches and BMW's. Not a guarantee, but a good start.
Good luck!
kurt
1993 300CE
new brake fluid as of next week

lkchris

Water in brake fluid is a legend.

http://www.babcox.com/editorial/bf/bf50412.htm

NoS-LiVeD

Hehe, you should have seen the look on my face when he said that

I'm not keen on going to him again, after I told him specificly to use the MB ATF fluid and even gave him 1 litre of it, and he ignored all.

Mechanics around here are all like that, i'm trying someone else tomorro.

I would flush the brake system myself (done that in the past) but that was a non-abs equiped car, and i certinally don't want to cook the ABS unit.

Kestas

Don't let the ABS prevent you from changing the brake fluid. Most MB DIYers change their own brake fluid without doing anything special to the ABS.

Except for the fact that the mechanic disregarded your reasonable wishes, I wouldn't fret over the transmission fluid. Regular Dexron 3 is specified for your car and will work fine. I can't understand why you insist on having $9-16/qt MB fluid when $2/qt fluid will work fine... just change it twice as often. If you insist on synthetic transmission fluid, there are many other good choices over-the-counter such as Mobil synthetic.

mbmodem, what does engine material have to do with coolant choice? MB, and all other auto manufacturers, generally use the same materials in their cooling systems - cast iron blocks, cast aluminum heads, rubber hoses, aluminum or copper radiators, etc. - with only a few exceptions. In my opinion, as long as all old coolant is flushed from the system, you can use any antifreeze you desire, though I generally recommend using Zerex G05, which is the same as MB antifreeze, only cheaper.

NoS-LiVeD

Kestas: I think MB coolant contains phosphates (sp?) and silica gell that apparently does good to the cooling system, on my car today temperature rose to above the mark thats above the 80 mark (what a way to describe eh?) I think thats a 100C, when it was 40C outside in traffic jam, think thats reasonable (A/C was off).

I'll sort the brake fluid once I repair the leak in the A/C system, the mechanic told me that the leak is coming under the dashboard (Evaporator....Glup). I'm hoping its not....

KWB210: i once changed brake oil in a 20 year old car, with 20 year old brake fluid, It was BLACK when it came out, unbeliveable.